In 2016, very few of those interested in the world of fashion have not heard of Jerry Lorenzo. Lorenzo saw that in the extremely fast growing industry of “streetwear,” the emergence of new trends and styles had meant that people had completely forgotten about the essential styles that one might’ve seen in the beginning stages of the fashion industry. He saw that if people wanted certain vintage pieces, they had to make them by themselves or had to get someone else to make it for them. Even though he saw the enormous potential in this, he realized that people would almost certainly not want to wear clothes that look like they were 40-50 years old.

However, being a creative visionary; Lorenzo crafted newer, trendier pieces that were inspired by the fashion of decades past and with the advice and feedback from streetwear enthusiasts (whom he apparently went and talked to on the streets and asked for feedback during the beginning stages of his company),  Lorenzo founded Fear of God (or FOG, as it is referred to by the trendy public). His FOG collections showcased pieces like elongated flannels (combining the modern trend of elongated wear with the flannel craze brought about by the rockers of the 50’s), shredded jeans (from the skateboard culture of the 80’s) and short-sleeved hoodies (something he created because he saw that people living in LA who wanted to wear hoodies but couldn’t because of the heat could actually wear without boiling to death). And to manufacture them, he would buy cheap thrift store flannels, jeans and jackets and use them as the base material upon which he would then cut, taper and sew to make his own unique brand of clothing. He also realized the potential in using social media to get his brand out for the public to see, and released expertly crafted commercials and used social media sited like Instagram to creatively and artistically showcase his pieces.

The result?

Lorenzo’s unique approach to fashion paved the way for him to become the most talked about person in fashion this year. His clothing lines sell out in minutes, and he has created such a high demand for his style that he can even sell a short sleeved t shirt for $200 that also sells out almost instantly and then resells on sites like eBay for $1000. Since the launch of his first line, he has been able to move away from thrift store based fashion to manufacturing his own clothing, and with every collection his brand only seems to get more and more popular and almost every fashion enthusiast celebrity has been seen wearing and endorsing pieces from the FOG line.

I think that the fact that a) Lorenzo saw a market waiting to be filled, b) proceeded to fill it with his own take on it and then, c) used social media to generate so much demand and hype for his product makes him an entrepreneur in his own right.

Fun Fact: Lorenzo is extremely vocal about his Christian faith, and in fact named his line Fear of God because of a reading he found in an Oswald Chambers devotional. I find this impressive too because very few people in fashion, or celebrities even are as vocal about their faith as Lorenzo has been and continues to be.