He went from interning at Hood By Air in high school, to being on the original Noah store staff, to working his way up to store manager. He’s learned so much from some of the best in the industry. The pioneers of this whole thing. One of the most genuine guys I know, I’m excited for his future. A conversation with Jason Boehm.
DG
JB
What’s your background? You grew up in Brooklyn right?
I was born and raised in Brooklyn and still am there today. I just moved from Sunset Park out of the house I grew up in, to Clinton Hill. Two out of four of my great grandmothers immigrated and settled down there and my family hasn't moved since. One of them came from Italy and the other came from Portugal. I am also Filipino, German and Syrian but people just assume I am somewhere from Latin America which is pretty funny. I most likely have some Spanish in me due to colonialism, I've been meaning to take a DNA test for some time now.
Coming from NYC I feel like streetwear is a natural thing to be into. Is that a big influence, or why/how did you get into it?
I heard the term streetwear for the first time in High School. I spent my early years in Brooklyn and went to elementary school in Park Slope. For middle and high school I crossed the Manhattan Bridge everyday into downtown Manhattan and that is when my life changed forever. I used to walk around Greenwich Village and for High School I walked down Prince Street every morning and night to get home after school. Downtown New York is obviously the epicenter of "culture and cool" and I was exposed to that on a regular basis, so it was just part of my routine. Streetwear is a label slapped onto what I was observing growing up, so it was weird to me when I heard it for the first time. The community I was a part of started becoming more well known and people started to identify and try and become involved with it. Today we all know how out of control it has become, and in a lot of ways is the antithesis of what all those folks downtown had created when they were just being themselves. But to answer I got into it from just growing up around it, without my mom teaching at a school downtown I would've learned about what was happening when the masses found it.
How’d you get started at Noah?
I knew Beau who’s our COO and worked with him at HBA for an internship in high school. Then he dipped from HBA and he knew Wil from Nom De Guerre since he was 16 and worked there for 4 years. Wil is like Beau’s mentor and Beau is my mentor.
Nom De Guerre had a lot of dope stuff coming out of there, Brendan had early iterations of Noah there.
Yeah they brought all of that Japanese stuff to New York and had a lot of exclusive kicks in there too. I think that was 2002 where they had some Noah in the store where Brendan did it the first time for a season or two and stopped. It’s really cool to look at the old pieces.
What’d you do at HBA?
I was the warehouse manager, I started interning there at 17 and was Beau’s assistant who was the COO over there as well. After the internship period ended, he brought me on full time, and at that point we were at Canal and Lafayette. It was such a weird space - it was almost like a giant closet, and all the perfume and fake handbag dudes were our neighbors - it was crazy.
I’m sure you met a bunch of people there.
Yeah, Virgil would be there doing graphics for Shayne and be working on Pyrex at the time, and Matthew Williams was there and they were all homies, and I guess this was the start of them blowing up to what they are today. And it was just cool to be a fly on the wall. I had no idea what was going on at the time, but It’s cool to look back now and be like that’s sick that everyone was in an office together throwing ideas back and forth.
What are some of the most valuable lessons you picked up from being around Wil, Brendan and Beau?
Beau is like my older brother, even though he has been my boss since I was sixteen. He has mentored me and has been someone I've looked up to for 7 years. He brought me into the clothing industry and taught me everything I know about hard work and busting your ass for something you want and believe in. I owe Beau my whole career and he has always been there for me as a friend and continues to look after me. I want to be like him when I grow up.
Wil is someone you meet once in a lifetime, if Beau is my older brother Wil is like an Uncle that slips you a sip of whiskey during a family get together. Funny enough what Beau is to me, Wil is to Beau. He brought Beau into this world back when he was manning Nom De Guerre, one of the illest most important shops of all time so he has been in this since the ground floor. I was lucky enough to work with him 4 days a week while I was in school. He is a beacon of light and can turn your whole day around with a conversation. He is one of the most caring and kind souls walking. Even if he wasn't having a good one he would make sure that you are. Seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces when they saw him and how many people love him is something I will remember for the rest of my life. He is family and I cherish his friendship, I am grateful and fortunate that I met him when I did.
Brendon is another person that comes around once in a lifetime. Though he doesn't know it he has been very influential for me because I used to wear all of his designs growing up and he helped shape my taste and personal style. Being able to interact and work with him and see how he operates and the reasons behind that has been a surreal experience. The most important thing I have learned from B is integrity. He doesn't give into the bullshit and more importantly he calls it out, which a lot of us are afraid to do. He uses his platform to do good and try to better the world rather than profit off it. Obviously we need to eat and want comfortable lives for our families, but I know he would never sell out to get to that point and he would go down with the ship if he needed to, his morals wouldn't change. His wealth of knowledge is insane, he grew up during punk, hip hop, new wave, rave culture and has seen the evolution of everything. I learn something new from him every time we talk and what he is doing inspires me everyday to stay true to myself no matter what. I've never met an owner and creative who cares just as much about his staff and vision as he does himself. I am humbled to be a part of this whole thing.
The Noah store has definitely cultivated a community. It’s a place where people with similar mindsets and interests can be able to come through and hang out. Is that one of the goals of the store, to continue that relationship - not only as retailer and consumer but as peers?
There wouldn't be that couch in the middle of the shop unless we wanted folks to come in here and chop it up. For so many people the store is a safe space, if homies are having a hard day at work, they'll pull up and talk about what’s going on if they are on break. People come in and sit down and exchange ideas and talk about current events. It is meant to be a place where all are welcome and a place to have conversation. That is built into the DNA of the shop. We love having visitors and people hanging out, it is just as much fun for them as it is for us. I've met so many great and influential people because of that couch and the energy we try and put out in the shop. I wish more places were like that. We also have to thank Estelle, who created the interior and gave it that warm, welcoming feeling to help spur those interactions.
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5 of your favorite basketball players
Terry Rozier
Demar Derozan
Jrue Holiday
Damyean Dotson
Nikola Jokic
5 of your favorite artists
Claude Monet
William Eggleston
Cat Stevens
Frank Ocean
Lou Reed
What would be the dream job?
I am not sure if I have a dream job just yet. Maybe become a high school American History teacher or be able to say that I own something one day, maybe my own brand. I still need to figure that out. I am really happy and humble to be where I am currently. I want to learn as much as possible before the next thing that comes around in my life.