Today we’d like to introduce you to Francis Forbes from Square Rootz Clothing Co.
Francis, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I am Francis Forbes from Square Rootz Clothing Co. some may know me as “Franchise” or “Fujimoto” or even “Franchise Fujimoto”. I was born and raised in Miami, FL; Dade County 305 till I die, also spent some time in Jamaica as a child bouncing back and forth with my parents while they worked hard to get our lives situated in the states. Growing up as a black kid in the 90s in Miami during the surge of Hip Hop, as the culture grew; the one thing that stood out to me was the clothing and the style. When it came to clothing/street fashion, New York had a style, California had a style and even though we have summer year-round; Miami also had a style. Growing up, I couldn’t afford any of the cool shit I’d see in the music videos and magazines, but until the day that I could; I would just draw everything that was cool and unattainable to me. At a young age, I was into everything creative and dreamed that one day I’d build a life and shape my future with my art. So entering the creative field in anyway was the mission I set forth.
On August 29, 2008, Square Rootz Clothing Co. was established, but the actual idea/plan for Sq.Rootz all started one year before on the front lawn of my cousin/partner in the business home where I expressed my frustrations on fashion as well as the culture of streetwear in Miami. At the time I noticed a lot of my favorite clothing brands (Diamond Supply, Black Scale, Supreme, Bape, and Palace) were coming out of LA, New York, London, and Japan, and the only way to get these brand was to fly out to get it or shop online, given the company had a website by this time. Mostly the successful brands had websites, while everything else you can get in malls were just commercial bullshit brands, nothing unique or tailored to your style. I thought it was time for us to make our move into the market and create a brand that stood for more than just short-lived trends and hype.
We felt like not only Miami but our community needed some type of representation in streetwear culture because to be honest, Miami’s only identity in fashion is beach/swimwear, shorts, jerseys and lightweight loungewear; as for streetwear out here, it only goes as far as sneakers. Now I’m not saying that there isn’t a community of streetwear enthusiasts and hypebeasts out here, it’s just small pockets and scattered groups that you’d usually only see when Sneakercon came around, this was around 2006-2008 when SB Dunks were trailblazing through the culture so widespread that even Miami got a taste and really brought about a new look on streetwear to the masses, so at the time as a sneaker enthusiasts (not a sneakerhead), it was only right that we get our feet wet and jump into the game to provide some heat for the individuals who understood their style.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been a smooth road overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Haha, smooth road? No way, soooo many obstacles, sooooooo many challenges and still today we continue to jump over obstacles, maneuver around the struggles and face head on all challenges. We all know that in life nothing comes easy, so there’s always going to be a road block or detour you have to deal with in order to reach your goal. Luckily I’ve had my fair share of struggles and failures growing up so I’ve become a professional at rolling with the punches and knowing when to strike when there’s an opportunity. We came into the clothing game at a time where the internet market place and social media wasn’t what we know it as today. It was more so about keeping connected with old/new friends and you would only shop online if you couldn’t find what you wanted in the stores. So the rough road that we had to go down was understanding how we were going to afford the cost for printing the shirts, finding a web designer for the site, someone to do marketing and also decide if we should open a store. At the time, I was just printing shirts for myself and friends who asked; they were actually my test subjects, and at the time all I knew how to do was print the shirts in the style/technique I knew best, package it, and make the sale. Although that sounds easy, the BIGGEST struggle was actually learning the business and turning a hobby into a business. After seeing my art walking through the streets, put together with wild outfits, it became evident that t-shirts/clothing was the canvas I’ve been searching for my whole life.
Square Rootz Clothing Co. – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am Co-Founder and Chief Creative Director of Square Rootz Clothing Co. a Miami streetwear fashion brand infused with Japanese pop art influences as well as original graphic character illustrations. As Chief Creative Director, I am responsible for EVERYTHING design, of course…haha…but mostly; sourcing the best garments/materials for production, approval on the designs we print as well as choosing the most reliable print shops to use for printing in bulk. When I’m not thinking about design, inventory and printing, I’m sharing other heavy loads of work with my business partner in order to maintain daily operations.
I specialize in character illustration design as well as a stencil and screen hand printing style used for my custom client t-shirts. As for Sq.Rootz Clothing Co, we are known for our lifestyle Logo and Dead Teddy graphic tees, active apparel like; Hoodies and Crew Neck Fleeces (Sweatpants and shorts we usually do special orders or pop up events), we also carry daily essential accessories such as; mugs, fanny packs, pillows and beach towels, all which are available on our website (Sqrootzstore.com).
With my clothing line, I want our consumers to know that culture and creativity are reflected in our piece and we strive to provide quality products that cater to all walks of life from the young to the old. All we ask in return is to never forget the qualities that make you the individual you are today. In other words, “Know your roots and stay fresh.” What makes the brand different is I am an artist first, so the garments are my canvas and the drops are pieces of time; a reflection of what’s going on in the current or the past and sometimes how I see the future.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I am extremely proud to be able to continue running a business that has a loyal group of supporters we call “Rootz Fam” but as a collective we are “TEAMSQUAREROOTZ”, not only in the US but also International. They keep us motivated and excited to continue working smarter to produce more quality lifestyle pieces they can feel proud to wear.
Pricing:
- Graphic Tees $28-$35
- Fleece Hoodies $40-$55
- Hats $32-$35
- Bags/Accessories $15-$45
Contact Info:
- Website: Sqrootzstore.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @fujimoto3 and @sqrootz_clothing
- Facebook: Facebook.com/MrForbestoyou
- Twitter: Twitter.com/Square_Rootz
- Other: Freshkeptgoods.tumblr.com/archive
Image Credit:
@meritmut_nefer
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