The original 26Red brand was launched in 1990 by Entrepreneur John Bernard, growing to a worldwide business of $30 million. In 1997 after conquering the streetwear world, John moved on to other ventures. John has had an extensive history in apparel and design. He started his first apparel brand fresh out of USC in 1986 named Spot Sport. Spot Sport was a well-known beach volleyball line. The brand sponsored many pro beach volleyball players, like Brent Frohoff. Spot Sport's claim to fame was its unique flip-up visor, where the brand's unmistakable logo smartly resided on the bottom.
Other brands created by John over the years include Suburban Brand Streetwear, T-shirt brand Five Crown & the E15 apparel brand. But for the last 20+ years, John has been growing ModShop (formerly Room Service), a boutique furniture brand that he owns and operates with his wife, Taryn. This started out as a passion project because of his love for architecture and design, and now includes two manufacturing facilities and stores in several major metropolitan cities in the USA. ModShop is currently doing business with many of the country's top designers, and has an extensive list of celebrity clientele.
John decided the time was right to bring the brand back after seeing all the 26red vintage pieces being sold on Etsy & Depop - this time, including his 4 children as a family project. His kids range in age from 28 - 17. Austin, 28, an industrial design major who graduated from KU, is working on T-shirt graphics and networking. Luke, 22, is setting up the website and helping with graphic design. Lola, 21, a recent graduate from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, will be taking the reins on the girl's division when it launches, and helping with social media, trend forecasting, and marketing. Oliver, 17, is kind of a jack-of-all-trades, and has been helping with sourcing - including blank bodies and doing whatever he can to help (including graphic design). We are all enjoying revisiting John's old designs and working together as a family on this fun project. We are hoping to get some of the original sales team members on board to bring the brand back to life.
Many people have asked "What does 26red mean?!" . Well , it was actually the name of a horse in a race that won in the 7th race when John was listening to the radio in his car one day. Great name, lucky number 7, what could be more perfect? So, back in the day, the people at 26Red were riding that winning horse to many victories in the competitive streetwear market.
The response to the brand relaunch has been overwhelming. We are ready to take the oldies that you know and love, and add a few new designs, to bring 26Red back to our core market. Street wear with a side of skate, 26Red creates innovative art that is as 90's nostalgic as it is on trend with today's new generation of fashion-forward design lovers.
