Set against a palm tree background, the S/S '27 show started with looks rife with skin-tight jeans as pops of color, against more neutrally toned bombers, chore jackets and peacoats. Riffs off Euro/American staples with a Soho clout corridor flair. True to their reputation, it was 1199's accessories that caught the eye. Metallic pouches clipped to belts, slender scarves and strappy sneakers. However, when it came to the finale walk, the models returned in all-white looks, with skinny jeans and jacket combos, amidst a cannon-like blast of white petals that covered the stage and fluttered over the audience.
New sneakers from the S/S '27 collection.
Star power aside, the collection leaned into what the next generation of archive fashion enthusiasts crave: nostalgia, reference and artfully disheveled styling. The skinny silhouettes of the (mostly) menswear collection were saturated with nods to Hedi Slimane’s Saint Laurent and Dior days, and the Americana (with a Euro trash twist, after all, 1199's founders are French) panache of prime Dsquared2. Which is to say, it's clear the designers are heavily quoting collections from the ‘00-’10s. In 1199’s words, they’ve done the “homework,” echoing the show’s literal title. They’re peeping archive pages, taking notes from magazine scans, scrolling fashion subreddits and monitoring the “most wanted” pieces on resale markets. "We want to pay homage to everything that happened before us. What we do now is [because of that]."
This tendency to make references of THE references has drawn some criticism, from those who assert that nothing radical or new was presented. However, it seems a bit short-sighted. 1199 is proudly a brand started on the internet and is supposed to feel like it, too. So yes, they are revamping the "grails" that you're searching for and making them their own. It’s deliberate.
The brand began in 2020 as an internet-based archive store that went by a different name. Three years later, it “gave way to 1199.” Under its present username, “@bazo_1199,” the IG page amassed over 40k followers before the ready-to-wear collection even dropped. Prior to this year they were an accessories-focused brand with a limited selection, notably: "The 27 Club" rosary bracelet (flexed by Fakemink et al.), the EarBoxers and the Cowboy Hug Boot (a design that earned them a cease and desist from UGG). Popularity soared and soon snaps of Bladee and Osamason wearing them cropped up. But internet-led notoriety aside, the personal histories of 1199's trio of founders are seemingly scrubbed off the internet.
The Grailed Team, went on a hunt to interview them post-show, with no faces to lead us on the trail. Hell, one of the former employees I spoke with didn't even know their legal names. Hint: the "Bazo" in "@bazo_1199," is a twist on one of the designers’ nicknames.
We asked around until we were directed to three late-20-something French guys wearing disarmingly simple white tees. Finally, the designers! In between daps, hugs and heartfelt congratulations from the very community they take style notes from, we had the chance to speak more in depth. Here's the lore: They met as elementary school students in Hong Kong but are all of French descent, with family in France and China. Their friendship continued "through high school, then through COVID, then through the rest of our lives. It was natural for us to build a project together."
After all three moved back to France's capital, they decided to deepen "their love of clothing and culture" into a standalone brand. They are closely associated with another Paris-based label, Cannone, because they're friends IRL, this has yielded numerous collaborations.
One of their first hits was "The 27 Club" bracelet, which follows the shape and design language of a Catholic rosary bracelet. They subbed the traditional images of The Holy Family and saints with perhaps the 21st century's new Gods. Celebrities: Kurt Cobain, Amy Winehouse, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Jim Morrison, and more, the defining members of the 27 Club. "We're all Christians, and in no way this was blasphemous. We grew up watching our grandmothers and mothers wear these kinds of bracelets. They reflect where we actually come from,” they told us, "We're just going to put the [celebrities] we love for real."
We mention the countless ripoffs of their product (and the resale popularity of them), and the trio is unflustered. "It's a consecration, to be fair. I mean, now you literally go on Grailed or on other platforms, there are people selling bracelets with Jesus and Mary and calling them Bazo bracelets. We don't own this bracelet too, so we're not trying to get mad when this happens."
When answering the standard "what's your inspiration" question, 1199's answer leans autobiographical. "I think it's just because we're French but have a completely different background from other French people. We grew up in Hong Kong, it's very multicultural. We speak English, we've been listening to American music forever, and connecting with people, getting inspirations that most French people wouldn't have access to because of our background. We grew up abroad, we've always... mixed with other people from different places." They also mention music and culture from now and "the 2000s, the 60s, from the 70s" as frequently sampled references.
And finally, the question on all of our minds. How exactly were they able to get seemingly half of the underground to wear their pieces, with no PR machine behind them? The answer is a bit elusive: "We ran an online archive store based in Hong Kong, sourcing items from around Asia and selling to a lot of French and American underground artists. We make music. We have a lot of friends that make music. We have a studio in Paris. A lot of people come there, have a great time." Case closed?
To wrap it up, 1199's S/S '27 collection is indicative of youth culture's tendencies right now. We're online, in love with (a very stylized version of) the past, and drawn to decentralized platforms of creativity and taste: what we consume on Pinterest, SoundCloud, and Reddit. And ultimately, what subculture is interested in makes it to bigger stages. Enter 1199, a brand developed with and for the underground. See you next season.