Joseph Wilson, better known as Joey, is not your average college student. He is an entrepreneur in the making. This young man is aspiring to have a career beyond the typical 9 to 5 job. He is building an empire. Wilson embodies the mindset that you not only have to possess dreams, but you have to go after them. It is important to not only have great aspirations, but it is equally important to chase after what you are truly passionate about.
Wilson has started a clothing label called Lost Credit. It obviously takes a great deal of time and money to start a clothing line. I would imagine that anyone would be curious as to how this college student got the idea to start a clothing label. James Sayers, better known as Jimmy, is a part of the Lost Credit team. Sayers has been seen modeling in various photo shoots and videos that advertise the Lost Credit brand. Not only is he one of the many faces of the company, he is also one of Wilson’s good friends. Wilson said, “I want to have the people that I care about close to me.” Sayers recalls fondly that Wilson came to him with the Lost Credit idea going into sophomore year of college. Sayers said that Wilson “always had interests in fashion.” He even told me that he remembers being in high school and Wilson would sneak into one of the sewing classes. Wilson said that Sayers is “good as far as promotion.” Wilson also said that Sayers will go talk to anyone and “people really like him.” The qualities that Sayers possesses make him a key player on the Lost Credit team.
The Lost Credit team consists of a variety of different people. Sayers mainly does promoting and networking, while others seem to have more say in the branding of the company. When I asked Wilson which team members have more say than others, Daunte Hill and Zach Kombet immediately came to his mind. Sayers seconded that by saying, “Joey comes up with the ideas with Zach and Daunte.” Although Joey said that he does listen to the input of his team members, he has “the final say” in what goes.
The designs that have been seen on the sweatshirts, t-shirts, and crew-necks are very unique; so unique, in fact, that I have never seen anything like it. I appreciate the fact that this clothing line is not mimicking a popular trend or fad, it is truly original. I took the liberty of asking Wilson what inspires him; he instantly said “his past.” He said, “Anything that had an impact on me when I was growing up.” Wilson was raised on the East Coast, but his father “listened to a lot of West Coast music.” His father played West Coast music around the house and it seems to have stuck with Wilson throughout his life. The Lost Credit website even displays the phrase “West Coast Dreams, East Coast Reality.”
Wilson is inspired by his past, but he also looks up to other clothing labels. The clothing line Stussy is one of Wilson's favorite brands. Sayers agreed with Wilson's statement by saying, “I know Joe looks up to the founder of Stussy.” Wilson tends to stay away from the more popular brands that a lot of people seem to be fond of these days. Wilson said, “Gucci, Louis, and Prada, that stuff doesn’t excite me.” He said that he is attracted to things that are “different,” and he likes designers that “do what they want.”
Lost Credit could be categorized as an urban clothing label, but I was wondering if Wilson and Sayers thought the same thing. Sayers considers Lost Credit to be a “hip” clothing line, and he believes that the brand is marketable towards everyone between middle school kids and college students. Wilson believes it is marketable towards 30-year-olds as well.
How far do these young men see this brand going? “The sky is not the limit, there is no limit,” Sayers said. Wilson feels the exact same way. He feels like the line will reach great heights. Wilson sees the line “going as far as he takes it.” He also said, “He wants to do everything.”
Although both of these men are college students and are both majoring in business, neither see themselves sitting behind boring office desks for the rest of their lives. Wilson wants to make Lost Credit his career. Sayers would like to work for ESPN and have a job relating to their sports science department. One of the meanings behind the name Lost Credit is “giving credit where credit is due,” according to Wilson. This speaks volumes to everyone, but especially the young community. Credit should be afforded to anyone who invests their time into positive activities. If the credit is not afforded to that person, then the credit is lost. Lost Credit.
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