The fashion creative collective Racer Worldwide, founded in Estonia in 2017, has had major growth thanks to its business model, not being tied to any specific style or subculture and a very strong community mainly formed by Gen-Z individuals who view fashion as a means to express themselves and have very different backgrounds. Sicky chats with Mihhail Zigadlo, CEO and Founder of Racer Worldwide, and Jüri Belov, creative at Racer Worldwide, to dig into the success of this iconic brand and to know more about its universe and community. We also get to talk about their podcast documentary where they tell the story of the brand and also discuss very interesting topics. You can’t miss the second part of it, available today in their YouTube channel.

RACER WORLDWIDE WAS CREATED IN ESTONIA IN 2017 WITH A SPECIAL DRIVE FOR PROGRESS, INNOVATION, AND ORIGINALITY. WHAT WAS THE STARTING POINT OF YOUR BRAND AND HOW WAS IT BORN? HOW DID THE IDEA COME TO LIFE WITH THESE VALUES?

M.Z. → When we were 16 we made an Instagram account and started posting photos made on film cameras. We were just skateboarding and having fun with our friends, sharing some of the moments online. In the beginning, we didn’t have a goal to create a brand, this idea is something that was born over time by itself. Values and vision were added later. The biggest driver and starting point was just our wish to create and do something cool together. 

WHO IS BEHIND RACER WORLDWIDE, ONE OF THE FASTEST-GROWING GEN-Z FASHION BRANDS IN THE WORLD? WHAT’S ITS CONNECTION WITH YOUTH?

M.Z. → Racer is youth. Our median age in the team is 22, so we experience the same things and feel the same as our audience. We have the same references, we watch the same movies, and we use the internet from a young age as well. We shared memes with our classmates and photoshopped funny images. We did our own skate video editing and filmed on the phone. We tried to post our coolest outfits on Instagram and wanted to belong to the “cool kids” group of our hometown. Shared experiences are something that connects us with our audience deeply.

IT IS REALLY INTERESTING THAT YOUR BRAND IS NOT TIED TO ANY PARTICULAR STYLE OR SUBCULTURE, BUT RATHER A DYNAMIC REFLECTION OF IDEAS AND MOODS ENTERING YOUR STUDIO. HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO CREATE A BRAND WITHOUT A SPECIFIC STYLE? HOW DO YOU DO IT AND WHY?

M.Z. → Everything in the world moves and changes so fast, so it makes no sense to put yourself in any stylistic and aesthetic frames. You will just get bored of everything in 6 months. We pursue a dream of creating a platform where any team member can expand and develop ideas that are close to them, that they find interesting and want to implement. We see our collection as a culture cut in which we mix different streams, times, and serious and funny things at the same time. I don’t think that style has any real borders.

IT’S SEEN THAT YOUR BRAND TAKES INSPIRATION FROM VARIOUS THINGS AND PLACES. WHICH WOULD YOU SAY ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT OR RELEVANT SOURCES OF INSPIRATION AND HOW ARE THEY REFLECTED IN THE BRAND’S DESIGNS?

M.Z. → We get inspired by what our audience and we wear, what we have been wearing when we were 12, what our parents were wearing in their youth, and what our grandparents wear right now. In our upcoming collection, you will be able to see flip flops on a platform with the bant that your mother could wear on the beach in her teenage years. And a Y2K style tracksuit that your bully could wear at school. By the way, Muay Thai shorts are also one of the products in the collection.

YOU GIVE A NEW LIFE TO OUTDATED AND CONTRASTING IDEAS, CREATING A STUNNING BLEND OF INCOMPATIBLE STYLES, WHICH SOUNDS A BIT DIFFICULT TO CONCEIVE CREATIVELY. ARE RACER WORLDWIDE’S TEAM AND ITS YOUNG ENERGY WHAT MAKES IT POSSIBLE TO CREATE SUCH A FRESH AND RARE STYLE COME TO LIFE? WHAT’S YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS LIKE?

M.Z. → In the autumn I went to New York and brought back a lot of random stuff that I found in the cheapest souvenir shops in Chinatown. Jeans caps with rhinestones, a bootleg style VVS chain that says VIP on it, a vintage American flag that looks as if it has been found in someone’s grandpa’s garage, etc. We distributed those elements on a lot of different items in the upcoming collection. Very often items get born out of jokes. We laugh all the time in the office. Probably even more than we do actually work.

