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http://www.babyboomer-magazine.com/news/165/ARTICLE/1207/2016-04-11.htmlBaby Boomers:
• Have more discretionary income (wealth) than any other age group
• Control 70% of the total net worth of American households - $7 trillion of wealth
• Own 80% of all money in savings and loan associations
• Spend more money disproportionately to their numbers
• Account for a dramatic 40% of total consumer demand

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Whether it's Sean Penn wearing Vans in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, the macabre imagery of Nas's lyric "Woolrich, Carharrt, gun powder stains", or the many fetishised descriptions of shoes throughout hip-hop ("I sport New Balance sneakers to avoid a narrow path" and "my Adidas walk through concert doors and roam all over coliseum floors"), it's clear that streetwear pervades our culture.

While streetwear is synonymous with cities such as New York - and "the streets" in general, wherever they may be - its origins can be traced back to early 80s surf culture. Shawn Stussy, founder of the eponymous clothing brand, started his business selling surfboards and T-shirts on Long Beach, California in 1980. Stussy has since grown to be a figurehead for what is now seen as a predominantly urban genre.

By 2011, the global streetwear industry was valued at an eye-watering $60bn (£47bn) by Reuters. But just what is it about cities and their streets that makes them such effective bases for a successful brand?

By highlighting the subcultures and cities from which they have emerged, streetwear brands anchor their roots in authentic subcultures. This type of marketing targets millennials in particular, who, it is said, respond well to brand authenticity. In America, millennials constitute the majority of the voting age population and the workforce, and so are clearly an important demographic for streetwear labels to address.

"Perhaps the most sceptical group of consumers are the millennials," says Dr Dimitrios Tsivrikos, a consumer psychologist at University College London. "From the number of field studies I have conducted and my work as a brand consultant, the number one parameter that seems to both entertain and engage millennials is the authenticity of certain brands.

"While the word 'authentic' is perhaps the most popular and overused marketing term at the moment, in the eyes of the millennial, authenticity equates to edgy and upcoming cultural hubs. But this is not news to the marketing and branding audience," Tsivrikos adds, "because these new hubs are simply a contemporary extension of the 'made of' factor that used to attract consumer attention. Think high fashion and Paris, or cars and Germany."

It may be the belief that urban subcultures are founded on love, rather than money, that makes them seem authentic. While it is possible to find ways of making such activities lucrative (the Banksy film Exit Through the Gift Shop, for instance), on the whole they're seen as coming from the grassroots, and unfunded.

In the eyes of the millennial, authenticity equates to edgy and upcoming cultural hubs

Dimitrios Tsivrikos

Europe's largest street art and graffiti festival, Upfest, is still free, and according to its organiser, Stephen Hayles, "the ethos of the festival is all about inclusion," he says. "We like to include as many artists as possible, and also make it as accessible as possible. With the art being on the street, the artist is giving up their work for the people to view and comment on. There's a self-indulgence on the part of the artist, because they want to put their work out there, but also it is a gift that the artist is giving. To try to charge for that would go against the principles of graffiti and the ethos of the festival."

While we have to pay to spend time in many parts of the city, with areas of free public space being diminished, many subcultural activities take place free of charge. Just think of Long Live Southbank's vehement campaign to keep the undercroft a public space, or that Grime music, which is now in the limelight after the Mercury awards, was originally disseminated via pirate radio aerials on top of housing blocks just off Roman Road in east London's Bow.

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The largest street art festival in Europe is still a free event. Photograph: Matt Cardy/Getty Images

These lifestyles are particularly relevant to millennials, many of whom work a part time job to support an unpaid or low paid career in something that they are passionate about.

DIY culture, which is all about making things happen yourself regardless of money or job opportunities, has grown as a result of the cohort's access to technology. Amy Spencer, author of DIY: The Rise of Lo-fi Culture told me that it "has always existed ... DIY culture tends to increase at times when we have access to new technology. So, the rise in DIY culture at the moment is because now more people than ever are able to do it themselves. There are opportunities to reach audiences that we couldn't reach before."

If authenticity means doing things ourselves - for love, and not money (and interacting with the city on our own terms, without paying to be there) - it could be argued that brands can never be truly authentic when their ultimate aim is to capitalise on their roots in urban subcultures.

