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The History of tokidoki vol I

Tokidoki is a Japanese word whose etymology is, for the most part, vague. The definition can flip from “sometimes” to “constantly”, although the latter’s more appropriate when applied to the flourishing pop-fashion brand tokidoki, as its proprietors are always in motion. Their output is prolific, their hustle grand. You’ve seen their coveted hyper-stylized Karl Lagerfeld 11″ vinyl figures, ubiquitous LeSportsac handbag collection, and their Cactus Friends plush toys — not to mention all their wide-ranging Hello Kitty collaborations — and it’s all the brainchild of tokidoki’s three founders. Even the product line itself is more bi-product than product — a bi-product manifested by those three fairly different personalities with three considerably different backgrounds. The three, however, share one common goal: Success.

“As a walking tokidoki billboard, it is hard not to admire Simone’s commitment to and adoration of the alternative reality he has created…”

The Cliff Notes on the brand tokidoki: The company officially started in 2005 like many an upstart brand, simply selling t-shirts. A cold call to LeSport Sac from tokidoki’s gregarious CEO, Ivan Arnold, resulted in a licensing deal with the handbag company. The handbags adorned with Italian designer Simone Legno’s playful and simplistically stylized characters emotionally connected to young women, and were a booming success — popping up on well-heeled streets, avenues, promenades and parkways across America, proudly strutted by its adoring female contingent. The brand had achieved traction. Next up were similar cold calls resulting in more licensing opportunities including Smashbox, Fornarina (the Italian shoe and apparel company and licensee for the tokidoki store in Milan), Onitsuka, Skullcandy headphones as well as collaborations with Sanrio and its iconic Hello Kitty brand, New Era, frozen yogurt impresarios/hipsters Yogurtland and many more. The brand is now a boutique with hundreds of product SKU’s ranging from toys to pillow cases to collectible watches.

The gamut of tokidoki’s product line are vast and plentiful, but it’s the personalities composing the leadership and actualizers of the brand that are the true product of tokidoki. If the three partners hadn’t randomly and haphazardly found one another, none of this would have been possible. If not for a cold call, a solicitation for a date, and an eventual invitation wrapped in faith — besetting a reluctant young entrepreneur and designer on an adventure starting from his small Italian hometown ultimately landing him in Los Angeles — tokidoki would remain nothing more than a slang word with a dual and vague definition. It’s also noteworthy that the proprietors’ names read more like U.N. ambassadors than cohesive members of a boutique trend-oriented brand: Simone Legno (designer and originator), Ivan Arnold (its hearty CEO) and Pooneh Mohajer (the brand’s COO).

What started it all: tokidoki’s LeSportsac handbag collection
 
Simone Legno speaks with a distinct and caked Italian accent. Sitting in his office, he is somewhat easier to understand than during our various phone conversations, as traditional Italian hand gestures and peculiar facial tonalities fill the gaps. He exudes a kind energy, usually concerned with the comfort of his guest — certainly a hospitable guy. He’s certainly also an adept promotional guy, adorned head to toe with his brand — complete with an earring set, watch, and perhaps next time even a “heart and crossbone” (tokidoki’s trademarked emblem) eye contacts. Certainly time will tell. Judging from his appearance, it is painfully obvious that he is one with his creation, head-over-heels in love with his creative mindsprings and the fountains they bare. As a walking tokidoki billboard, it is hard not to admire his commitment and adoration to the alternative reality he has created that is now represented on anything which allows printing on its surface.

This commitment and dedication, not only physical but esoteric, to his ideas and characters he creates is the sugar, cherries and dough for this pie mix. It begs the question: “Why Japanese-inspired kawaii images”? You’re Italian for chrissake! Certainly high fashion, Vespas, espressos, vampy red lips, roofless sports cars, futbal (soccer, as we refer to it) and all things stereotypically Italian must have been the points of influence. However, Japanese anime? As far as I see it, Simone’s creations hold less in common with anime than they do with Hello Kitty, but then again, here lies the mystery. Sure, when I was young, we had Sanrio. The girls in school would chew on the bubblegum-scented erasers and flock the halls with lunchboxes and backpacks featuring Hello Kitty and her flat, bold-black outlined iconography. I was aware of it, the brand had certainly imprinted itself in our lexicon of pop culture references, but I personally hadn’t found it an influence.

