A few months after Hawai'i gained statehood in 1959, the politicians of our newly established nation compared our burgeoning city of Honolulu with other, well established major cities and grew a little self-conscious. Realizing the sentiments that our state was behind the curve of expansion and development sparked a fire to build up Honolulu and Waikiki, despite many citizen's opinions that the beauty of our island would vanish. New commercial remodeling brought a steady income of lucrative finances which helped stimulate our lacking economy.
Shortly after WWII the United States was introduced to more "open skies" and saw an increase in Americans traveling abroad. With a dominating economy came larger commercial airlines which eventually led to cheaper prices traveling by air. These drop in prices led to more affordable airfare for middle-class Americans. In due course, mass travel came to tower over Hawai'i's economy, with promises of inexpensive priced hotel rooms in fast-growing Waikiki. With the assistance of the über-popular television series Hawai'i 5-0 and aggressive marketing and advertising by our wonderful Hawai'i Visitors Bureau, our 'aina became one of the number one destinations for travelers, vacationers and business-men alike. By the '60s, Hawai'i saw more than one million visitors annually.
The number in visitors increased exponentially as more and more tourists discovered there was so much to be done under the Sun on this 44 mile long, 30 mile wide beautiful island in the middle of the Pacific. The activities that were to be discovered were endless; hiking natural trails, surfing, scuba diving in clear, pristine waters, the beauty of our organic surroundings; not to mention the expansion of pre-Facebook social networks in Waikiki, which included The Beachcomber, the International Marketplace, Dukes and newly constructed five-star, luxury hotels. All of this economic growth, coupled with that same instilled Aloha spirit that was not taken away when our independence was, only further escalated the amount of annual visitors. Over the last few years (2006 - 2007) and before the unfortunate current economic decline, Hawai'i saw as much as 7.6 million visitors to our islands.
This leads us to our latest collaboration, where we've aligned ourselves with Leilow. Jules Gayton, Leilow's proprietor, can definitely relate to the desire to travel to the islands, where he has now resided for over eight years. Starting from a simple fascination of paradise and searching and surfing the perfect wave, it has now become a realized reality for Jules. From being an original member of the Stussy Tribe in the 80s, to spinning at some of the greatest clubs in New York City, befriending many legendary musicians and artists, there's an excellent reason why Jules has been dubbed a triple O.G.. These days, you can catch Jules enjoying his new home, rocking out to the rootsy sounds of reggae and dropping constant knowledge at Leilow.
The details: The Beachcomber pack features our collective Beachcomber New Era, a fusion of Jules' bugged out artistic visions with FITTED's more traditional methods, all with a modern approach. The cap features a print of black and white woven patterns with gray tones, while the inside features a silk lining of a map of the Hawaiian Islands which invokes a nostalgic warmth, citing the days of Don Ho, the Beachcomber and the lounge music era; incorporating both Leilow and FITTED's logos. The underside of the visor features an embroidered hula girl, just an added extra touch that separates us from the rest. Coinciding with the cap is a white t-shirt with the same print found on the inside of the cap on the back, and the same hula girl on the front. To finish off this exquisite pack, we have a sticker sheet which integrates the map graphic.
