“H U S T L E. (verb) To have the courage, confidence, self belief and self-determination to go out there and work it out until you find the opportunities you want in life.”

Meet Nick Arbour. Alberta born. LA based. Denim Head. Oilers Fan. Hip Hop Enthusiast. OilTech Engineer. Groom-to-be… tomorrow! Congratulations Nick and Avid! And founder of @stocktanksupply

Nick’s unique Stock Tank Supply brand creates one of a kind, small batch pieces that are built to work and made to last. Every pair tells their own unique story. I met Nick a few years ago, my bro-in-law’s best friend, and his entrepreneurial spirit and drive to provide a creative landscape for those with creative talents is evident. Although, the STS raw selvedge denim is iconic, (and I can’t wait to get a pair of my own), the mission behind Stock Tank Supply is inspiring. Nick is building a powerful brand to be proud of.

I love his message, “Everyone who has a creative passion should continuously work on it, especially if it’s what puts a smile on your face!”

Q&A with Nick Arbour of Stock Tank Supply & Co.

What's your favorite part about being a clothing designer?

“Well, it's not so much as being a clothing designer, for me it's really about the creative process and seeing something come to life that I've worked on. I consider what I am doing with STS as an art form and right now the focus is creating wearable expressions of my artistic side. Additionally, as an engineer, I think I approach the designs a little more calculated and perhaps engineer aspects of the design for function. Guess it allows me to use both sides of the brain to bring a piece together!”

What's your all time favorite Stock Tank design?

“So far it is definitely the jeans, probably because that's the first thing I worked on and made a sample of. Now years later as I've worked pairs of these raw denims in, the true beauty takes shape and for me, that's what its all about!!”

Why denim?

“I've always been a denim head, really since before I even knew what the term meant. I remember as a young kid in elementary wearing jeans that had leather yokes and coin pockets, then into junior high getting into wearing quality jeans. Once I was introduced to the world of raw denim though, I have never looked back. So when the first thoughts of putting a custom pair of jeans came together, raw denim was not even a question, it was the root of what I wanted to do. There truly is something beautiful about the relationship one has with a pair of jeans and with that said, I'm obviously partial, but I believe you have to work on that relationship before you can appreciate the beauty of a well worn and faded pair of jeans. The contrast fades of indigos dyes and natural cotton are amazing and when you're the one who created that, its that much better, but that truly can only come from breaking in and wearing raw denim.”

What music, artist or place inspires you?

“Music in general is my therapy, but hip hop and particularly underground, raw hip hop is my passion and what helps me get into the creative process. To be honest though, making beats is a true dream of mine and I've dabbled for fun here and there but nothing of real value has come of it haha, but one day it might! As for a particular artist, I truly admire all forms of art, so its hard to really narrow down. However, a truly inspiring artist is a guy Greg Simkins aka Craola. He's an OG grafitti writer who has transitioned into fine art, and his works are mind blowing. Avid and I have gone to his last three solo shows here in LA and have picked up a few pieces for the house, absolutely amazing stuff and worth checking out! I know you were only asking for one of three, but I'll ramble on here a bit on about three places in particular that inspire me. First, Los Angeles has become my home and really is an amazing place, the city is full of unreal talents in all aspects from art to business and just the lifestyle that is present here is a real inspiration. Additionally New York City is another one of those places, every time I've been there I am blown away, you just get this continuous sense of grit, grind and hustle, it just makes you want to get after it, what ever it may be, haha! Lastly, after a spending some time there last fall, Japan is on this list, I admire the culture, the food, the people and their dedication to each ones craft, it's really something to observe from afar and then even crazier to see in the flesh. I am really looking forward to spending more time there in the future, since going forward I'll be transitioning to Japanese denim, which honestly really is the best denim there is!”

Some other silly/serious fact about you?

“So I mentioned I am an engineer, this is true and I graduated with honors from Montana Tech, however I never graduated high school, I walked the stage but officially I was 5 credits short of graduating come the last day as I failed Science 30, so no diploma for this guy. Hahaha! I'll take that one up on the system any day!”

Check out www.stocktanksupply.com for the latest works of bottoms, shirting and headwear.