YOU’VE LAUNCHED A TWO-PART DOCUMENTARY IN WHICH YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR STORY, YOUR VALUES, AND THE BRAND’S MANIFESTO. WHY DID YOU WANT TO CREATE THIS PODCAST-FORMAT DOCUMENTARY AND WHY DO YOU THINK IT WAS NECESSARY TO SHARE YOUR STORY WITH THE WORLD? TELL US MORE ABOUT THE IDEA AND HOW EVERYTHING CAME TOGETHER.

J.B. → No gatekeeping. We want to share our experience and exchange ideas with the audience. Our “behind the curtain” type documentary, discovering the creation and growth of Racer Worldwide, is something we wanted to watch on YouTube when we were 15-16, but there wasn’t a lot of such content. Being open about our work and life is something we find value in, and we hope it motivates someone to follow their dreams. If after watching our YouTube channel 10 kids can do what they love and make a living out of it, we can see this project as a successful one.

CREATING A COMMUNITY AND BEING PART OF A HUGE FAMILY IS ALSO REALLY IMPORTANT FOR YOUR BRAND. WHERE DOES THAT MOTIVATION COME FROM AND HOW DO YOU MANAGE TO BUILD THE RACER FAMILY? WHAT’S SPECIAL ABOUT THIS FAMILY?

J.B. → Many of our team members were Racer customers and fans before. Some of them were just our friends or classmates before joining Racer. Passion for the project and the ability to work in a team is necessary here, nothing would be possible without all the people working hard back to back. The Racer team is literally the family that is always together. Spending work days and off days together, having lunches and dinners together, spending weekend nights and vacation trips together, sharing good and bad times together, and even sometimes living together. 

YOUR TARGET IS GEN-Z, A VERY UNIQUE AND DIFFERENTIATED GROUP THAT BRINGS WITH IT A LOT OF DISTINCTIVE FEATURES LIKE FREEDOM OF EXPRESSING THEMSELVES, THE GREAT RELEVANCE OF SOCIAL PLATFORMS, AND SO ON. HOW DOES YOUR BRAND WITH THE USE OF E-COMMERCE AND POP-UP STORES MEET THE CUSTOMERS’ DEMANDS? WHAT FORMATS WORK BEST FOR YOU TO TARGET THIS SPECIFIC PUBLIC?

M.Z. → We want to speak to our audience directly through tools we are used to ourselves, such as social media. We find this connection natural and more effective. Also, we don’t hide people behind the brand. We follow our entire team from the main account on Instagram. Our audience DMs us on personal accounts, shares thoughts, and gives criticism. This creates another level of trust and connection that we value a lot.

YOU’VE ALSO COLLABORATED WITH VARIOUS ARTISTS AND CREATORS. HOW’S IT LIKE TO SPREAD YOUR MESSAGE ACROSS THE WORLD AND CONNECT WITH OTHER TALENTED CREATIVES AT THE SAME TIME? WHAT VALUE DOES THIS HAVE FOR YOU AND THE BRAND?

M.Z. → We are from a small town in a small country. We never had any celebrity friends. People we have worked with are those who just liked our work online and we try to build a relationship with them via DMs. We have never paid anyone for the promotion on their social media. The coolest ad is when people are actually wearing your brand’s pieces. If it happens that this person is your favorite rapper, even cooler.

I BELIEVE YOU HAVE A GREAT VISION AND PLAN FOR THE FUTURE AS THE BRAND HAS A CLEAR IDEA OF FUTURE TRENDS AND BUSINESS AND CONSUMER BEHAVIORS. HOW DO YOU SEE THE FUTURE OF RACER WORLDWIDE? HOW DO YOU EXPECT IT TO GROW AND IMPROVE?

M.Z. → The future of Racer depends on the size of ambitions of the people that work at Racer. We would like to leave a meaningful footprint in history and we are in constant search of our true goal. We just come to our office every day, do what we truly love, and try to enjoy every moment of this process. So far it worked well for us.