theShepherds

A week ago theShepherds was out in the Philippines(Manila) to find some inspiration.  (You are sure to find out what we have done soon enough).  We were lucky enough to be invited to the launch of some new kick ass toy-art.  The “BOTOTOY”.  Created by Arnold Austria an architect from Jagnus Design Studio these toys had us all hyped.  A few of us are big fans of vinyl toys so you can only imagine what seeing these 100% wooden toys did to our grown man levels(we felt like 8 year olds again). 

According to our driver and homie, “Rally”, in Tagalog bototoy is a slang for penis. Yes i said it…Penis! penispenispenis!  So we knew there was a certain level of troll from the creator of the One Hundred Percent Wood Penis toy. In fact, we found out from Arnold himself that he made the name Bototoy to mess with people when ordering or purchasing their own. It goes something like this:

Arnold: “Hello”

“Pretentious” Person: “Hi, i’d like to purchase a Bototoy”

Arnold: “How big would you like your Bototoy”

“Pretentious” Person: “Two Feet”

Arnold: “Do you want your Bototoy all wood?”

“Succumbed to the wonder of the bototoy” Person: “Yes of course, I only want an all wood two foot bototoy”

JAGNUS DESIGN STUDIO x DETALLE x SECRET FRESH

BLANK BOTOTOYS

HE IS NOT KAWS DAMNIT!

STILL NOT KAWS

ARNOLD AUSTRIA…DID I MENTION THE LAUNCH WAS SPONSORED BY HENNESSY?

MONSTER METAL BOTOTOY…THE PORNSTAR DADDY BOTOTOY

BUBBLE GUM HANDS BOT

P. LOTHO. AND SUPER..READY FOR THAT COLLAB!

APPARENTLY SMOKERS DIE YOUNGER AND OFWGKTA

PUT SOME SKINNIES ON HIS BOTOTOY. THIS GUY WORKS WITH DENIM A LOT CHECK OUT THE JACKET HE DID FOR ARNOLD

THE JACKET DESIGNED FOR ARNOLD. FRESHNESS IS A LUXURY

SOME SICK T-ART. SICKTART

DON’T KNOW WHO EXACTLY THIS DUDE IS…

-TrOn | theShepherds Knowledge Supply

“What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is Immortal.” - Albert Pike

Death. The finality seems so bleak. I don’t wanna talk about religion, or whatever comes after the part where our consciousness fades (if anything comes at all); I’m interested in neither. What I AM interested in is what death should mean to us as finite, aging, mortal beings. When we lose someone important to us, we should take with us the positive impact they had on our lives. We should celebrate their life and their influence on ours; not dwell on how their life has come to an end. In my opinion, anything less would be a shame on our part.

Kyle Kondo was many things in his life – he was a brother, a son, and an irreplaceable friend. And among his many accomplishments, he was also the fourth founder of theShepherds. He was one of the creators of this beast of a clothing brand. He was our brother. And for this reason, it’s only right to do him tribute, here.

A peaceful man with a joyous disposition, Kyle was diagnosed with leukemia shortly after we graduated from high school in 2006. Before even hitting the age of 20, this man had to somehow find the courage to fight a deadly disease with all his strength. And fight is exactly what he did. Although he had a grip of honorable personality traits, his competitive nature was one of his greatest strengths. Not once did he bitch or complain about the shitty hand life had dealt him. Instead, he used it as fuel for his aspiration to become and do the things he loved most in life. The term “hard-working” doesn’t even begin to describe the amount of effort that he put in to achieving his goals – one of which was starting a clothing brand.

Towards that end, we couldn’t have asked for a better business partner. The dude’s fashion sense was dope, his work ethic was on point, and his attitude was always positive. He was always ahead of the trend and figuring out how to set new ones. (theShepherds’ leopard-print pocket tee was HIS idea – and a brilliant one at that.) He kept pushing himself and the role that he played within the company, never taking a step backward. And throughout all of his hardships due to the effects of leukemia treatment, not once did he use his condition as a scapegoat or excuse. In fact, he sometimes kept us in the dark about the details of his current health condition so that we wouldn’t worry. He didn’t want sympathy; he wanted our brand – HIS brand – to succeed. 

Although we mourn the loss of our brother, we exult in knowing that our lives are better for having known a man like him. As it should be when any loved one passes, we are thankful for the unforgettable moments we have shared, and for the excellent personality traits that have rubbed off on us. We are better men because Kyle was our brother. He will surely be missed, and definitely celebrated. As a testament to his competitive nature and immeasurable heart, one of the last things he told us while he was fighting for his life in the hospital was “keep working on the brand, and run over the game.” theShepherds will heed his advice religiously. Bet that.

 -KingP