What has Stussy meant to you?

Matt: Growing up skating in the UK though out the early 90's - I remember Stussy being the one brand that I wore that had an association for me with skateboarding and with the US. Seeing that I moved 4 times from the US to London and back again both where important to me at the time. Now years later Stussy is once again important to me but on a different level. Being able to add Stussy to the United Front family here in Canada completes the perfect retail experience. You can’t find a better segmented shopping experience anywhere in the world. The Stussy Chapter stores completed that goal for me.

Describe a little the streetwear scene in Canada, generally, and Toronto, more specifically. How has it grow over time? What has it been like to be part of the development?

Matt: Frustrating to say the least... At the time when Goodfoot was first opened, there were no other retailers like it in Canada and only a handful around the world. You can imagine building a business around a small group of core customers (thank you!) but dealing with large corporations to try to get them to understand a subculture that drove the mainstream but didn't produce real "numbers" on the sales floor. None of the companies could grasp this market and in Canada it is still a bit of a stretch to this day. That being said the growth in Canada in the past 5 years has been amazing. Shops are popping up all over the place and everyone’s younger brother either wants a sneaker shop or wants to start a T-shirt line. This is a good thing - keeps everyone on their toes.

As a brand, Stussy encompasses such a great range of what comes under the "streetwear" rubric. You've kind of done the same thing with your shops. How does that help you fit into Toronto and Vancouver’s retail scene?

Matt: With the addition of Stussy to the cluster of stores in (Goodfoot, Ransom, Nomad) Toronto and Vancouver’s retail scene, well Canada's retail scene is really just United Front. Haha. Kidding. The "scene" is really comprised of a couple of well-established, 20 year plus stores (e.g.. Holt Renfrew) that have had a strangle hold in Canada as far as interesting and progressive retail goes. They are the stores that where pushing design, display, build-outs, etc. In Canada in the past in the 80’s and 90’s. We are now where these established companies go to see what is going on in the design, buying and on the merchandising side of the business. It’s interesting to see this flip. Stussy has further put the stores across the country on the map as the go to, one stop shopping experience.

It seem that in street wear, it is important to balance the global nature of some of the brands with a local feel. How do you feel you've been able to do this with Stussy starting out?

Matt: I’m going to give credit to where it is due - The staff of the stores and in the UF office is the reason why we could launch Stussy with great success. We had so many talented people lending a hand to build and set up the shop. The reason it feels local is because it is local. This along with the fact that Stussy does a great job is being relevant in the market. That is one of main things that always impressed with Stussy design. Is that they are relevant in every market. A tee can work here in Canada as well as German and Japan. What other brand has that reach? I can only think of a few.