Please introduce yourself and your brand to our readers that might not be aware of you?
We’re Horny & Sad, an Edinburgh-based, 2 person run, goth/trap culture-inspired streetwear brand!
What was the main motivation behind starting your own brand?
So, the brand was initially started by myself, Artur, in April 2019. I’ve modeled for a while and after some time of working with all kinds of brands, I realized that not only is there no brand that has many pieces that I like, but also, that I can definitely do this myself, exactly the way I want it. This was also just after having to couch surf after losing my place & care job, then finding a new job in a Wetherspoons kitchen, finding a new place, and realizing that I do not want to live this kind of life anymore and I needed not only a more fulfilling path for myself but also a better income.
Where do you draw inspiration from for the style of the designs that you release?
I predominantly, most of the time just end up sitting down and thinking of clothing I myself would love to wear & then how I can apply that to then a whole range for example revolving around that product. For instance, our Sinner & Saint range, initially, I just wanted some sinner designs, designed the hoodie fully, and then decided on making a saint one to go with it & so on.
With online marketing playing such a crucial role in how brands operate these days. How do you guys approach this aspect of your business, and do you have any tips that you’d like to share with other brand owners that seem to work for you?
So, yes, this is a very in-depth topic with a lot to it, but let’s start simple, with the most important thing in my opinion for an online clothing business of our size- the social media presence. I spend every day making sure that we upload at least once to Facebook & Instagram as well as multiple posts on the story to keep the engagement and free advertisement going. The biggest tip I can give in regards to this is first of all make sure you’ve got a theme going. This goes for website & social media pages, you need a visible ‘style’ and ‘feel’ that customers can understand the moment they open your pages, so choose a colour pallet & stay active on social media. If your brand theme is felt & understood well by the audience, they will purchase from you.
What daily habits do you guys put in place to help you keep productive?
Artur:
I don’t have a too-tight nit of a schedule, however, I do make sure to wake up around 10 am, I start the day off with some coffee to get the creative juices flowing. The first thing I do work-wise is daily emails & after that my daily task list. Throughout the day I end up either going for runs, training MMA, or making music to keep me stay sane. Breaks are taken in between whenever I feel like I need one, let’s say I decide to have one at 2, I will go and do a workout and carry on working right after food past- workout and so on until late. I don’t really tend to shut off which probably isn’t very good but I do find myself working late into the night at times. Just the kind of job this is I guess?
Jodie:
I’m used to working in service jobs, which tends to be shiftwork so I used to just do the usual work, sleep, alarm set for 7 hours later then back to working again. Working with Artur, it’s a lot more relaxed, I tend to focus on starting my day in the morning and start working as early as possible. I work through my emails as soon as I sit down which I’ve found has started each of my workdays off the best way as I can focus right off the bat. The rest of my day I focus on any tasks that I know we need finished sooner rather than later, and doing this each day keeps me in a good daily routine, as long as I give myself notes each day for the following morning I stay productive. Caring and being passionate for the brand and being so proud of the products we provide is a good motivator as well to stay productive I would say.
What has been the most positive experience since starting your own clothing line?
Definitely the love and support from people who genuinely adore what we do. It’s always amazing seeing happy people who absolutely love your work, it’s an endless source of inspiration.
Have there been any challenges/hurdles since the whole global pandemic started and how did you counteract said challenges?
One of the biggest issues we’ve faced since the start is the lack of events on currently. A big part of our audience comes from the alternative music scene. Since the start of the pandemic we haven’t been able to take part in alternative club night events or festivals which we were scheduled to sell at. So it’s affected growth in that aspect I suppose as well as the chance to make some extra money at those events. Lastly, we’ve noticed it’s also affected some stocks due to import complications with some wholesalers we’ve worked with too, that’s been quite annoying too as we’ve had to postpone some releases and introduce pre-orders.
Jodie:
We’ve found that staying in touch as much as we can with our customers has helped extremely, they have been one of our our biggest drives through the pandemic and have been extremely supportive throughout. It’s tough when you can’t give people the answers they want, or you know you’re going to be disappointing someone but I have to say they’ve been super understanding with our stocking issues.
Are there any other clothing brands out there that our readers should check out? Maybe those that you guys would consider as friends or even inspirational?
Artur:
Ima give a shout out to all the homies- Forbidden13, Amber Aura, Acid_Ctrl, Deadeyes Clothing, Babypinkrae & Harlan from Traverse Clothing (He’s starting something new soon, I don’t think Traverse is still a thing.)
Jodie:
I just wanna shout out my girlfriend and a new brand she’s started called Getfuct. She’s great and is super excited to be releasing her own products!
Any cool plans you’ve got in the pipeline for 2021 that you’d like to share with our readers?
Currently, we’re looking to just keep growing & releasing new products until things start moving again. Once events are back on, be on the lookout for where we’re gonna be to come along, participate in giveaways and say hello!
Loads of people have business ideas on hold because of lockdown. Do you have any words of encouragement for them?
Artur:
I personally think as much as it’s a very tough time for everyone not only mentally but also financially, it’s also kind of a downtime to really start working on a passion project seeing as most people are stuck at home. Try and turn this terrible time into something a bit more positive and get ahead of everyone who isn’t!
Jodie:
I think that there’s a lot of pressure to apply yourself right now, with many people having a lot of spare time on their hands there’s the expectation of making something work now or never. Take this time to really look at the other brands that are already going, work and rework any projects you aren’t 100% happy with. You can really use the time to make your ideas exactly reflect the way you want them to be, so don’t feel rushed! Remember to take care of yourself regardless of what the lockdown brings you, there’s always so much potential in the future even if it feels like that future is on hold, you’ll get there, we all will!
Where can our readers check out your products and stay up to date with new releases?
Make sure to follow us on our social media @hornyandsadclo on Instagram as well as Horny & Sad on Facebook. Besides that, we’ve also got a newsletter which we frequently use to provide subscribers with the latest news regarding our brand. This includes new releases, product delays, service changes, a creative spotlight & much more. Subscribing is totally free and can be done by simply scrolling to the bottom of our website and entering your email address.
A big thank you for having us, it’s been an honor. – Artur & Jodie