VARSITY TEE in VINTAGE WHITE

STREETWEAR FROM THE WORLD'S EDGE

FROM THE FOLKS THAT ARE COOL ABOUT YOUR STOKE

CUSTOM DESIGNED FROM REFOUND LOCAL INSIGNIA  + HANDCRAFTED IN THE ILLAWARRA

'The name Illawarra is derived from various adaptions of the Aboriginal Tharawal language words of elouera, eloura, or allowrie; illa, wurra, or warra mean generally a pleasant place near the sea, or high place near the sea. '

We talked about it for the longest time. To the point we became the 'car park procrastinators' along our regular breaks.

We had all hung out in some great places and collected a lot of interesting perspectives, having lived around the world from the west coast of the USA to Wales to Saudi, Bavaria to the Illawarra via Cornwall.  What we agreed upon was the this stretch of Australia coastline had the best elements of our all favourite places in the world. Squeezed into just in one place by the epic geography of the towering cliffs that kept this place a secret for centuries.

We wanted to celebrate that. But we didn't want folks to get hung up on their stokes. The idea was about place and all of us within it. Not just the adrenaline tribes and performance elitism. Not just about sport or what you rode. Not about a single beach town or chapter. We wanted the brand to be a blank canvas for subcultures along Australia's lower east side, as well as a place to celebrate the countercultures. We may be rider owned and operated but a community is bigger than that.

So we named our idea after the 140km highway that snakes through the neighbourhoods south of Sydney metro. This route twists around the 100+ breaks that makes up a strip of coastline that sits beneath the 300m cliffs, which separates this sub-tropical world's edge paradise from the dry tablelands above. Australia's very own European style Grande Corniche or America's Pacific Coast Highway but with its own big edge.

The right vibe was unexpectedly stumbled upon on a visit to an Illawarra moto museum, exhibiting artifacts from the early 20th century to the modern day. 

The last century graphics of long-forgotten family businesses and the hybrid oddities they designed to withstand the climate, using spare parts coming from Europe and their own creativity, informed the brand mood boards. These folks customised what they had and then made it their own.

All the creative has its roots in the pioneers of yesteryear, with rediscovered insignia, hand drawn marks, chimera fonts from the culture clash of the European diaspora and unexpected lines. This has been layered upon with refound surf magazines from the 1970s sold at local garage sales, old boards from unknown first-generation home shapers, dilapidated industrial signage and the last remnants of ghost advertising still clinging to weatherboards and brick walls. Everything we do is forged from this place. Customising the old school graphics to make new vibes rooted in place.

The address tee in the collection reflects that, through the celebration of a local racing driver legend. Now in his 80s, with his third generation service station, unchanged since the 1940s, this racing hero hosts a key fuel stop along the Grand Pacific Drive in Thirroul. The servo signage has been there as long as he has,  with its hand-painted font that once belonged to another continent, painted in what-they-had-grey, lovingly reproduced with kind permission of the storied owner of the racing workshop. The collection has now grown to include breaks, barrios and backyards all along the Grand Pacific route into a series of chapters. 

Grand Pacific (Customs) was finally established in 2020, as collective of like-minded souls and creatives within the community we serve. Surfers, riders and sliders ourselves, we live and breathe what we love and wear where we're at.

Followers of Grand Pacific are many and come with their own set of outlooks.

From local skaters looking to represent with an alternative to overseas brands. Streetstylers looking for something more ethical.  Petrol heads wanting to build a whole collection for seasonal layering. Visitors to the region looking for trophy wear mementos. Overseas fans looking to collect something unusual from somewhere they dream of experiencing for themselves one day. Just as we all did as kids, with Santa Cruz, Stussy and Vans.

The appeal of a brand inspired by, designed around and hand finished within its home region seals the deal that Grand Pacific aim is to be a legacy brand, by the people and for the people.

We celebrate places and the characters that make up the local secrets and the hidden gems in our CULTURE journal and we champion new music from the region in our monthly mixtapes and curator-led playlists and interviews in our  SOUNDS  journal. It is all part of the unique counterculture of the Pacific SouthEast in Australia.

Wear where you're at.

Acknowledgement:

Grand Pacific Customs, Thirroul, Australia pays respects to the Dharawal Nation, the traditional owners and custodians who traditionally have and continue to occupy the Illawarra region. We would like to pay our respects and acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the Land on which we meet, and pay our respect to Elders past, present and future. We would also like to extend our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people present here today. These include, but are not limited to, the Korewal Elouera Jerrungarugh, Wadi Wadi, Wodi Wodi, Yuin, Wiradjuri, Kamilaroi, Bundjalung, Dunghutti and Gumbayggir Nation and acknowledge and respect that for the traditional owners these boundaries do not reflect the cultural boundaries of the local Aboriginal community.