There are certain brands that linger on your mind from time to time… for instance Nike, who would’ve thought a simple check would be placed on a pedestal by the whole world. Kenneth shittu, Creator of the brand Shisty, comes from the same iconic cloth, remembered by his distinct logo being an S traced with a red outer layer, underlined by green and blue lines, which can’t be forgotten. From his clothes being Worn by artists like Jacques, and Sauce Walka, to having multiple fashion shows around Texas, Shisty has been known as “the color of streetwear.” Enjoying this opportunity, we got the chance to talk with Kenneth shittu about how he started the brand and some of his goals and inspirations.
Originally born and raised in London England, then moving to Nigeria for 7 years, Kenneth ended up relocating to southwest Houston Texas in his late teens. The brand came to fruition after being inspired by one of his “good friends till this day” Kenneth says, “he had a business selling the shoes that looked like vans that would light up on the bottom… he had made X amount of money on it. So i was like damn, i would love to start a business.” At the age of 18 Kenneth began brainstorming things that he actually enjoyed which were “clothes, fashion, and shoes”. After discovering his niche Kenneth explains, “ i sat at the dinner table in my house and legit went on a website creator and created a website, i just called it Shisty.. i even spelt it wrong. It’s supposed to be spelt with an E, i forgot the E.” That’s usually how the greatest things are made, with mistakes ending up turning out to be loved.
While attending University of Houston Kenneth would spread his name around the city by promoting at night clubs. Running with the name Shistypromo, kenneth knew he had to stand out which led to his iconic logo design. “I needed a logo to represent myself, so i ended up making a logo on my phone. It was bit more rounder, so i took it to one of my friends that had a design company at the time… he ended up re rendering it properly…. I never changed my logo after that. It’s one of those things like, once you see the logo you know exactly what it is….. like is this guy doing voodoo.”
With the website made, Kenneth had to find a way to fund the clothing. Only being 19, Kenneth says “I got 200 from my mom and made t-shirts and hats and just took em back to school and sold them, from there i repeated it again and again and again, until i had a lot of money, then I took my money and decided i wanted to do some cool shit. So i found a manufacturer and began making my ideas come to life.” When looking for manufacturers, usually people would struggle having to find the right one, but for Kenneth, it seemed like fate only dealing with two manufacturers, he chose the company with the best samples.
Getting to this point hasn’t been the easiest task of course for Kenneth, it takes discipline and self reflection. As he says “i always call it like, always tryna level up, you reach this level and it’s like… there’s no ceilings to your capability, so can you do better than what you did last time….. I’m personally hard on myself for a reason, you can’t be afraid to fuck up… mistakes build character.”
Designers are always inspired by something, wether it be a woman, music, or movies. For Kenneth, it boils down to art. He says “What inspires me is art, color schemes of art, color schemes of past brands that are fire…. all clothing is, is bits and pieces of art from other places, like you can see it anywhere. You can take those bits and pieces in your own way and make it your own, with your own futuristic idea.
Everyone has a few flaws of course, no one’s perfect and Kenneth opens up about his. “I’m more of like an artist, super creative and know how to do a lot of things… but now I’m working on more of the business side, I’m doing my masters in business currently at UofH.” A real dope creative business man who still believes in education.
Being a designer that’s created a cult following, Kenneth says he still has aspirations to be a designer at Nike. “Imagine I’m working for Nike…. The amount of resources I’d have would be crazy.. it’s gonna happen.” But the Aspirations don’t end there, Seeking to make a statement in our generation, Kenneth sees himself with having a big store, fashion shows in New York, his hometown london and contributing to the world of fashion.
