Can you feel it Luke?

I remember back in ‘95 when I was finishing Uni and preparing my final paper, a philosophical overview of the classical Chinese text “I Ching” and it’s relationship to change management in western thinking. Well for me it was as simple as black and white with bits of grey thrown in but to the lecturers, as one put it “it’s a foreign language”. He even went so far as to say I needed to include a piece at the front which explained the terms that I was using as they weren’t English, I was very confused so as prompted wrote a simple text of 1000 words outlining the basics in plain and simple language, they were clueless at this point they asked me to change my thesis and I kicked back and said ah well, if you can grasp it I’ve no real need to explain it and dropped the course. So where’s all this leading? Hold on, it’s about change and the daily flux of life.

So the “I Ching” basically believes that if something exists in the same time and space it’s connected (synchronicity) classical management theory states cause and effect. Change in management is something that has to be handled very carefully because people, it is believed, don’t like change. My argument is that the whole of life is about change and even our very existence is based on us breathing which is change and that chaos is a state of not changing rather than the management idea that chaos is brought about by change. This later got altered to chaos bounded by stability, which I think touches on the ideas I was arguing but let’s stick with basics.

So what has this got to do with anything? Well it’s about the flux of life, the coming and goings of fashion, the product life of a company or product, the “be nice to people on the way up as you’ll meet them on the way back down”, theory.

Example 1 - Inside prints
It was something we did way back with the Headstrong Eco design. Bristol based graffiti artist Eco did the Gothic Time Machine design and it was big bold and in ya face, we had been doing a few t-shirt designs and wanted to do something different and thought the design was a bit too in ya face so try it on the inside and as you wash the t-shirt rather than fade it shows thought more. Over the next year a few other companies started to follow suit and produce inside out prints, Element Skateboards, Obey, and Mada to name a few, but as the flux of time goes by 2 years down the line I’m on the high street just cruising seeing what’s happening there and wow inside out prints in a very big commercial shop at £2-3. A prime example of how design and acceptability changes with time. They also had t-shirts with prints on them that mentioned roots, reggae and dancehall. Has it really hit the mainstream? I’ve not seen it but you can buy the t-shirts.


Example 2 - You’ll meet them on the way back down
About 4 years back we approached a UK clothing company that shall remain nameless but do lots of camo, we were into the design and the company and who they are associated with they even had Future 2000 designing for them! Anyway we were talking with them about stocking the brand and they certainly did not want to be on an internet site. Well now they are selling to internet sites (we wont stock them) but what’s even more amazing is, what was a UK premium brand and ahead of the game fashion scene worldwide is now also selling its clothing online. God forbid but their jackets priced £100-200 are on the high street in discount, price cutting fashion outlets for £40-50. Anybody want to buy mine?

So as you can see the flux of life and small change effects everything, even the fashion and clothing world, as it was once coined “a butterfly flaps its wings in an Amazon rainforest and it rains in Wolverhampton” or something along those lines. We try and keep ahead of these changes and in so have to change as well but we always keep in mind another old Chinese story “bui gee” or “finger pointing” which was used once in a Bruce Lee movie, don’t miss the moon for looking at the finger that is pointing to it.

Example 3 - Fingers Pointing at the Moon
The Urban Shop is about to launch a new website in colab with Wolftown’s Tricksta and Battle Emcee’s Wolve. It’s set to be THE UK hip hop web base. Others may only see that but they are seeing the finger pointing at what it really is, a symbol of the trust between the 3 parties and the mutual respect that’s been developed over the years. From The Urban Shop’s point of view it’s even more, as it’s a chance for us to put back and to give a home for UK individuals that are perusing their dreams and goals against all oppositions and still coming out battling and doing it year upon year for little more than respect.

So back to the start and up to date with the master Jedi “Luke can you feel a disturbance in the force?”