Ksubi is an Australian fashion label founded in 1999 on

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

Northern Beaches The Northern Beaches is a region within Northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, near the Pacific coast. This area extends south to the entrance of Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour), west to Middle Harbour and north to the ...

. Known for signature denim and box-cross logo, the brand has built an international presence and can be found in premium stores across Australia, North America and Europe.

History

In 1999 Gareth Moody, Dan Single, Paul Wilson and George Gorrow were dissatisfied with the range of denim fits on the market, leading them to manufacture their own jeans and other

denim Denim is a sturdy cotton warp-faced textile in which the weft passes under two or more Warp (weaving), warp threads. This twill weave produces a diagonal ribbing that distinguishes it from cotton duck. Denim, as it is recognized today, was f ...

garments (originally under the name “tsubi”). Ksubi made its international debut in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 2002, with fashion displays held at the abandoned

Aldwych tube station Aldwych is a List of former and unopened London Underground stations, closed station on the London Underground, located in the City of Westminster in Central London. It was opened in 1907 with the name Strand, after Strand, London, the street on ...

. In 2006, the brand changed its name to Ksubi as a result of a trademark infringement dispute. In 2010, Ksubi was purchased by clothing manufacturer Bleach, who also owned and produced Insight and Something Else. In 2013, Bleach went into liquidation and Breakwater Management acquired Ksubi. In 2014 the licence for global distribution was obtained by The General Pants Group. It is currently independently owned. In 2016, GPG embarked on an international roll out of physical stores starting with

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. In 2017, Travis Scott christened the New York store with a 40 minute in-store performance to launch his collaboration with Ksubi. In 2019, Kendall Jenner collaborated on an 8-piece capsule collection entitled "Sign of the Times". In 2019, Ksubi teamed up with Kith on their annual NYFW show. In 2020, Ksubi separated from GPG with former CEO Craig King leading the new company Ksubi Sales International. In 2022, after

COVID pandemic Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fev ...

interruptions Ksubi rebooted its global expansion with flagships in Miami, Chicago and London. In 2023, Ksubi expanded its categories into underwear and kids. In September 2024, Pip Edwards was named creative director of Ksubi.

Collaborations

Ksubi has collaborated with a number of influential figures and brands across the fashion, music and art worlds. In 2006 a collaborative project with U.S. style icon and fashion designer,

Jeremy Scott Jeremy Scott (born August 8, 1975) is an American fashion designer. He is the sole owner of his namesake label, and from October 2013 to March 2023 was the creative director of the fashion house Moschino. Since launching his brand in Paris in 19 ...

, called "Jeremy Loves Ksubi" was shown at Scott's

New York Fashion Week New York Fashion Week (NYFW), held in February and September of each year, is a semi-annual series of events in Manhattan typically spanning seven to nine days when international Fashion design, fashion collections are shown to buyers, the pres ...

Parade alongside his own collection. Previewing at

London Fashion Week London Fashion Week (LFW) is a clothing trade show that takes place in London, England, twice a year, in June and September. Showcasing over 250 designers to a global audience of influential media and retailers, it is one of the 'Big Four' fash ...

in September 2007 was Ksubi's collaboration with Richard Nicoll. "Ksubi for Richard Nicoll sunglasses SS08", was an eyewear collection designed by Nicoll consisting of three styles and drawing colours from Nicoll's collection. In 2017 Ksubi created a limited edition collection with rapper

Travis Scott Jacques Bermon Webster III (born April 30, 1991), known professionally as Travis Scott (formerly stylized as Travi$ Scott), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Scott has had five number-one hits on the U.S. ''Bil ...

