For those of you interested in an alternative to shopping cookie cutter chains such as Abercrombie and Fitch, check out Andalu Inc., a locally owned urban clothing company located right here in Buffalo, NY.
Jim Kupczyk, Buffalo underground designer and founder of Andalu Inc., knew he wanted his own business from an early age. He’s one of those ‘follow-your-bliss’ guys creating a living and a life for himself doing what he loves. He started selling Bubble Yum to classmates in the sixth grade. He’s always been an artist, and he finds lots of inspiration in this city, and it’s expressed with a sense of humor and defiance that you can see in his t-shirt designs. “Call me a renegade but if I read somewhere that pink is gonna be the hot color this fall – I do blue,” says Jim. Buffalo is “Planet Headquarters” and it always will be. And that’s good for Buffalo, especially when Andalu fans shop for its lines in cities like New York, Seattle, Miami, Chicago and Los Angeles, as well as in Canada and Europe.
It has been just the few months since Jim started production on his line of t-shirts, hoodies and baseball caps.
In that time, Andalu designs have been spotted being worn by members of rock bands, sports stars and actors. A few celebs include members of Seven Thousand Miles and Jeremy Hoyle Band as well as Andre Reed, Bodhi Elfman, Buffalo’s Last Conservative, and two A-list Hollywood movie stars who, we shall coyly say, at this point remain anonymous. They also out-sell national brands like Ben Sherman at Urban Clothing Company, located at 736 Elmwood Avenue, which happens to be Buffalo’s exclusive retailer of the Andalu lines. All shirts and sweatshirts are 100% American made and sweatshop free.
Every t-shirt has a bit of a story behind it – usually whatever hits his funny bone or strikes a creative/inspirational note with him. Jim’s collaborator is another talented local graphic designer, Dave Mariniello, who we will pay a visit to in the future. Stay tuned to this BRO channel over the next several weeks as we highlight a variety of local designers who have made a name for themselves in the industry.
Andalu shirts can be found at www.andalu13.com, or at Urban Clothing Company, 736 Elmwood Avenue in Buffalo.