MARKET
BRAND AND FASHION DESIGNER ,M
Market, the streetwear brand founded by Mike Cherman
Market, or formerly known as Chinatown Market is a streetwear brand based in Los Angeles. Created in 2016, from the mind of Mike Cherman. He grew up immersed in fashion from an early age, with a designer mother and a retailer father. The smiley brand was born after the experience of ICNY, the first brand founded when Mike was only 24 years old.
In 2016, after the bankruptcy experience, Chinatown Market was founded. A celebration of its New York roots and of the Canal Street Market. Which is a lively area of the city famous for the resales of counterfeit luxury goods. Starting from the resale of t-shirts and sweatshirts from the trunk of a car, the brand became known for its ironic and irreverent approach, graphic prints and tie dye patterns.
The world of fashion, which can no longer could ignore the streetwear phenomenon, gave rise to many collaborations. Notably, Nike, Converse, Vans, Puma, Timberland, Lacoste, and Crocs.
Chinatown Market
Chinatown Market changes name
At the beginning of 2021 a controversy about the brand broke out. Following the growing wave of anti-Asian hatred in the United States, Chinatown Market announced its decision to change its name by the end of the year through a long post on Instagram. An online petition requesting the name change quickly collected numerous signatures, including some exponents of the fashion world, and the brand found itself with its back against the wall.
“We should have done it earlier, but it’s never too late to do the right thing. Today we are announcing that we are changing our name. We are working with our partners and resellers to donate proceeds from existing products and work to fund nonprofits working with the AAPI community.”
The brand changed its name and all proceeds from Chinatown Market branded products was to be donated to non-profit organizations serving the AAPI community. This story shows how much the spotlight has turned on streetwear brands which in a short time, from niche companies, have attracted the attention of the fashion system and consequently of the media.
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