Kultured Misfits is a unisex streetwear clothing brand created by fashion designer Lindsay Barnette. The Kennesaw State University graduate launched her Atlanta-based brand in 2015 to encourage wearers to believe that what makes them different makes them better.
Barnette explained the inspiration for the name of the brand, why it’s critical to have a team, and what inspires her creations.
How did you come up with the name of the brand?
I was inspired by a group of friends I had while I was in college. I would identify us as “kultured misfits” and in that meaning, we were a unique group. If you looked at us we didn’t look like we should all be friends. It was different backgrounds, races, religions, and belief systems. We would meet and kind of hang out regularly and have these in-depth conversations with one another just about life, challenges we’ve been through, things we’ve gone through, travel experiences we’ve had, and I was always like, “we are a weird group.”
[Like] we are a bunch of misfits but we’re taking the time to culture one another, as in learning about our own cultures, but it was never in jeopardy of making you feel less than or that who you are wasn’t meant to be. It was just in learning and experiencing one another, taking it all in, taking it all in strides, and being truthful to ourselves the entire time but we aren’t afraid to learn about one another. Now that I know more about them or any person that I come across, I can have more empathy and sympathy toward people and their experiences based on that, and to me, that’s what unites us. We are more alike than we are different, even if we don’t always agree. So, I coined the term “kultured misfits,” and decided to build this lifestyle brand around it.
What is the value of having a team?
I had to learn that the hard way, to be honest. I’m a self-starter and I’m going to do everything, just because the brand itself is my baby and it’s my vision, so it can be hard to delegate sometimes. I’ve been blessed to have groups of friends over the years that have come in and said like, “hey we are here to add value to what you do and we’re here to help.” Eventually, that has turned into a full-force team that we are working with and it’s important to have people with different expertise than you. That’s been the biggest learning for me. Though I do the design and I do have a business mind, my degree, and all of those things; people on my team have all of those things as well.
What inspires your designs?
It’s a mix of everything. From the super technical, looking at Fashion Week and the forthcoming colors of the year, all the way to walking around and traveling where I experience art galleries, art shows, and things of my culture.
