Puma Creative Factory: Did It Right

29 January 2013

Puma did it right.

Brands looking to boost their cool value in India ought to take note. Mix a handful of local tastemakers, an airy warehouse, a sunny Sunday afternoon, a globe-hopping soundtrack and lots of free beer. Add forty on-site tailors, case after case of pre-cut fabrics in a rainbow of colours and a bevy of cutting edge graphics by local artists and designers. Make magic.

On Sunday 27 January we at Wild City paired with Puma to bring The Creative Factory back to Delhi. Housed at The Warehouse at One Style Mile, glorious chaos descended as a handful of Delhi’s underground creative class poured through innumerable pieces of fabric in a quest to assemble uber-sexy custom versions of the classic Puma T7 track jacket; you know, the kind treasured by rappers and North Indians everywhere.

The assembly was the bulk of labour, but the finishing may have provided most of the fun. Rivets, studs, and assorted metal gizmos galore were on hand for those favouring a more punk approach to the T7, but it was the graphics that really stole the show. Contributions from Wild City, Shaa’ir & Func, WeThePpl, The Ska Vengers, UnMute Agency, and Peter Cat Recording Co. gave us punters a chance to rep some of our favorite artists in the country, and to do it in style.

And not only did we get to represent our favorite artists, we got to make our T7s with them as well. Frame/Frame, Teddy Boy Kill, Dualist Inquiry, Diggy Dang, Monica Dogra, and members of UnMute Agency and Peter Cat Recording Co. were all in attendance, and ended the night looking fresh. Flash Hardcor (full disclosure: me) provided a soundtrack of hip-hop, indie dance jams, and future R&B for our fledgling designers, and Wild City’s own Moniker closed the night.

For those of us of a slightly nerdier bent, the chance to see how our sportswear is actually produced was an unintended benefit of the process. The tailors were hired from an export manufacturer based in Noida, and told us that stitching just this kind of jacket (and not just for Puma) was their daily occupation. We hope that a bunch of arty South Delhi kids weren’t harsher taskmasters than their usual managers. At the very least, we saw a couple of them sneaking Miller High Lifes, and we commend them for their initiative.

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Words: Kerry Harwin

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