Being very passionate for the sea, Paul A. Sperry designed the first ever boat shoe in 1935 and introduced the Top-Siders to the boating market. Eighties years later the same classic CVO shoe model is (besides the chukka mid top model) part of the second collaboration by Sperry with Velour by Nostalgi. VBN’s Per Andersson was able to turn grandmother’s ready-to-wear shop into a prospering business. Nostalgi was opened in 1999 and mixed dead stock clothes with re-makes, art and design. It became a forum for the Göteborg independent fashion scene. After attracting international attention, the first Velour by Nostalgi collection followed in 2005. The coastal Swedish town of Göteborg effects VBN’s collection with a very nautical feel, that sync perfectly with Sperry's great heritage story, that is evolving around the ocean. Their latest collaboration sparked our curiosity to ask Per Andersson for more insights..

How do you usually start your day?
Per: I start the day by making some home-brewed coffee and filling my huge coffee mug. After taking the 4 year old to kindergarten I go to work. Upon getting to the office I start the day with a 30 minute chit-chat with everyone at the office before opening my laptop. That’s the usual start of the day.  
 
. What was the inspiration for the flower print which spans through your latest Velour by Nostalgi collection and the Sperry Collaboration? Was De La Soul’s “3 feet high and rising” part of it?
Not a bad guess, but we had the brat pack and especially the movie Breakfast Club as head inspiration for the SS15 collection. Mixing this 80s inspiration with the Sperry sneakers resulted in a sneaker in denim fabric with 80s vibes. The flower was actually an inspiration from when I was I teenager in the 80s wearing homemade flower embroidered jean jackets.
 
. What is your design process like? Essentials?
I love digging into the subcultures over the decades. From the 50s to the 90s… you know we started as a deadstock store in the mid 90s and we have still a big stock left from this store and I love to go there and look for denim and chinos and research the history of these particular garments. Then we try to make some replicas of these jeans/twill fabrics/models and build the collection around this.
 
. Please give us a little introduction to Velour by Nostalgi. What were the biggest obstacles in maintaining a 10 year strong clothing line?
We are almost self-financed and my aim has always been to build a long term brand. In the beginning the hardest part was financing the line you really want to do. We have been able to do this with organic growth, taking small steps to become a solid brand with a solid financial base. I have always wanted to make great jeans/chinos as a base product cause this has always been an important part of the subculture expression. Today we are very solid in chino pants and for the first time we are also developing denims. This has given us the financial base to create the precise collections with the right fabrics and trims based on the seasonal inspiration.    
 
. Did you find any unexpected treasures while you were selling grandma’s vintage stock, that spans fifty years of business?
Wow, yes! We found several denim and chino garments (especially from old Swedish denim labels) that are from the 50s until the 70s that still have the old labels on and we are now using these as tools to build the inspiration for the collection in an authentic way by making replicas of the best stuff and telling the authentic story of the great ages.  
 
. What are the ingredients of fusing heritage/tradition and innovation/progress within your brand?
We start searching for deadstock denim/twill garments and then dig into the history of the subculture connected to this garment. Then we build the collection freely around this inspiration but update it with new, innovative and interesting fabrics that “add life” to the product.
 
. Which fashion trend do you see coming back in the next two years?
A fusion of a just “out of bed” classic casual look mixed with greyscale denim/twills and some added sportswear inspiration from the past…
 
. What advice can you give young entrepreneurs to be successful?
Be true to your story….

itv. jk