As Simone explains it, anime and Japanese pop culture influences had seeped through the Italian government-run channels (only a handful of them) in the form of cartoons. Well, yes, this makes sense. Anime cartoon productions are in infinite supply, hurried out to market by several development companies through Japan, China and Korea. The styles are the same: the fantasy worlds, characters, relationships, stories, plots (or lack of them) are all stock. Like a cartoon’ed Commedia dell’arte or Well Made Play. Infinite supply means cheap licensing which equals massive distribution, and Europe was a perfect destination. Simone and his Italian peers, mirroring several trends we had here in the states circa the 1980’s — eg the fantastic world of Saturday Morning and After School Cartoons — were a product of their environment. A blistering and fruitful world of pop culture appetizers and main courses. Something that the youth in my generation fed heartily on, and just as we did (copying images of Popeye, Tom and Jerry, etc), Simone copied the anime images which captured his imagination.

tokidoki’s founder and lead designer Simone Legno with Karl Lagerfeld and the highly coveted vinyl toy created for the fashion icon

Simone had showed a propensity in his ability to draw, and he carried this creative vice through high school. In Rome, the city in which he grew up, Simone had found a counter culture: underground boutiques which carried punk rock records, t-shirts and skateboard magazines. Influenced by what was readily available to those fringe youths living in LA, NYC, Boston or DC — pertaining to punk, skate and hardcore (fashion, music, and lifestyle) — Simone discovered a new set of influences. And as the Ramones were once imported to England, sewing the seeds of influence for thousands of bands (including the Sex Pistols and Clash), California punks like NOFX and Bad Religion were doing the same for a small set of Italian punk loyalists running about Rome. The next logical step? Start a band and illustrate for zines, of course. And when able to, hang out in squats, smoke hand-rolled cigarettes, swill beer and cheap table wine and attend a punk show, or play one of your own. This is what Simone did, youth in revolt.

Punk was the new Marx Manifesto — exciting, visceral, disguised, energetic and misguided in its expression, yet often heralding messages laden with integrity and equality. Perfect for any artist. Vive le Proletariat! However, the idea of “making a living” soon became more pressing. Post high school Simone attended college, and upon graduating started a business: a web development agency. It is here where Simone fused his love of counter culture kitsch and anime with his education in graphic design and web development. It is here where Simone created tokidoki in his spare time, trading images and ideas with other underground graphic artists, populating and pollinating his tokidoki world with a matrix of pop surrealist artists, toy designers, graphic designers, web developers and general aesthetic hunters via the web platform. Through this network of designers and aficionados, Simone Legno breached the walls of indifference and found himself an audience, collecting a few awards and secret admirers along the way. And looking through the glass of a computer screen on the other side of the world was Ivan Arnold. And if there’s one thing Ivan is able to do, it is identify potential.

Come back soon for Part II in the History of tokidoki, which will feature interviews with founders Ivan Arnold and Pooneh Mohajer, and of course more exclusive product galleries…

Posted By: Lo Pan
Article Courtesy Of: Lost In A Supermarket

And the winner is...

To announce the winner of our Blank Kid Dragon contest we enlisted the help of our good friend, the World Famous MC Supernatural. 


CLICK THIS LINK TO FIND OUT WHO THE WINNER IS!

TLS Contest Details

In celebration of our 1st Anniversary, we are giving you a chance to win a Blank Sam Flores Kid Dragon! Limited to 15 pieces, the Blank Kid Dragon is the sixth and final edition of the series.

Two runner-up winners will receive a Blue Kid Dragon. The blue color way was only available at the 2009 DesignerCon, and is limited to 99 pieces.

Here is how you enter:

1. Complete 2 of the 3 following steps. 

        A. Twitter
             -Follow @LoyalSubjects
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I'm following @LoyalSubjects for a chance to win a 1 of 15 Blank Sam Flores' Kid Dragon! Check out www.theloyalsubjects.com for details!

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              -Become a fan of The Loyal Subjects Fan Page
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I am a fan of The Loyal Subjects, and they are giving me a chance to win a 1 of 15 Blank Sam Flores' Kid Dragon! Check out www.theloyalsubjects.com blog for details!
(Tag The Loyal Subjects in your post by placing an @ symbol before "The Loyal Subjects")

        C. Myspace
              -Add myspace.com/theloyalsubjects
              -Post bulletin (see below) and take a screen shot
Subject : Are you Loyal
Check out The Loyal Subjects on Myspace @ www.myspace.com/theloyalsubjects. They are giving away a 1 of 15 Blank Sam Flores' Kid Dragon!! Check out the www.loyalsubjects.com blog for details!!




2. E-mail the following information to: Contest@theloyalsubjects.com
Name
Phone Number
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*All entries must be received by 11:59pm PST on 3/21/10
*Winners will be announced on 3/22/10

Contest Rules

The Loyal Subjects Social Networking Contest Official Rules

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No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. Some restrictions apply. One qualifier per household. you need not be present to win.

The sweepstakes: From 02/22/10 through 03/21/10, The Loyal Subjects will promote, by means of the internet, the opportunity to submit entries to win a grand prize as detailed below.

Eligibility: Any individuals (including but not limited to employees, consultants, independent contractors, and interns) who have, within the past six months, performed services for The Loyal Subjects or any organizations responsible for sponsoring, fulfilling or administering the contest or supplying the prize, and/or their respective parent, subsidiary, affiliated and successor companies, and immediate family and household members of such individuals, are not eligible to enter or play. "Immediate family members" shall mean parents, stepparents, children, stepchildren, siblings, stepsiblings, or spouses. "Household members" shall mean people who share the same residence at least three months in one calendar year.

