Up And Up

Tell us a bit about yourself!
Hi, my name is Darius, and I’m a final year student at Singapore Polytechnic (SP). I run a clothing brand called 631 with my friends, and what we’re trying to do is to turn clothing into a tool of expression so that everyone can stand to be themselves.

Cool! What’s your role in this business?
I’m the marketing and public relations head, so I’m in charge of all the marketing and advertising. I also handle content creation with my other friends. I’m usually the one behind the camera, filming videos and stuff.

What has the process of starting up your own brand been like for you?
It’s been challenging sometimes to find creative ways to talk about our brand. I think for us, we really need that personal touch. Without us, the story can’t go on—we’re very heavily-focused on telling people stories.

That said, it’s also been exciting because I’ve gotten the chance to explore a lot of new things, and we’re also encouraged to fail because it’s a safe space, especially since we’re all still in school. Plus my responsibilities in the business are similar to what I’m studying in school, which is marketing communications, except that it’s a lot more about the application here than it is about the theory that we’re taught in school.

On the topic of failure, would you say you’re more comfortable with failing than you are afraid of it?
I think it’s a good mixture of both for me, actually. When we first started the business, I didn’t know a thing about fashion. I would dress worse than your average Joe, and would buy clothes like a robot (laughs). But since then, I’ve grown to understand the power of fashion and how the things you wear can help to improve your self-confidence.

How did you grow to develop your own style?
You really need to be open to exploring new things—at the start, I was trying out 4-5 different styles before I was able to pick out one that I really liked, or discover a common theme among the stuff that I liked. It was through this process of trial and error that I figured out what I like and dislike.

We like that experimental sprit! What was the last thing you tried on, just for the fun of it?
Frameless glasses! A lot of people told me that I look like a lao ah pek (old uncle) in them, but I personally think they’re pretty cool! I hate to use the word, but it ’s very vintage. I think it looks sleek, and I like implementing them in my outfits.

One last question: What’s been your biggest achievement as a small business to date?
Our biggest win has been that in the past year, we’re been invited to a lot of events like Sole Superior. And now, we’re moving out of SP and have been touring other schools like Temasek Polytechnic and the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts to reach out to youths there. We’re also planning to do a full Singapore tour, to visit all of the institutions here to spread what we believe in and stand for as a brand!