Fireside Chat Guide: Chris Peeples on the Authenticity Behind Atlanta Streetwear Market’s Growth
By Jean Alon Media |
Summary
Atlanta Streetwear Market (ASWM) Founder Chris Peeples sat down with Janice Smith to discuss the remarkable growth of the platform. Peeples revealed that ASWM started from a place of “assessment” after his 2016 college graduation, quickly growing from a small antique shop to hosting thousands of attendees at a full expo center. The key to ASWM’s success is its focus on authenticity and fostering a dynamic collision of community, culture, and creativity. Peeples also touched on global inspiration, admiring the artistic collaboration found in international fashion scenes.
The Atlanta Streetwear Market (ASWM) is a vibrant gathering that brings together thousands of creators, independent brands, and consumers in one dynamic location. Emphasizing the collision of community, culture, and creativity, the market fosters interactions among participants and shares a shared love of streetwear.
To guide the audience through Chris Peeples’ journey, MODA welcomed Janice Smith, EVP, Chief Public Speaker, and founder of First Not Only Network. Janice’s organization is designed to provide access and opportunities for women of color primarily in advertising, marketing, public relations, and communications, but is now open to others by popular demand.
From Idea to Expo Center: ASWM’s Genesis
Peeples explained that the idea for ASWM began with an “assessment” after he graduated from Georgia State in 2016. While he was always drawn to clothing, aesthetics, and the streetwear business, he hit a rough patch post-graduation. In 2017, after hitting a point where he couldn’t find the answer to his next step, he reached out to friends, suggesting, “let’s just start something,” and let the people come.
The growth since then has been staggering. Peeples noted that the change is “like night and day”. ASWM started in 2017 in a small antique shop. Now, the organization hosts events in a “full blown expo center,” going from maybe a couple hundred grateful people to thousands and thousands of guests. Peeples admitted the growth is a bit surreal: “You don’t even wake up to… see what’s going on, you just wake up and it’s like, oh OK, we got this this weekend, we got X amount of thousands of guests coming”.
The Prerequisite: Authenticity and Effort
When asked why he landed on the term streetwear specifically, Peeples responded that he wasn’t even aware it had competition; to him, it was simply “the category, and we just ran”. He acknowledges that there are “no rules to it” and that his role is to encourage everyone to “put their best foot forward,” even if he doesn’t personally gravitate toward a certain style.
With the current “clothing boom” driven by social media, Peeples stated that the “big thing” ASWM looks for in its community is authenticity. This includes putting effort into forming a unique style, recognizing that the process of personifying an idea is difficult and takes work. Ultimately, the prerequisite is people “making cool stuff that other people like”.
International Inspiration and the Future
Peeples, who also runs a media company called Solar Field, shared his admiration for other fashion scenes. He specifically mentioned a desire to bring back home the deeply artistic and supportive nature he observes abroad, noting that other scenes have a “default” of art going through them. He sees this as an “artistic” ecosystem where people are “superman supermanning each other”. This commitment to mutual support underscores ASWM’s focus on building a creative community, not just a market.
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