Who are Guts and Glory?
Guts&Glory are an art and design duo, existing as an arts and lifestyle brand, defining this crazy world with crisp designs and raw colour – because, like those who wear our tees – we’ve got the guts to get the glory! Influenced by global culture, fashion branding, photography, partying and other random life events we bring you creativity in its goriest most glorious form. We’re not trying to start a revolution, or re-invent the wheel; we just want to provide to those who appreciate slick art some fresh tees and cool threads.
What has been your journey to success after university?
Like surfing a massive tidal wave – difficult…but really awesome fun! After university we both took some time out, to travel the world, but also to re-define exactly what we were trying to achieve. It became obvious to us both that successful brands are focused and driven. So this is what we concentrated on – focusing ourselves so we could achieve exactly what was needed and necessary. This involved developing a distinct artistic style and making contacts/building relationships. People in the independent-brand world are really friendly and the whole community is all about sharing opportunities and helping each other out. After building a presence online, we finalised our designs and took the plunge – got those tees printed! After that it is all about exposure. Throughout the ‘independent brand’ world, competent artwork plus friends in shops/brands/promotion/production, equals exposure, popularity and a good brand. From this foundation we aim to evolve into a key and respected brand in the independent clothing-brand world.
What inspires you in fashion?
Things that inspire us, I guess, are very similar to the things that inspire other fashion brands. Quality and attention to detail are key (this is something that we hope to focus on more with our next collection) as they separate the average high street garment from a high end, well developed, product.
What also inspire us are passionate people that genuinely love what they are doing, and show this love through the garments they produce. Rockwell are a big influence for us. What they deliver is clean cut and on point. We are quite new to this whole world, so I’m sure there are loads of things that inspire us without us even realising, but these are the things that stand out – and the things we aspire to.
Would you see yourselves as more artists or fashion designers?
I think artists. All creative products follow the same line – creativity, application, production, delivery. Creating worthy art and graphics is what we’re passionate about, whether the application is to t-shirts or canvases. It’s just that we both really love wearing cool tees!
Where can you see yourself in five years time?
We would love to be a house-hold name for those in-the-know about street wear brands, not for producing ‘really cool tees’, but for putting in the work and making genuine good quality products. To have this at an international level would be a great achievement for us. It’s a tough goal to set ourselves, but we feel with our continued determination, definitely achievable. Plus, you’ve got to aim high if you want to achieve greatness.
How long did it take to launch Guts and Glory?
Well originally it started out as an online art shop with the sickly name of “The Pukey Arts Studio”. This then developed into an arts collective of a few people called “The Pencil Pushers”, until finally we spilt off and re-branded ourselves as you see us today – as Guts&Glory. That process of change took about a year. From the beginning of Guts&Glory, however, it probably took us about 4 months. We really knew nothing about how to start a brand, and were feeling our way in the dark. We started with a blog and a bit researching about production, and just let the ball roll from there.
What sets you apart from the designs we can find in high street stores?
Consideration, thought and time. We’re not churning out design after design, ripping off artists for their imagery, carelessly producing anything to maximise profits. Each design is special and particular. You know when you buy a Guts&Glory tee that we’ve put a lot of time and effort into it making it individual, new and specific. We are a fastidious duo. We honestly don’t think there is anything quite like our designs out there. Each piece of work was originally a hand drawn concept. The digitised ‘Love Is In The Air’ tee had endless hours spent over it having the imagery produced. So I guess, without sounding to corny, you are buying a piece of artwork when you buy a Guts&Glory tee. Also, with every internet order from us direct we include an individually hand drawn swing tag.
How does music inspire your clothes?
To be honest I wouldn’t say music is a massive influence on what we do. I mean there are certain genres that go hand in hand with the ‘street wear’ world and culture. Also there are certain people you admire and really like listening to. So who knows, maybe there is a subconscious musical influence in there somewhere that we have no idea about! Some songs you just can’t escape from. Might accidently find ourselves producing Lady Gaga lyrics without even realising!
How did living in Nottingham influence you-if at all?
The best thing about starting all this in Nottingham was the exposure to other artists who were doing the same as us – getting their work displayed in bars and restaurants. There are some really great opportunities in Nottingham if you look for them. The biggest help was the Ropewalk bar. They displayed our art for free, and then if they sold Ropewalk didn’t take any commission. This way we had a whole series of work pass through the bar, replacing each picture once it sold, and really got our names out there. There are also some great art events and galleries in Nottingham, who are all keen to get artists and buyers alike involved.
There is such a mix of students/people at Nottingham too, which helps you define who your target audience is, and who isn’t.
Where can we buy your clothes?
You can buy them online from us at www.gutsandgloryuk.bigcartel.com, at the Bristol based Donuts Store or for a limited time only at the newly launched style site Roktic.
Don’t forget to keep up-to-date with Guts&Glory at our site and blog www.gutsandgloryuk.com, or on twitter @gutsngloryuk
