When you walk into Arizona’s only street wear boutique, Culture Fresh, all you’ll find is clothing designed by local artists.
Valley native Robert Aguilar runs the family-owned store at downtown Phoenix’s Arizona Center.
“I was born and raised here,” Aguilar said. “Arizona has a lot of talent that is overlooked.”
An artist himself, Aguliar wanted to showcase the local talent in Arizona.
Ninety percent of the products sold in the store are by local artists, he said.
Aguliar defined street wear as an urban style that blends different cultures, such as hip-hop.
The store carries 30 different local brands, and four of them are designed by ASU students.
“Throughout the years we have a lot of ASU students come in and we help them start their line,” Aguliar said.
Photos and paintings all created by local artists are always on display in the store. Each month, the boutique features a different artist’s work.
“We let the artist leave their stuff out for about 30 days,” Aguliar said.
Communication senior Katrina Garcia has been the store’s public relations director and marketing manager for a year.
Garcia said walking into the store is a new experience every time
“It’s a great place to meet people and socialize,” Garcia said. “It’s a great way to start new friendships.”
Aguliar’s sister Marci Miller, who works inside the store, likes to make a connection with each customer who walks in.
Miller considers herself to be the “mother hen” of the store.
“We don’t just sell you something here, we make friends that just like to hang out,” Miller said.
Journalism freshman Lynni Nguyen first came into the store when she started at ASU and said she already feels connected to the employees.
“The first time we were here (Miller) talked to us for a half hour,” Nguyen said. “Then there is another person who works here that we can talk to just about hip-hop.”
On her first visit to the store, Nguyen purchased a pair of earrings — an item that caught the attention of her friends including journalism freshman Brandi Porter.
Porter said she enjoyed her first experience in the store and really liked that local artists designed the clothing and accessories.
“I like to support the economy of Arizona,” Porter said. “Of course anything that is not corporate is something I want to promoted.”
The Arizona Center is near 7th Street and Van Buren.
Reach the reporter at shurst2@asu.edu
