Wednesday 14 September 2016

An Honest Days Graft

Barrie K Sharpe states, “I wanna go back to where I started – to the common street market”

Barrie, as most know, was one of the four creatures of Duffer, one of the two creators of the “Rare Groove” scene and in the band that defined Acid Jazz. Indeed he was very much at the forefront of the movement that changed youth culture in the mid 80s.

Barrie actually left Duffer in 1995 (pre the Duffer sweat shirt years) to go on a solo style mission in japan. In recent years Mr Sharpe is better known for his iconic label "Sharpeye" – specialising in style, quality fit and fine detail.

Six years ago Barrie closed all five of his Sharpeye London stores, intent on retirement. “As far as I was concerned the game was over – it was time to get out - I was tired of working merely to pay the landlords”.

 Of course he did not retire at all, but continued to design his capsule collections, “1-in-Ten” – (ten per style - per colour), and highly successful it was/is. Clearly one of a kind.

In Barrie’s own words “recently I have been helping my son with his fresh coconut water stall on Portobello Road Market. Going to New Spitalfields fruit   market at 1am for fresh coconuts; then helping him set up stall at 7am: I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think the way forward for me will be to come full circle, return to what I know: the street market. I plan to open a market stall, four days a week in Spitalfields. Although I am selling my limited edition collections to capacity online - I miss the interaction with real people; thus back to the street it is. If things go to plan it may well be Sharpeye & Son”.

I suspect that Sharpe (as he says) will continue to fall uphill.


(Image & words - Mary Louise Ejiwunmi)

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