. The collaboration received global attention and sold out world wide. In July 2019, model

Kendall Jenner Kendall Nicole Jenner (born November 3, 1995) is an American model, socialite and media personality. She rose to fame in the reality television show ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians,'' in which she starred for 20 seasons and nearly 15 years ...

became the face for Ksubi's Fall 20 Sign of the Times collection, including an 8 piece capsule which featured in the campaign. On 21 November 2019 Ksubi announced a collaboration with New York street artist Hidji World, a noted member of the AWGE group. Between 2019 and 2023, Ksubi collaborated with artists Slumpy Kev, DNTWATCHTV, Slawn, models Cat McNeil, Josephine Skriver, sports leisure brand P.E Nation,

Juice Wrld Jarad Anthony Higgins (December 2, 1998 – December 8, 2019), known professionally as Juice Wrld (pronounced "juice world"; stylized as Juice WRLD), was an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He emerged as a leading figure in the emo rap ...

, and A$AP Mob member, A$AP TyY.

Stores

The Ksubi Flagship store is based in

SoHo SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...

, New York with other retail locations including Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami and London. Ksubi can be found in premium stores across the globe. Stockists include

Barneys Barneys New York is an American brand founded in 1923 by Barney Pressman that operated full-line department stores from 1923 until 2020. Authentic Brands Group acquired Barneys' intellectual property in 2019, and has licensed the brand to Saks ...

, Saks and Kith in the United States,

Harrods Harrods is a Listed building, Grade II listed luxury department store on Brompton Road in Knightsbridge, London, England. It was designed by C. W. Stephens for Charles Digby Harrod, and opened in 1905; it replaced the first store on the ground ...

and

Selfridges Selfridges, also known as Selfridges & Co., is a chain of upmarket department stores in the United Kingdom that is operated by Selfridges Retail Limited. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge in 1908. The historic Daniel Burnham-designed Self ...

department store in the United Kingdom, RonHerman in Japan. Ksubi has announced plans to open two stores in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

and Sydney in 2024.

Pronunciation

Ksubi is pronounced as "soobie" in Australian accents, and "sue-bee" in American accents. The ‘K’ is silent.

Controversy

The label hit headlines around the world in 2001 when they unleashed 200 live

rat Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents. Species of rats are found throughout the order Rodentia, but stereotypical rats are found in the genus ''Rattus''. Other rat genera include '' Neotoma'' (pack rats), '' Bandicota'' (bandicoo ...

s onto the

catwalk A fashion show is an event put on by a fashion designer to showcase their upcoming line of clothing and/or accessories during a fashion week. Fashion shows debut every season, particularly the spring/summer and fall/winter seasons. This is where ...

. Ksubi turned heads in 2007 with a catalogue displaying sunglasses propped on penises. In 2013 Ksubi's Sex! & Fashion capsule collection received consumer backlash concerning ‘sexually provocative imagery’ in their General Pants Co. window campaign.

Books and photography exhibitions

In 2005 Ksubi released a book to mark their five-year anniversary. They held launches for it in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

and

. Following this, in 2006, Ksubi also toured an exhibition of campaign photographs they commissioned for their eyewear range, "Magnum Opus", to Sydney, Melbourne,

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

, and Paris. In 2007 Ksubi produced and released the book ''Sign of the Times''. The photographic reportage style book featured photos by George Gorrow, Paul Wilson and Michael Nolan. The photos captured the journey of a 7 ft high Ksubi

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

depicting a giant hand doing the

peace symbol A number of peace symbols have been used many ways in various cultures and contexts. The dove and olive branch was used symbolically by early Christians and then eventually became a secular peace symbol, popularized by a ''Dove'' lithograph b ...

with the fingers cut off and bleeding. The sculpture was toured by Ksubi from Los Angeles to The

Burning Man Festival Burning Man is a week-long large-scale desert event focused on "community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance" held annually in the Western United States. The event's name comes from its ceremony on the penultimate night of the event: the ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

and then across country to

Musical side projects

2006 also saw Ksubi collaborating with

record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...

