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Corteiz is tapping into a sector that has lost touch with its origins in a drive to make money, according to Laura Leeb, a director at PWC's strategy consulting arm Strategy& and author of the company's Streetwear: The New Exclusivity report. Counter-cultural authenticity has been replaced by the commercial imperatives of a multi-billion dollar retail market for the under-25s, she says.
The rise of secondhand channels like StockX, Grailed and Goat has also nurtured a $36 billion resale industry where consumers can make money from selling rare, limited-edition sneakers and other collectible pieces. The market is expected to more than double to $77 billion in the next five years, according to 2021 data from Thredup. Streetwear has become mass, says Leeb. “Many luxury brands are redefining themselves as streetwear brands – and existing players like Supreme have gotten massive due to acquisitions.”
This is not Clint’s first brand. A predecessor to Corteiz was Cade, which he founded in 2015 with his friend Ade Sanusi at the age of 19. Both were part of Apex, a London-based collective of creative teenagers who bonded over self expression and personal style while maintaining an IDGAF attitude. It’s unclear when the brand stopped operating.
Corteiz has over 190,000 followers on Instagram and more than 32,700 on Twitter. In January 2022, it was one of the most searched-for brands in the UK on Depop, with its joggers particularly popular. The brand’s fans included the late Virgil Abloh, founder of streetwear brand Off-White and artistic director of Louis Vuitton menswear, who wore Corteiz's "Rules The World” socks to the Met Gala in September 2021, as well as influential British music artists such as Slowthai, Jorja Smith, KwolleM and Central Cee.
Connecting with fans
The Corteiz fandom is spectacular, observers say. “I haven’t seen that in fashion in a long time,” says Cody Eastmond, who has worked on digital marketing campaigns at creative agency Science Magic with brands such as Glossier and Versace. “Supreme had some of that — where people would sit outside and wait to get into the store. But, many streetwear brands have matured and lost that locality.”
Darnell Ferguson documents Corteiz's drops on his YouTube account Darnell Vlogs, which has 58,000 subscribers, and Instagram account @dvrnsz with over 19,000 followers. “I’ve seen the hype… People were missing work to come and swap their jackets, without the guarantee of even getting a coat,” he says. “I haven't seen another brand do something quite like what Corteiz is doing.”
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