Indeed, the most successful brands can keep their consumers feeling grounded and authentic with faux rips in their jeans, as though they too participate in subcultural activities.

But this line of thought does not play into the prevalent narrative, which is so commonplace in contemporary rap music: that we can all start from the bottom and work our way up to the top. When hugely successful streetwear brands invoke their origins in cities and their subcultures, they reinforce this rags to riches narrative in the consumer's mind, and present it as a tantalising possibility for them also.

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The House of Vans event space was an attempt by the company to reconnect with its urban roots. Photograph: Vans

Supreme provides a good example of how a brand can successfully capitalise on its origins in an urban subculture. In April 1994, James Jebbia (who had previously helped to open Stussy's flagship store in New York) opened Supreme on Lafayette Street in downtown Manhattan. The spacious shop, which cost around $12,000 to open, stocked clothes for an older demographic, which skateboarding brands had previously neglected. The shop has since grown into a brand, and in 2012 James Jebbia's net worth was estimated at $40m.

Although Supreme now has a global audience, it remains exclusive with only 10 stores worldwide, six of which are in Japan. As well as having a large following in Japan, they boast an impressive online community of users that discuss, buy, and re-sell Supreme product. SupTalk, a popular Facebook page for Europe's Supreme fans, has over 60,000 members.

Vans, which is now owned by VF Corporation (and according to Forbes, in 2015 was expected to make $2.3bn in sales), created the House of Vans events space in an effort to remain engaged with its subcultural origins. The site in Brooklyn hosts live music, art shows, and skateboarding events.

Doug Palladini, Vans Global Brand President, says: "House of Vans can be a large, permanent space in London, or a pop-up, moveable space winding its way across Asia, as long as the brand comes to life at every stop. This allows us to strategically place ourselves, down to the right street corner, and stand out with a bespoke, 'can't miss' experience."

However, brands are not always successful in their engagements with cities and their subcultures. When Dr Martens commissioned a piece of art to be painted in Stokes Croft, Bristol, many felt that the advert jarred with the spirit of the place. Tsivrikos commented, saying that:

"Such acts are perceived by millennial customers to be too obvious, and very much against the ethos of graffiti culture, which still holds elements of the anti-establishment movement and believes in artistic expression. When brands engage in such ill-advised acts, they are putting themselves at risk of being perceived as too obvious, far too commercial, and disrespectful of the local rules. These are qualities that go very much against what a cool zeitgeist brand is perceived to be by their number one customer base: the millennials."

Brands tread a fine line when they sell the rags to riches narrative, which hopeful millennials buy in to. Are high priced goods commendable, because both our success and the success of the brand is predicated on them, or simply a sign that the brand is out of touch with the lifestyles of its target audience?

Whichever way you look at it, many of these brands have genuine origins in urban subcultures, and appear to a lot of millennials as the last vestiges of a world in which there was such a thing as social mobility.
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From Dr Martens to Supreme: what makes urban brands so alluring?

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Whether it's Sean Penn wearing Vans in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, the macabre imagery of Nas's lyric "Woolrich, Carharrt, gun powder stains", or the many fetishised descriptions of shoes throughout hip-hop ("I sport New Balance sneakers to avoid a narrow path" and "my Adidas walk through concert doors and roam all over coliseum floors"), it's clear that streetwear pervades our culture.

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Seeing your Grandpa Charles in black socks and sandals is still occasionally funny, but it's high time for some new material. Problem is, there's no way he'd ever wear a Cuban links gold chain and marijuana leaf winter hat. However, Dai Lyn Power somehow found a gang of octogenarians who would wear such items-and boy did they.

Power's Tumblr features a brain-changing portfolio of old, very old German people wearing an array of streetwear getups usually worn by today's teens, including clothes and accessories from HUF, Supreme and more. We say bravo to these seasoned seniors for having the guts to show the kids how silly they often look in the same gear. [ Via]

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Old People Rocking Streetwear by Dai Lyn Power | HiConsumption

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Seeing your Grandpa Charles in black socks and sandals is still occasionally funny, but it's high time for some new material. Problem is, there's no way he'd ever wear a Cuban links gold chain and marijuana leaf winter hat. However, Dai Lyn Power somehow found a gang of octogenarians who would wear such items-and boy did they.