Smile and Wave With Sam Chin
Smile and Wave is a brand I love very dearly, it is my favourite local clothing brand, actually scrap that, it is my favourite clothing brand full stop.
Majority of my wardrobe is Smile and Wave. I’ve also been complimented on my clothes while wearing Smile and Wave more than anything else, so that’s saying something. For background, Smile and Wave is a clothing label out of Melbourne, owned and operated solely by Sam Chin. The label takes heavy influence from Sam’s Chinese heritage as well as kitschy Australiana and whatever’s on Sam’s mind, all coming together to create eye-catching colourful and fun garments for everybody.
Sam is one of the most hardworking and talented people I know and for the last six years she’s been putting her all into Smile and Wave, designing, running, organising, selling, shipping and everything else that comes with running a clothing company, a true one-person operation.To commemorate the recent release of the Enter the Unknown Collection that you can buy here I spoke to Sam about her brainchild.
Hey Sam! To begin would you like to introduce yourself and Smile and Wave?
Hello, I’m Sam Chin and I own and operate Smile and Wave which is a proud P.O.C. and female run clothing company from Melbourne. Our concept is to design and make clothes for everyone and everybody.
What is the importance for you in making products for everyone to wear?
I just think it’s weird sometimes that brands only want to sell to a certain group. It makes sense, but for me I want a skater kid to say they love Smile and Wave; I want some bird nerd to say they love Smile and Wave. I want everyone to enjoy it, if I’m going to bother making it, I want it to be worn.
For sure, that way makes a lot of sense. How long have you been doing Smile and Wave?
I think it’s been about 6 years since I made my first t-shirt. I think I still have that one at home somewhere [laughs]. From there, I’ve been doing it for about 3 years full time. After Covid I like to plus and minus years when I feel like it, but yeah, it’s coming up to 6 years since my first official order.
I still remember that t-shirt and seeing it in Fast Times! What was it like being sold in the store that you used to work in?
I remember the first order Fast Times ever made. It was a small one, it might have even been a pity one because I seemed so desperate [laughs]. But it was such a cool feeling. There was this one time I got an order that seems pretty small now but was huge for me at the time and me and another staff member were hugging in celebration when the email came through. Like I had won the lottery or something. But yeah, selling Smile and Wave at the store I was working at was fun, exciting, embarrassing, and stressful all at the same time. I get quite awkward talking about my own thing but it’s nice now that I’m not at the shop to see the brand is still doing well in there.
Oh yeah, I bet. Was starting a clothing company something that you had wanted to do for a while?
Definitely. I’ve always loved creating things. In year 6 I started my very first label called Pawky Skatewear [laughs]. I’d get on Microsoft publisher and write Pawky in an Old English font and take it to one of those promotional merchandise places to get them printed and embroidered then sell them to friends. If they didn’t sell mum would probably buy the lot so I didn’t feel so lousy. Maybe I’ll do a Pawky Skatewear x Smile and Wave collab one day [laughs].
That is the collab that needs to happen. Smile and Wave takes a lot of inspiration from your Chinese heritage. When starting the brand was incorporating your heritage into the designs and brand image something that was of high priority for you?
Not really. It kind of evolved over time. At first, I just liked designing and drawing things and wanted to have a platform to express all of that on. Then when it started getting bigger, I decided I wanted the project to have a bit more purpose and meaning and started incorporating more Asian aesthetics into the design.
The theme of this range is extra-terrestrial. It seems a lot of the recent collections have taken on their own distinct themes, whether that be a country/western, frogs or even the bee range. How do you decide what the theme will be for each range?
There’s no real structure to it. I’ll just think of something one day and be like, oh that’d be a cool theme. Chuck it in my notes and whip it out when I need it. I like choosing themes with animals in them. One of my favourites was the cat range we did last season. I love a lil’ pussy cat.
Where do you start when you are working on a graphic or a design?
The usual process is I’ll start off really excited with this vision in my head and work on it for hours on end, hate it, give up, procrastinate for ages, try and design it again, then finally it’ll click, and I’ll get something I like. Or it doesn’t work, and I feel like I’ve wasted my whole life but then I’ll get over it pretty quickly and move onto the next [laughs]. It’s a real journey, it’s probably not a healthy process, but it’s worked so far for me.
You’ve also got some guest artists in to design some graphics. What is your process for getting someone in to design some graphics?
If I like someone’s style, then I’ll just hit them up to see if they’re keen to work together.
Who are some of your favourite people you have got in to help with designs?
I’ve always loved Mike from Plant World’s designs. He’s really versatile and has a design style that’s different to mine. I always look for designers who are different to me so they can fill the gaps in a collection and really give it a well-rounded look.
Something I’ve always noticed with the Smile and Wave products is how much effort and attention to detail there is. You will make a t-shirt with a 7-colour print and still have it screen printed or have garments that you’ve hand-dyed yourself. How important is it for you to go through those extra more expensive and time-consuming processes to get the exact product you want?
Yeah, sometimes it’s a good design decision, but not necessarily a great financial decision. I’ve done designs where I’ve just broken even, but I was so fixated on having it look the way I wanted that I still went with it.
Has it always been a thing of you getting the exact product you want no matter how much extra work it is to get there?
I actually always think back to when I first started, I got a DM from my now friend, Riwaz Kazi who works at UPS skate shop in Sydney, telling me how much he liked the detail in the label I’d sew onto the back of the t-shirt. I used to sit there and sew the tiniest detail on those things thinking to myself, is this even worth it? It felt so nice that someone noticed. I always think of that and try to put in the extra effort when I can.
I know that you’ve also made some samples for the cut and sew yourself. Does that come along with putting in that extra effort?
Yeah, for sure. I’ve always worked with the idea that if you design something you should know how it’s put together and how it works. But you know what, it’s 2023 and any Joe Blow can start their own label and pay people to do all the hard work. So, my theory isn’t really necessary but personally, I think it’s important in the whole process.
You’re also working in this heavily male-dominated industry. How have you felt is the best way to navigate it being a woman?
It can be pretty challenging. Sometimes it gets me down. You know, when you look at owners of big brands posing with a group of men with their shirts off flexing. It does stop me in my tracks and makes me think, what the hell am I doing here? Get out now [Laughs]!
But then I’ll absorb it all in and use that stuff as motivation to keep kicking on and trying to adjust the path for female business owners in this industry.
Do you have any advice for anyone out there who wants to start a project but feels disadvantaged due to the nature of the industry?
I’m not really great with advice. I’d maybe say go out and get all the tools and knowledge you can supply yourself with, so you know you have all the skills required to get the job done. So, then all you need is the confidence, a bit of luck and some annoying men to change their ways of thinking. Easy peasey right [laughs]?
Over the last three years, Smile and Wave has gotten to a stage where you were able to quit your job and focus on it full-time. Do you know where you want to take it from here?
My brain doesn’t have the capacity to look too far into the future. I just know that I feel really happy where the company is right now, and if my maths is correct, if I keep doing this and more it can only get better. In the next year or so we have some super fun collabs coming up, so I want to make sure they’re all executed to the max and really enjoy experiences they bring.