Nowadays, the desire to own a clothing brand is a common aspiration among teens, but few manage to turn it into reality. However, several students from SCH have defied the odds and brought their unique clothing lines to life. This year, we’re excited to introduce three new and distinctive lines from SCH students: Eccentric, GodzWrd, and the newspaper’s own merchandise.
The word eccentric describes a person (or their behavior) who is unconventional and slightly strange. It’s a term that Jayden Sumpter uses to describe himself. Jayden Sumpter, better known as “Jdot” or “Dot” around the school, started his brand Eccentric and immediately pushed it out to the whole school with an Instagram account, Eccentric1___. On all of his apparel, there is a common theme of the name “ECCENTRIC” and a saying, “The Black Sheep, The Odd Duck, The Rejects, The Loners, The Eccentaies, The Beautiful Soul.” This entrepreneurial spirit is what sets Jayden and his brand apart. 
When asked about Eccentric’s marketing strategy, an SCH student claimed, “It’s everywhere—in the halls, even when I check Instagram. It is good, though.”
Dot explained that QR codes on the posters take people to his website (eccentric1.org), where they can order. Dot is using the pre-order method. He collects the money first and then sends that money to his manufacturer. Then he orders the MOQ (Minimum Order of Quantity). The problem with this method is that the clothes do not come fast, so customers must be patient with their arrival times, but they have unlimited garments to sell. Dot says he will try to drop t-shirts, shorts, and hats this summer, so follow the Instagram to keep up with future drops.
GodzWrd is still in the works for its first drop, but this SCH student, who wants to remain anonymous, has succeeded with a different clothing brand before. This student says that they started this brand to help spread the word of God to teenagers and young adults who are into street fashion. They only have prototypes now but want their first drop before summer break starts. An SCH student, Kam Waters, said the clothes “look tough…I got to see it in person” when shown the prototypes. The first drop looks to consider three different colors of the same shirt, which has gotten a lot of positive feedback.
A beneficial but also risky move that GodzWrd will make is using a pre-made method for orders. This method consists of ordering merchandise to have on-hand to sell customers. This is riskier than the pre-order method because if you do not sell, you will have a whole bunch of clothes in your possession. So, most people who start brands, like Dot, usually go with the pre-order method because it is safer. The anonymous students continued explaining that they wanted to be more of a limited-time brand that sells out quickly but with high costs. They are trying to model their brand after luxury brands like Essentials or Off-White. The student believes he will sell because of their media push. They said they already have videos for their TikTok and Instagram lined up to help promote the brand before they even get the clothes. The handles are (godzwrd) on both.
Last but certainly not least are The Campus Lantern’s clothes. Anderson Swanger produced these with help from Visual Identity and Creative Services Associate Laura Cortes and School Purchasing Manager Nancy Center. Swanger and The Lantern team created this apparel because they needed money to fund print editions of school newspapers. Also, in what seems to be a trend, they used the pre-order method, and the school helped them find a manufacturer to get the best price so shipping didn’t take too long and as many students as possible could afford the clothes.
Just recently, the people who ordered from the website on-time received their apparel, and some couldn’t look happier. Griffy, while wearing his shirt, was very excited to show it off during our interview. Griffy said that the school does not help finance the clothes, but they made them available on the school store website. Griffy also explained that they are not currently selling clothes, but they will again in the fall, so students should be excited about that.
As the year ends, these SCH entrepreneurs continue to try to make marks and earn money in the SCH community. Some work well, and some are still in the works. These three have a bright future, and I can’t wait to see how far these brands will go.