FUBU Comeback

Remember FUBU? Of course you do. That ultra baggy almost cliche urban apparel that lie somewhere between the higher end Sean John and Rocawear and the more low budget South Pole lines during the heyday. Today the brand is non-existent and the very few appearances it makes in the public are the product of the recession and perhaps their wearers holding on to their gear a bit too long.

But in fall 2010, founder Daymond John hopes to change that as he’s planning to reintroduce the brand this time looking to feature a more surf-skate/ urban mashup persona for the the renewal of the label for marketing to a wider audience.

The brand which stood for “For Us, By Us” invoked a buzz generating dialog among consumers of exactly who “US” referred to. The African-American community viewed the label as a badge of pride as the brand that embodied the spirit of generation while still others equated “us” as simply the hip-hop culture or the younger, rebellious generation. Unfortunately for FUBU the collections never lived up to the buzz generated by the name.

However John hopes present a much more defined collection this time around. The initial offering which he describes as a “Carhartt-meets-Abercrombie & Fitch style,” will ascend to a more affluent $65 price point and feature men’s wear with a smattering of women’s and some swim suits.

“Kids have a three-year memory span, so most don’t have a sense of the brand’s roots,” John said. “I think FUBU to the kids is kind of an American brand. In apparel, [brands] tend to have a life cycle of three to five years and then need to be reinvented or taken to the next level.”

Like so many Urban business stories, FUBU was the brainchild of John and three of his Queen, NY homeboys, Alexander Martin, Carl Brown and Keith Perrin. The brand ascended to national prominence when its spokesperson LL Cool J was able to flip a less than subliminal reference to the brand during a nation TV spot he was part of for gap.
Ahhh and of course there was one of the original Fat Back anthems, Fatty Girl featuring LL, Ludacris and Keith Murray the lone hit from FUBU Entertainment’s The Good Life.

So what do you think? Could FUBU make a come back and convince you to rock the gear again or in most cases for the first time?