Gift Giving

It's always good to see a gift you've given put to good use. Like in this new video "My Sweetie" from Wale, who's rocking the STOLEN RICHES' exclusive colourway Jays fitted I gave him last Halloween when Blueprint III came to Toronto. (If you're blind, the hat makes its first appearance at 0:31) Keep up the good work Wale...

"Bigger and better in 2010"

2009 has come to an end and I have to say that I'm going to miss it. In terms of FORT Apparel as a brand, we introduced some popular new designs, made huge strides in product quality and introduced hoodies into the mix, all in 2009. In terms of FORT Apparel as an experience, I had the opportunity to meet a lot of extremely talented people and was granted access to some amazing moments I never thought I'd witness firsthand.

Nonetheless, as good as 2009 was, Cabbie Richards said it best to me over the holidays: "Bigger and better in 2010." Cabbie has it right and we're on board; stay tuned for much bigger and much better from FORT Apparel in the new year.

In line with those plans, we're making some changes behind the scenes to the FORT Apparel online store. While we work on the shop, we've decided to join in on the huge sale running at STOLEN RICHES. To make it interesting, and match the huge savings they're offering on kicks, all FORT Apparel will be on sale with significant savings. You can pickup Summer 2009 tees for $20, Fall 2009 tees for $25 and best of all, our hoodies for $65!

Wale, J. Cole, Drake, Pharrell, Memphis and Jay.

I'm going to summarize this post as follows: Saturday night was the most exciting night in the history of FORT Apparel.

Washington, DC artist Wale and his band are big supporters of the local artist. Starting out locally themselves in the US Capital, they're on top of the world right now: Wale is about to drop his debut album, "Attention Deficit", on November 10th and opening up for none other then the legendary Shawn Carter, aka Hova, aka Jay-Z's Blueprint III tour.

With all this going on, his team still made the time to arrange for the experience of a lifetime for FORT Apparel on Saturday night. Not only did they bring FORT Apparel onstage/backstage and everywhere in between, but they also made sure to showcase both colourways of the "Courtside" 416 Tee to the packed audience of the ACC during their set (they'll also be showcasing the rest of Fall 2009 and some exclusive STOLEN RICHES caps to match the next time they're on a stage in the 416.)

This excitement was compounded by the amazing show that was the Blueprint III experience. Wale, J. Cole, NERD and Jay-Z had the entire Air Canada Center on it's feet from beginning to end. I can't forget to mention the "successful" cameo by Toronto's very own rising star, Drake. I also have to thank Drake for putting on an afterparty party that I'll never forget. Up close and interactive with the likes of Wale, J. Cole, Drake and Jay-Z till 4AM (more here via 1LOVETO) was not how I expected to spend my Halloween and just about as surreal an experience as I'll probably ever have. Special thanks go out to Wale, Walter for making it all possible and Rashad and Stanley for the support.

Since this is one of my longest posts yet, I'm going to have to cut it here and take the rest of the details to our Facebook Page. There you can find all my pics from the night and the play by play of the entire experience. And if you're wondering... yes, I made sure Jay-Z left with his very own "Official" Tee on Black.

FORT Apparel Fall 2009 is Here!

Fall 2009 is releasing this Saturday, October 24th, online and in-store at STOLEN RICHES and North Trooper. We're happy to announce the introduction of high quality hoodies to the line and several brand new designs and colourways. Check them out below and then head downtown on Saturday to grab some Fall 2009.

"Official" Tee

Available in White, Black Tees and Black Hoodie. (Both stockists will also have their own limited edition in-store colourway while quantities last.)

"Courtside" 416 Tee

High density print available in White, Red Tees and Black Hoodie

"Big Smoke" Tee

Double sided print available in White Tee

"Sneaker" 416 Tee

High density print available on White Tee and Black Hoodie

FORT Apparel hits Yorkville

We're happy to announce that North Trooper, located at 69 Yorkville Avenue, will now be stocking FORT Apparel. Introduced to us recently by our friends over at STOLEN RICHES, we decided the time was right to expand the FORT Apparel family.

Just like STOLEN RICHES, North Trooper is a great place to pick up a pair of kicks while you grab your newest piece of FORT Apparel. And while STOLEN RICHES should be your spot in Toronto to grab new sneaker releases, North Trooper is where you'll find your vintage, rare and impossible-to-find old favourites in stock. They're a really unique Toronto spot and FORT Apparel is thrilled to have them start stocking our gear. Check them out today!