We were lucky to catch up with Ian Joseph recently and have shared our conversation below.

Ian, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

I want people who shop with me to be able to count on me for any of their clothing needs. I am so passionate about 2nd hand clothing that I almost feel like it’s my duty to help my customers get exactly what they need. With that being said, of course for a fair price because I know what it feels like to be ripped off as a consumer and thats not a good feeling… I also want to create an environment that is welcoming to those new to vintage clothing, I want people to experience the joy and endless learning I experience when finding things. I always find something I never knew about, then I do my research to find more information on the history of a clothing piece. I hope I can inspire others to find that one thing their good at or passionate about and stick to it so they can kill it in their own way! Whether you wanna be an insane guitarist or even be a pro skateboarder. Your goal should be to be the best version of YOU!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Ian Joseph (AKA PapaJawns) , I’m from Charlotte, North Carolina. I currently go to school in Savannah Georgia at The Savannah College Of Art And Design (SCAD) and Major in Fashion Marketing and Management. Some of my favorite things to do are skateboarding, drawing for fun, screen-printing T-shirts and most importantly, buying sourcing and selling Vintage clothing. I began my interest selling clothing in streetwear and sneaker reselling around the age of 14, I was so fascinated by how people wore certain things and what was “cool.” At this age I did it for fun not really to make any money, more because I just loved collecting and trading sneakers and clothing. Throughout the years I slowly developed my personal style and love for clothing mainly because of skateboarding, I would see older kids wearing things and would wanna get into it. I was very into alot of these streetwear brands but at such a young age I couldn’t always afford these brands so I resorted to vintage clothing. This helped me learn that most of these new designs from brands today were most likely inspired or created from old/vintage clothes.
I think what sets myself apart from others in the same field as me is that I am never afraid for change and new challenges, also my creative marketing strategies that have worked so far for me but of course are subject to change. Right now I am most proud of when I see people around wearing something I sold them, it happens all the time and it just reassures me to keep pushing on this journey.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I think that my ability to effectively communicate with others in the industry and always in search of connections has helped me separate from others. I also think the Instagram handle I chose a few years back has stuck in a good way. (@papajawnssss) Jawns is slang for clothing it’s a common term within the industry and people like to say “Papa Jawns got the Jawns” which is what I want, for people to know they can count on me for all their vintage clothing needs, even if the name sounds goofy. I also am always doing research on the latest trends in the fashion industry and designer world. Which can help me better understand what clothing pieces to look for when sourcing. I am also very grateful to have a close group of friends who are extremely knowledgable in vintage, fashion, marketing and even accessories. lastly, I am always working because I love it, it doesn’t feel like work but I’m always looking for things, buying and selling.

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

A few months ago I had just gotten back in Savannah from the summer and had written down a goal a couple weeks before to have some sort of pop-up shop when I got back in town. I didn’t really know what I was doing but within a week I announced I would do a popup on instagram and people ate it up. I quickly had to figure out how I was gonna pull this off, I had the inventory to do one I just needed a space, so I chose my small living room in my apartment. After a couple of days of moving, organizing and designing a space where shoppers would wanna be I believed I was ready. I heard some people talking about it and had a lot of people repost the flyer I made on instagram but I still wasn’t sure if anyone would show up. Surely enough, I had around 250 people come to the event over the course of 8 hours, at one point I even had a line at the door! This was a pretty amazing unexpected turn out and people were very pleased with the prices and curation of the clothes I had for sale. This on the fly move was what kicked it all off for me and I will be forever grateful I took this initial risk.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @papajawnssss