Looking Back on Launch Day
July 16th, 2024. The Smoke’m website went live.
After years of starting projects and not finishing them, this felt different. It was actually done. Sure, no one rushed to the site and the first sale didn’t come for weeks, but Smoke’m existed. And honestly? There was pride in that moment.
The launch was celebrated by finally attending a dance class taught by Kwan, a local Bboy – something that hadn’t been possible for ages. That’s where our founder met Nicola, who was also building a brand for the dance scene, specifically breaking. Smoke’m had been in the works for so long that when the words came out – “Yeah, I launched today” – it felt surreal.
From there, it was like a snowball effect. Meeting Nicola led to opportunities no one expected: going to the Olympics to see breaking, becoming a partner with Last One Standing, and connecting with amazing people in the scene.
The launch collection featured the Breezy Hoodie – designed in-house – plus some supporting pieces: tees, shorts, and a hat.
What Was Expected vs. What Actually Happened
The Plan: By year one, Smoke’m would be generating enough income to sustain itself. No more monthly financial support.
The Reality: Still requiring those monthly investments.
There were a lot of things that weren’t planned for – things that took up time and how much it would actually cost to push the brand forward.
There was preparation for the possibility of failure from the start, but there was more hope than fear. Smoke’m isn’t a failure – it’s slow. And that’s on the execution. Not pushing hard enough on marketing or staying consistent with content.
Year 1 was throwing ideas at the wall to see what stuck. Not much did, but it taught what needed to be done differently. Now the focus is on staying true to the original vision. It’s easy to drift away from your purpose when you start thinking too much about the audience and profits, but as long as people like the clothes, buy them, and actually wear them, something is being done right.
There’s also work being done to trim down the process – making things quicker, smoother, and cheaper so the next collection can be better.
The Moments That Taught Us Something
The “We Rise” Surprise
The best-selling piece? A t-shirt that’s not even on the website. The “We Rise” tee was made specifically for people who came to our popup launch – a little exclusivity for those who saw Smoke’m in the flesh. We also gave some to amazing talent at photoshoots because we love giving back to those who support us. We plan to do more exclusive items sold only in person, as being live with the community matters more than just being an online entity.
The Breezy Lesson
Our one-of-a-kind Breezy Hoodie, our second best seller, taught us a lesson. During a video shoot, our talent Kwan wore the Breezy Hoodie while breaking. That’s when it became clear it wasn’t built for actual breaking – the hood was too big, flopping everywhere while he was upside down. After the shoot, Kwan had the option of keeping everything he danced in. He decided to keep just the sleeveless tee and passed on the hoodie.
There’s a saying: “If no one will take it for free, it’s probably not very good.” Now the hoodie isn’t bad – people have bought it and others have taken it when offered – but that moment taught the importance of testing a design more before releasing. It was clear it wasn’t practical for breaking.
The Joggers Validation
At a recent battle, one of the dancers ‘Joenormous’ said the Smoke’m joggers were his favorite pants to dance in. Being the first pair of trousers Smoke’m released, hearing that meant everything. It confirmed the direction with bottoms was right.
The Last One Standing Partnership
The Last One Standing partnership has been an amazing opportunity. It kind of came out of nowhere, but we have to give credit to Nicola who suggested Smoke’m as a sponsor for the dance battle event.
We had already attended two LOS events and the love and vibe was flowing throughout. We had also connected a few times with one of the owners, Lee, who was also one of the first people to follow Smoke’m on Instagram. When the We Rise pop-up was in the works, Lee graciously offered his dance floor and put together a battle exhibition for the popup. During proper conversations, he offered the chance to be an actual partner instead of just a sponsor.
The first year taught an important lesson: **people don’t come to dance battles to buy clothes**. They come for the event and buying clothes is a second thought. So we learned to not focus on the selling but how we can engage with the community and build relationships with people in the community.
The Promo Moment
One of the best moments toward the end of the year was Sam from Last One Standing throwing together a promo featuring clips of people dancing in Smoke’m gear. When it played on that cinema-sized screen at Samsung KX it was a wow moment. Hearing the host say “that was sick!” and genuinely meaning it, meant a lot for what Smoke’m had achieved in one year.
What’s Coming Next
Forms Triangle
There’s real excitement to finally release the last piece of the Forms Collection. A lot has been learned from previous drops, so extra effort is going into making this something people actually want to wear – more functional, better thought-out.
Streamlining Everything
Once Forms Triangle wraps up, the plan is to make the whole process smoother and quicker. The next collection following it should come together more efficiently, and hopefully people can better relate to the concept behind it.
More Dance Community Work
Now that it’s been a year, there’s a focus on branching out and collaborating with more talented people in the dance scene. Some plans are already coming together, but we will save those details for later.
The Real Takeaway
Smoke’m turning one isn’t just about hitting a date on the calendar. It’s proof that you can start something, stick with it through the messy parts, and keep learning as you go.
If you’ve supported, bought, worn, or even just liked a post – thank you for being part of this.
And if you haven’t yet? Year 2 feels like the right time to see what we’re about.
