Luke Tadashi on How Basketball Gave Him Structure and Purpose

Prior to Bristol Studio, the Los Angeles native was playing college basketball until he dropped out and enrolled at NYU. Wanting to meld his love of sports and design into a career, Luke, alongside Maasai Ephraim and Jake Fenster, created Bristol Studio—a brand deconstructing and reimagining the sportswear behind basketball. A childhood spent watching Kobe Bryant, Luke says basketball not only gave him structure and purpose, but mediated the often compartmentalized relationship of sports and arts. Drawing inspiration from his late grandparents, Luke used Bristol’s first collection as a visual homage to his grandfather’s autobiography, which detailed his journey from Japan to America post WWII. Sleek irreversible silhouettes paired with vintage adidas moon shoes, the collection caught the attention of adidas, leading to their eventual collaborative capsule. Many contracts and sleepless nights later, Luke and his team have completed two seasons with the brand. He admits that despite times of doubt during the complicated contractual process, it allowed him to be accustomed to the unpredictable nature of the fashion industry. Since then, the brand has produced Coachella merchandise, collaborated with New Era, and plans to work with Stance Socks. Still a relatively young brand, they hope to involve the community and culture of Los Angeles, previously holding concerts and concept centers in the city. https://hypebeast.com/radio https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/business-of-