In the early 2000’s customization was the big thing. A lot of people took it upon themselves to recreate, remix, deconstruct already existing products. Some people even became famous for their “Remixes” like Dr. Romanelli, Sabotage and guys like Methamphibian.These guys became so popular that companies started hiring these guys for legit collaborations. Maybe that was the slow death of DIY’s (do it yourself) or maybe it was the evolution. Companies started smelling the DIY trend and started offering programs to consumers like Nike ID, The Bespoke program and Converse customization just to capitalize on the growing need for ones own unique piece. I believe Vans was one of the early adopters of the DIY & consumer experience.
I don’t think much people are paying much attention to the guy on the block painting sneakers these days, I feel that type of DIY is pretty much finish. The evolution has become company sanctioned DIY’s projects like what happened at OTH a couple weeks ago. Nike invited me down to the shop to customize my own AW77 Hoody which you can see above. I wanted to do a bit more but time was not on my side, I was only able to get a few patches on but I still love it. It really feels like mines!
