Even before the emergence of the internet and its effects on streetwear, the culture was always a worldwide phenomenon. I was able to sit down with Greg, one of the co-founders of Triiad and the street culture web-based magazine BKRW. Greg was in at the beginning of the street culture scene in France and Europe, and some of the things he created years ago with his brand Triiad are concepts that many of the current brands are just starting to catch up with. Today his website BKRW has quickly become a solid reference tool documenting street culture’s history and current trends. Interview by Elijah

What about the graffiti inspiration in Triiad?
    
The graffiti inspiration was simple. First things for me, first touch of hiphop, it was ‘81, with breakdancing and hiphop. But I was really too young. I was only 11 years old. In ‘85 I met one of the most famous graffiti artists in France, Bando. I went to the Spot in Paris, where everyone was painting and everything. And I said, okay, this is my life. I don’t know why, but that changed my life. I saw the first graffiti mural, but not only murals. I saw all kinds of things, because in France in ‘86 The Spot was the only place where you could meet everyone. Break dancers, graffiti artists, DJs; everyone was in the same place. When I arrived in this area for the first time, it was like a new family in some way. This was in Paris, Stalingrad [a neighborhood], and the spot was La Chapelle. I went to New York in ‘86. I saw the trains, the street, the clothing. Everything was beginning for me; this was what influenced me. That’s why I know a lot of people in the graffiti world, and that’s why in Triiad we started all the co-branding. It’s funny because today you can see co-branding with artists everywhere. Triias’s first co-branding was in ’99. When we opened the store, we did the opening with Futura 2000. Since the beginning, we did in-store art shows. We did shows with Crash, She-one, Futura , Stash, Jonone, A-One, a lot of people. Even now, graffiti is in my blood. This is really a big influence on me. I come from the old school, so it’s true that I’m not so familiar with the new school. But I’ve always got one eye on it.

Can you talk about the early days of streetwear in France? What was there before Triiad?

Before Triiad? The first brand in France was Homecore. It was in ’91. It had only two stores in France, one in the South of France and one in Paris. I think one in London also. The real beginning was just the follow-up of hiphop wear. I started my business with importation. I started with sneakers, with Troops, Double Move and these kinds of things. I met people like Stash and Futura when they started their first brand, called GSS. And I met the guys that did the brands called King Ping and PNB. It was really the beginning of streetwear in the US also. With Russell, SSUR, you had Chic Wear in LA, Eggs in LA, all these kind of brands like Fuct. So for us, nice, we had some new influences, so let’s open a store. A friend of mine, Alex, the creator of Homecore and Kbond, is still my partner today. He opened a store, Ballistic, in the South of France. They started to introduce these kinds of brands in France.  Within two or three years, it was the beginning of streetwear. After three years, we said, okay, it’s nice, but this is the US market, it’s only t-shirts and nothing else. We need different things. In Europe, fashion is really respected. We need more things than t-shirts. So we said, let’s try to do a brand. Homecore started a few years later with jackets, with shirts, with pants, and Triiad also started in the same way. So the real beginning was with the US market, and after that we followed, and it’s the same today.

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