Alien Apparrel started in 2016 and while its roots are based in the skating subculture, it is fast become known for designs that also draw their influence from music, poetry, travel, fashion and art.

Founder, Errol Televantos, says in College he had begun designing his own clothing using digital software and that’s pretty much the way Alien Apparel got started. “I did a graphic design course and the final assignment was to design a shirt”.

Errol didn’t do anything with the design idea for a while, but after completing school he was keen to do something a bit different, so “I tossed around a couple of ideas and decided to start making clothing. I did some research and ended up watching a really good YouTube video. I probably watched it eight or nine times and got the hang of it after doing a bit of design work online”.

Errol came up with a design, logo and brand name and started to screen-print it. He says that after a couple of very unsuccessful attempts it eventually ended up working. “I was pretty stoked with it and I had my first range of clothes. That was probably three years ago now and I’ve been doing it off and on ever since’”.

When asked about the brand name, Errol says, “Well my initials are E.T so it was sort of a joke for a while and I guess alien came from that. I wanted to make it more specific so I went along with Alien Apparrel.” Errol says that he likes the alliteration of it as well and now uses the play on words in his products.

“For a long time, I was just selling through friends and at events.”

Errol says that the music culture in Canberra offers some alternative music festivals and for a while he was selling his clothes at these ‘bush doofs’ out of the boot of his car. Then he started selling them at house parties and inviting people around to see his clothes. Then the word just started getting around that he was making more shirts.

“Social media also helped get the word out, so I created an online presence. Its nothing super formal but just making posts about when I’ve made more shirts and where I am going to be selling them.”

Errol is in the process of building a website that should be available soon. As with most things in business, Errol says this is taking a bit longer than expected but soon people will be able to go to a dedicated website and buy his shirts. Errol is continuing to build his range, which will be available from his future online store.

Alien Apparrel is a side hustle for Errol at the moment. “I currently work full time and study so there is a lot on my plate”, says Errol. Working full time in retail is helping Errol develop the skills he hopes to transfer to his brand and gives him an insight into seasonal trends.

Full-time study can be difficult when running a side hustle, says Errol. “You have to take time out from study to get stuff done. When I’m working, I can fit making clothes and other stuff in these hours. So my days off can be pretty hectic. I just wake up and sit in the same spot for hours sewing a beanie or getting stuff ready. I guess I just make the most of my off days”.

“It is weird, I don't really think I know how to sew but a lot of people disagree. I have a good friend and she is a creative as well. She does stick and poke tattoos now under the handle @yourlocalfaery, but she actually got me into embroidery. She used to bring her little hoop around and when we would hang out she’d be doing cross-stitch or sometimes she’d do some embroidery and I thought it was really cool so I asked her how do you do it and she taught me. I thought I can do this on clothing and hats and stuff and she was like, you can totally do that. I just built my skills from there. The first thing I stitched looked horrible but my stitch work is surprisingly clean now which I am pretty happy about”.

  

Errol says that he still hand stitches all of his beanies and hats and it can take up six hours to finish one item. He doesn’t see it as six hours of intensive work, but more like six hours of passive work.

This year, Errol says that the business is being ramped up, so he is building the website, has registered an ABN and he is running the business in a more structured way. He would like to have his clothing stocked in the store he works in by the end of the year. Hopefully, other stores will follow so he can make it more of a full-time gig.

Just because Errol isn’t busy enough, he is also a DJ under the name Sgt. Sprinkles and would like to do more of this both in Australia and overseas. But his main goal at this stage is to finish his degree and move to Tokyo to teach English there.