DB - Where did the name Marco Martinez come from?
DB - My friends helped me come up with the name because then i was looking for a name (even the M symbol came before the name because i always loved superman and other comics growing up), so after much deliberation, someone said why not Marco but i thought to myself later on that anyone could be Marco so i decided to add a second name and then all the big designers had two names like Louis Vuitton, Ralph Lauren etc. So i thought since my surname was Martins and Marco sounded Italian, i should make it Marco Martinez. Also there was the Nigerian factor, there is something about foreign things, no matter how much they like it once they see that it was made by a Nigerian that's when they would turn it inside out and start looking at the thread and all that. I actually heard of someone who had sold some of my clothes and when they asked who Marco Martinez was, he said "na one italian guy like that wey come Nigeria"
DB- What made you go into fashion?
MM - I have always loved drawing and designing, i remember back in Unilag, i designed the number on the door to my room at the hostel and everyone liked it. So i thought why not make this a business rather than a hobby. I never worked for anyone, so that helped me launch early and i was able to take the risk of going into design fulltime.
DB - Did the Marco Martinez brand start with Boys Are Not smiling?
MM - No, the brand has started way before that. Back then when people would ask me to help them get clothes, no matter the specifications and whatever they wanted on it. I would get exactly that, so they started asking how that was possible, that's when i told them i was actually the one who made them. That was in 2002 so the brand is not new at all. The BANS tees didn't get to the market till about five years ago. I designed it for Terry Tha Rapman for his song "Boys are not smiling" and the entire design process was shown on MTV, right from designing the face on the shirt to completion. That's how BANS was born.
MM - I have known Dj Jimmy Jatt for a long time and he'd come see me or i would go see him. but there was one day he came to see me and i noticed something odd about him, i couldn't place it at first and then it hit me, so i said "Uncle Jimmy why are you not wearing a hat" because i had never seen him without one. That is when it just clicked because I had been thinking about my hat line because i didn't think it was proper that everyone was wearing hats saying "NYC" or "ATL" and those kind of hats. Why rep somewhere you've never been, or where you are not known etc. I wanted something we could relate to. And who better than Jimmy Jatt who is an icon and is known everywhere for his love of hats. I immediately went to work designing and i showed them to him and he liked the designs. that's how the snapbacks were born.
DB - What type of partnership exists between the fashion house and DJ Jimmy Jatt?
MM - It is a business relationship as per the D3PLEJ snapbacks, but he has always been a friend and customer of the fashion house
DB - What has been the response of the international community to Marco Martinez?
MM- The response has been great, we have been getting requests from all over the world for our designs. For instance some white boys in Germany requested for the BANS tees, and i began to wonder what boys are not smiling had to do with people in Germany. The major challenge we were having before was how to produce in bulk but now with our factory we are more equipped for export than ever before. Also we have moved from a new brand to an accepted and established brand in Nigeria so now we can go into the international scene. Some of our customers buy in bulk and take it outside the country to resell.
DB - Do you have any intentions of going from urban designs to also doing couture?
MM - Our customers know we are not strictly urban because we make jackets, shoes etc, however as a trained engineer i couldn't see myself attending directly to customers, such that when we make clothes someone would come back and say "oga, i no like the cloth again or amend am e no size me" and all that, but in the next 12months we are expanding our designs.
DB - The brand's fans have remained loyal even after all these years, what inspires the loyalty?
MM - I think its just God
DB - Have you had any fashion shows where Marco Martinez has showcased its designs?
MM - Actually we have been invited to a lot of fashion shows but we have declined those invites such that some are upset with us. but we have been mostly interested in building the brand, focusing on our designs and our customers. Right now though, we are more open to doing fashion shows and soon we will begin having fashion shows
MM - Quality, Finish and knowing what our customers want. Plus our unique designs
DB - In your view, what is the state of the Nigerian Urban apparel design market?
MM - The industry is still growing, and i believe that as much as there are lots of designers out there we still have less than five percent of the population with all of us put together
DB - If you had the opportunity to work with any fashion houses or labels. Which ones would immediately come to mind
MM - Alexander Blage
DB - Are you solely responsible for creativity at Marco Martinez or there are other persons involved?
MM - We are a company and i am the creative director. Currently, we are hiring designers to add to our versatility.
DB - How can interested designers get in touch with you?
MM - They can send mails to info@marco-martinez.com with all their previous works
DB - What are the things that inspire both your Marco Martinez creative side and Paul Ade Martins, the man?
MM - I am inspired by Music, Feelings and my immediate environment. I am inspired by what I see around me everyday.
DB - If you had the opportunity to steal three things; one body part, one personality trait and one material thing from any person(s), what would they be?
MM - Body part: 6packs from Tyrese, personality trait: Messi's humility and consistency at the top, material thing ; Micheal Jackson's Estate
Visit the marco martinez website www.marco-martinez.com , like on facebook http:/www.facebook.com/marcomartinez47 and follow on twitter @marcomartinz47
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