How to enter: Complete 2 of the 3 options provided in the contest information, on or before 03/21/10. Entries must be e-mailed to The Loyal Subjects at contest@theloyalsubjects.com. All sweepstakes entries become the property of The Loyal Subjects and will not be returned and may be used by The Loyal Subjects for any purpose and in any media in perpetuity.

How to win: The Grand Prize winner and Two Second Prize winners will be selected in a random drawing conducted from all qualified entries on or about 03/22/10. In the event that the original Grand Prize winner does not meet Official Rules or eligibility requirements, or he/she or parent or legal guardian forfeits the Grand Prize, The Loyal Subjects will award prize to first alternate. Process will continue until Grand Prize is awarded.

All entries must be received on or before 03/21/10. The selection will be held the week of 03/22/10. Decision of the judges and The Loyal Subjects is final. The grand Prize winner will be notified by phone, email, and/or mail and must meet all eligibility requirements.
By entering, each contestant agrees to be bound by the rules. The Loyal Subjects, its promotional agents and sweepstakes co-sponsors are not responsible for illegible, lost, delayed or misdirected mail, errors in faxes or shipments, busy phone signals, or incomplete entries.
Grand Prize: (One) Grand Prize winner will receive a 1 of 15 Blank Sam Flores’ Kid Dragon.
Second Prize: (Two) Second Prize winner(s) will each receive a Blue Sam Flores’ Kid Dragon.
Prizes are non-transferable. There may be no cash or other substitutions of prizes by winners. However, The Loyal Subjects reserves the right to substitute similar prizes of equal or greater value in the event the above prize is unavailable for any reason. Individual, parent or legal guardian of winners are solely responsible for all applicable federal, state and local taxes with respect to entire prize.
Winners or Parents or legal guardians of Prize winners must sign an Affidavit of Eligibility, Release and Indemnification Form ("The Form") that : a) releases, indemnifies and holds harmless The Loyal Subjects its parent, affiliated, subsidiary and successor companies, and its respective officers, directors, employees, agents, and representatives, advertising agencies and promotional sponsors (collectively the "Release") from and against any and all harm, expense, liability or injury that may be sustained relating to or arising from participation in the sweepstakes or acceptance or use of the prizes; and b) authorizes the Releaser to use the winners' names, likenesses, photographs, voices and biographical data for any purpose, in any media, unless prohibited by law.
Prizes will not be released until The Loyal Subjects receives all required documents. Failure of Prize winner to return the Forms within the required timeframe will result in automatic forfeiture of any prizes and all such prizes shall be awarded to an alternate winner. In the event of prize forfeiture, the winner or parent or legal guardian of the winner forfeiting prize will sign a Prize Forfeit Form and return to The Loyal Subjects within ten (10) days of receiving the Form.
Unforeseen Events: The Loyal Subjects reserves the right to change this sweepstakes at its sole discretion at any time that The Loyal Subjects become aware of any circumstances or occurrence which would materially affect the sweepstakes security or fairness. The Loyal Subjects reserves the right to announce any sweepstakes rules changes over the internet, air, in print or posters.  The Loyal Subjects is not responsible for the inability of the winner to accept the prize for any reason.

Wyger Fan Picks

Here is a collection of Wyger pictures taken by you the fans!

Email us your Wyger pictures to: adam@theloyalsubjects.com

Kid Dragon Fan Pictures

Here is a collection of Kid Dragon pictures taken by you the fans!

 

 

 

Email us your Kid Dragon pictures to: adam@theloyalsubjects.com

Sam Flores' Wyger TLS Exclusive

Sam Flores’ Wyger roars again with the forthcoming White Wyger! This second edition of the Wyger original vinyl figure produced by us in conjunction with Upper Playground, features a striking high-contrast design. Limited to 197 pieces, the White Wyger drops tomorrow, Tuesday January 26th @ Noon PST exclusivley on our web store for $90.00

www.theloyalsubjects.com/store

Terror & Magnus Death Metal Edition

Joe Ledbetter’s Terror and Magnus soars into 2010 with the  Death Metal Edition! Limited to 199 pieces, this new mono style edition features a hint of blood splatter on Terror revealing his forceful nature. The two figure-set features the mighty Terror (8”) and his loyal and somewhat less threatening sidekick Magnus (3”).   Terror and Magnus Metal Edition drops this Friday, January 15th @ Noon PST exclusively on our web store  The Loyal Subjects web shop  for $115.00.

 

TLS x Joe Ledbetter Art Switch

The Loyal Subjects introduce the first in a series of light switch plates featuring art from some of today’s hottest artists aka "Art Switches". Our first series features the artwork of Joe Ledbetter!
Turn that boring light switch plate into something you can appreciate every time you switch on your lights! Each Art Switch includes two mounting screws for quick and easy installation.
Available now at: theloyalsubjects.com