For Edison Chen, the story of Clot, the streetwear label he cofounded with Kevin Poon 20 years ago, could be summed up in five elements: metal, wood, water, fire and earth.
The five traditional Dao symbols also represent five sections of “Clot 20,” Clot’s inaugural exhibition in China, which launched Friday at Shanghai‘s C Park Haisu, a forgotten pocket of downtown Shanghai that was recently transformed into a mixed-use commercial project.
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“I also love this film called ‘Fifth Element,’ so it was somehow inspired by that,” explained Chen. “I like seeing how these elements come together and exist in harmony, so it was the most fitting concept to represent what we’ve been doing for 20 years.”
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“Our first local community was built in Shanghai, our first office and first store was opened in Shanghai, my first group of friends from Mainland China was made in Shanghai,” Chen went on to explain the decision to host the exhibition in Shanghai, before making another sci-fi reference, “the mix-and-match of east and west in Shanghai is kind of ‘Blade Runner,’ kind of weird, kind of futuristic.”
From Friday to Oct. 29, viewers will get a detailed look at the history of Clot, which began as an event planning and music production company in 2003 and later morphed into a streetwear label and retail concept.
“Clot 20” exhibition in Shanghai.
More than 100 iconic designs, including merchandising design for Kanye West‘s Touch the Sky tour in Hong Kong, samples of the first Clot x Nike Air Max 1 sneaker and not-for-sale items from Chen’s personal collection are on display at the exhibition.
The Earth section of the “Clot 20” exhibition in Shanghai.
“At this 20-year marker, I felt this renewed energy and passion,” enthused Chen, who found renewed creative energy after relocating to Los Angeles in 2008.
“We could have packed it up and moved on, but we had a dream still and the passion was still burning heavily, so we followed it,” said Chen. “Hopefully, people will look at our story, not just remember us for the sneakers and jeans, but be inspired to give it an extra push and keep going,” said Chen of the evolving brand message and a “lifestyle culture” company he plans to build around Clot.
“The core of Clot is to bring people from all over and put them in one room,” explained Chen. “It’s an inclusive brand. We want to talk to the young kids. We want to talk to the failed street artists or designers. Maybe collectively, we can do something greater than what we’ve done here.”
“I feel like unity is something that’s lacking in Chinese communities, but hopefully, I can start to breed this collectiveness,” added Chen.
As for Chen’s multibrand store format Juice, he plans to launch a more lifestyle-driven store in Los Angeles at the end of October.
“We are making a U-turn at Juice. It’s not just a retail space, but a place with five or six lifestyle-driven activations per month,” said Chen. “We will carry stuff like curated candy from around the world.”
Not delving too much into financing details, Chen plans to find a retail partner to open 100 Juice stores worldwide. “We want to be able to open in London, where we have a huge Chinese community,” added Chen.
A pop-up store at the end of the exhibition offers a taste of what Clot’s Colette-like retail future could look like.
The tightly edited retail format features playful objects such as Clot duct tape, “I Hate Clot” lighters, Clotee graphic T-shirts, and Clotea, made in collaboration with local bubble tea empire Heytea.
To celebrate the milestone, a series of surprise drops will hit the shelves at the exhibition pop-up.
Clot will continue the celebration with a runway show during the spring 2024 edition of Shanghai Fashion Week. According to industry sources, multiple high-voltage design collaborations will be unveiled at the show.