Thanks to Iron Fist Clothing, my co-workers have come to know me as the girl with blood, teeth, and eyeballs on her shoes.
I first learned of the company through an indie/punk retailer who offered their brand through an online store. After having sifted through the assortment of shoes and dresses for my onstage ensembles, for me to say that Iron Fist is “simply a clothing line” would be an understatement.
What Iron Fist Clothing offers is a beast of a collection: outerwear that reflects a calm yet coarse exterior; its underbelly, the encompassing comfort of their men’s tees. Ladies’ tops and accessories appear refined from feral beginnings. The selection is a chic street urchin’s answer to your run-of-the-mill catalogue—every virtual page exposing new customers to undiscovered alleyways of style.
Iron Fist’s Group Marketing Manager, Chad Romiti, took some time from his busy schedule to lead The Game Fanatics’ curious bristles through the pallet of their apparel’s prime colors.
With almost two years with the company under his belt, Romiti was quick to tell us what appealed him to Iron Fist’s contribution to today’s fashion fold.
“I was drawn to the brand by its brash and in-your-face attitude, and amazing artwork.” The Orange County native and father expresses an affinity for adventurous visuals in his other interests. An occasional gamer on the Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii, he plays mostly Lego Star Wars, Call of Duty, and Halo, and recently obtained Lego Batman 2. “I haven’t played [Lego Batman 2] yet,” he professes. “I know my nine year-old was frustrated by it.” When asked about his cinematic favorites, “Who isn’t a Star Wars fan?” was his rhetorical reply. He adds, “Original trilogy only.”
A long time ago, out of a car trunk far, far, away, Iron Fist had its humble beginnings when Iron Fist owner Travis Anderson started his store in 2001. Today, the bulk of their business is online, with offices in downtown LA and Shanghai, flagship stores in Cape Town, South Africa, and Czech Republic, and countless websites that features their graffiti/street art-inspired pieces. Iron Fist factories are in China, while all tees are printed here in the US.
You can order Iron Fist clothing from their official website, but they also encourage picking up their duds from their plethora of third-party affiliates. Romiti states, “We like people to come to our site and purchase, but we support our retailers on our social media and events.” Iron Fist events, which are all posted across their social media platforms and official blog, include art shows, concerts, and fashion shows. They sponsored the San Diego Comic Con Zombie Walk last year, and will hopefully be at this year’s SDCC, space permitting.
With such an eclectic mix of sub-culture stricken designs, you’d expect the Iron Fist HQ to be teeming with pierced and tatted employees. But Romiti insists that the great minds behind the company’s designs don’t all don earplugs and spikes. “We have a great team. Everyone is an individual and we all come from different places. It’s the diversity of creative concepts and opinions that drives what we do.” Could there possibly be “an office weird” with so much originality in the workplace? So Romiti tells me, “A weirdo who works for us? Of course! And for once it’s not me!”
Romiti describes the life of an Iron Fist design from conception to realization. “We deal with a number of street artists, so we get a ton of great artwork. We take their art and look for the best application, and then make it fit. Then we send off for sampling. Once the samples arrive, we revise and set production.”
This production is what caters to office weirds such as myself. The aforementioned shoes were what personally drew me to the Iron Fist brand. Their line of frighteningly flirtatious, horror-inspired prints on accessories and footwear has always guaranteed my ability to rock heels that no one has ever seen before. My Werewolf Growler mules evoked a comment from the new guy next to me in a meeting on how my shoes “literally had teeth”. My skull-embellished purple Muerte platforms caught the attention of the resident gay. And lastly, the Zombie Stomper peep toes I wore with my cuffed capris (to expose the satin bow on the heel’s back) had the call center abuzz. I got more compliments on them from male coworkers than female.
“The horror-inspired prints are amazing, and so fun,” Romiti attests. “It’s great to hear how girls wear them to work wit a black dress. Same with the bikinis. It’s funny because guys aren’t usually vocal about what women should wear, but they like them and tend to encourage the ladies to purchase.”
And men wonder why women own so many shoes.
“I think the six inch heel helps,” says Romiti.
With more and more pop-culture based clothing and sites popping up nowadays, it goes without saying that competition might pose a challenge. When asked if he feels the need to set Iron Fist apart, Romiti responds with a statement as steadfast as the brand itself.
[quote]“We can’t spend our time chasing what everyone else is doing. We tend to do what we like, and what feels authentic, and go from there. Unfortunately, in a lot of circumstances, we are the ones being copied.”[/quote]
Don’t be caught succumbing to everyday clothing. Let Iron Fist knock some sense into you by checking out their selection at IronFistClothing.com, or simply Google “Iron Fist Clothing” for your unorthodox wardrobe wants. Tell them The Game Fanatics sent you!