!K7. Single, under the name DJ Dangerous Dan, mixed a CD under the Ksubi banner for a national and international release of !K7 "KSUBI presents DJ KICKS CD for !K7 RECORDS". Dan Single, or Dangerous Dan, is also part of prominent Sydney-based DJ six-piece "Bang Gang". Bang Gang consists of Ajax, Nolan, Jamie Doom, Gus Da Hoodrat, Dj Damage, and Dangerous Dan. Their early party days in dark nightclubs, such as 3rd Class in Melbourne and progressed to supporting

Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. They achieved popularity in the late 1990s as part of the French house movement, combining house music, funk, disco, tech ...

in their Nevereverland tour of Australia in late 2007.

Contemporary culture

Ksubi's impact on pop culture can be seen in numerous musical references including "Leaving Los Feliz" by

Mark Ronson Mark Daniel Ronson (born 4 September 1975) is a British-American DJ, record producer, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year for Amy Winehouse's album '' Back to Black'' (2006), as well as two for Record ...

from the 2015 album ''

Uptown Special ''Uptown Special'' is the fourth studio album by British producer Mark Ronson. The album was released on 13 January 2015 in the US and 19 January 2015 in the UK. It is his first album in nearly five years, following '' Record Collection'' (2010 ...

'' as well as the song "Lord" by

A$AP Ferg Darold Durard Brown Ferguson Jr. (born October 20, 1988), known professionally as FERG (previously A$AP Ferg ( /ˈeɪsæp/ ''AY-sap'')), is an American rapper from Harlem, New York City. He is a lead member of the hip hop collective ASAP Mob, f ...

featuring

Bone Thugs-n-Harmony Bone Thugs-n-Harmony (formerly known as B.O.N.E. Enterpri$e and also referred to as simply Bone Thugs or Bone) is an American hip hop group formed in 1991 in Cleveland, Ohio. Consisting of rappers Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone, Layzie Bone, Krayzie ...

from the 2013 ''

Trap Lord ''Trap Lord'' is the debut studio album by American rapper ASAP Ferg. The album was released on August 20, 2013, by ASAP Worldwide, Polo Grounds Music, and RCA Records. The album features guest appearances from ASAP Rocky, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Fr ...

''. Ksubi in songs *

Playboi Carti Jordan Terrell Carter (born September 13, 1995, or 1996), known professionally as Playboi Carti, is an American rapper. Known for his eccentric vocal style and fashion, he is considered an influential figure in modern Hip hop music, hip hop a ...

- "Let It Go" *

- "Chinatown" *

Keith Ape Lee Dong-heon (; born December 25, 1993), known professionally as Keith Ape () and previously known as Kid Ash, is a South Korean rapper from Seoul. He is a member of a crew called 'The Cohort'. Ape's breakout single "잊지마" ("''It G Ma''") ...

- "Ksubi" *

Danny Brown Daniel Dewan Sewell (born March 16, 1981), better known as Danny Brown, is an American rapper, singer and songwriter from Detroit, Michigan. He was described by MTV in 2011 as "one of rap's most unique figures in recent memory". After amassing ...

- "#HottestMC" *

Lil Uzi Vert Symere Bysil Woods ( ; born July 31, 1995), known professionally as Lil Uzi Vert, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, they gained initial recognition following the release of the commer ...

- "Smoke My Dope" *

XXXTENTACION Jahseh Dwayne Ricardo Onfroy (January 23, 1998 – June 18, 2018), known professionally as XXXTentacion, was an American rapper and singer-songwriter. Though a controversial figure due to his widely publicized legal troubles, XXXTentacion gai ...

- "Look At Me!" * Smoove L - "Apollo" * BLP Kosher - "Skidoo" *

Skepta Joseph Olaitan Adenuga Jr. (born 19 September 1982), known professionally as Skepta, is a British grime MC, rapper, record producer and DJ. Alongside his younger brother Jme, he briefly joined Roll Deep before they became founding members of ...

- "It Ain't Safe"{{Citation, title=Skepta - It Ain't Safe, url=https://genius.com/Skepta-it-aint-safe-lyrics

References

External links

Official website

Ksubi Eyewear
Clothing brands of Australia Companies based in Sydney Retail companies established in 1999 1999 establishments in Australia