Collection launches during coronavirus times: we spoke with Caio D'Andréa from Pornograffiti.

A Pornograffiti is already well known to NOTTHESAMO, but that doesn't stop it from surprising with its always unusual collections, provocative prints, and irreverent communication.

Today, with more than five years in the market, the brand led by Caio D'Andréa has become greatly loved by those who wear it and by those who follow it — since not everyone can buy its pieces because they are limited.

Caio has never faced such a complex period as the current one due to the damage caused by the coronavirus. We had a chat with the head of the brand to understand how this period has been for him in business and also gathered some more details about the brand's upcoming delivery.

Hey, Caio! How are you? Recently you launched the collection BrazHell. Tell us a little about what inspired you in this creative process?
Caio: Look... Brazil is a meme that never sleeps. And the suffering never ends either. It's a fall after fall like in that video “It was bad, it was good, but it seems to have gotten worse.” 
When I chose this theme in 2019, I didn't imagine it would be so prophetic. I thought that due to the election of the current president, things would get worse, but the pandemic came and proved that nothing is so bad that it can't get substantially worse with a fascist in power. 
Well… now this theme will perpetuate with no end date in sight. Pornograffiti is the result of BrazHell. It's a product of this nation that finds in memes a valve of escape from a very tough life.

How did the pandemic scenario impact the launch? Where does the raw material for the brand's pieces come from? Do you import materials? 
Caio: We started to feel the impacts right at the beginning of 2020. A large part of the fashion industry in Brazil depends heavily on Chinese inputs and fabrics. With part of China in quarantine, major Brazilian players found themselves forced to seek national raw materials. This caused a chain reaction that left the smaller ones without supplies and made production very difficult.  A large part of our raw material is national, but even so, we were impacted. Everything rose in price considerably. Thank God the business model of Pornô is essentially online, and sales have been good. The real challenge is to manage production.  

And what alternatives are being considered to mitigate the damage suffered and manage to keep work on schedule during the crisis? Have you been rethinking your business model?
Caio: The nature of the spirit is to adapt and evolve. A crisis like this impacts each person in a different way but affects everyone.  As for business models, many people take time to understand Pornograffiti as a clothing brand. Some people think we are a “profile about the B side of electronic music” or a “podcast channel” that sells merchandise, or a meme page. We are all that and evolve from it. 

New collection from Pornograffiti for 2020.

We are moving towards a scenario that values more empathy, collaboration, and love, don't you agree? How has Pornograffiti been trying to “adapt” to these behavior changes?
Caio: Pornô was already born in this new era post coup of 2016. In our first collection, our big hit was a t-shirt called Golpe de Vista. For a long time, we've been quite clear about our political stance. We were born in electronic music, which in turn was born in the black and LGBTQIA+ community of Chicago and Detroit. We know our history and are consistent with it. 

As in the previous question, we have noticed that conscious consumption has been increasingly rising. In some way have you been trying to balance the creativity of Pornograffiti with the topic of sustainability? 
Caio: Our business model is based on producing small quantities and selling them directly to the final consumer. Aside from our suppliers of inputs, who are large by nature, we only buy from small companies and strive to be close to them.  

How do you envision the future of Pornograffiti in the coming months?
Caio: A bunch of crazy people selling subversive hoodies to keep dreaming. 

The new collection from Pornograffiti can now be found in the brand's e-shop, featuring clothing and accessories.

photos by Lucas Liviero