Fashion Killa

This Saturday, February 28, marks the launch of PUMA’s debut collection with New York-based do-it-all designer Vashtie Kola. We caught up with Vash for SLAM 186:

Vashtie Kola’s attention span is minimal—and she knows it. “I get really distracted with the things that I am doing and the projects I plan to do,” she says. But when it comes to the subject of fashion, she immediately reveals focus, knowledge and sophistication. Indeed as a designer, she has managed to turn her self-diagnosed ADD into her professional ATM.

Whether it’s DJing, filmmaking or carving out a name for herself as a fashionista, Vashtie uses New York City’s hip-hop culture as her canvas. A most recent example is her new collaboration with Puma. Connecting urban art with commerce and personal expression, her Puma Premium apparel and footwear collection features unisex sportswear inspired by the B-Boy era, which infuses a burgundy/navy blue color palette with denim/corduroy textures and modern breathable fabrics. The second part of her new Puma line celebrates the “independent entrepreneurial woman” and features day-to-night functional, luxury athletic wear.

A social media darling and highly sought brand ambassador with major houses (Jordan Brand, G-Shock, Beats Solo), Vashtie is now more about breaking down barriers and changing peoples’ lives through sound and vision. “I feel like I am going through a personal and professional growth spurt,” she says. This evolution, with the help of organic raw foods, Reiki, chiropractic re-alignment, and even Transcendental Meditation, is clearly communicated in her work and discovering her “next level” of self.

Born in New York’s capital city of Albany, she follows all local teams (Knicks, Rangers, Yankees, Giants) except the Jets and insists on manufacturing Violette, her own growing international clothing line, in her home state. While it is less of a fiscal constraint to make clothing overseas, she says “it is the responsible thing to do.”

Vashtie’s style and substance is what makes her an emerging tastemaker who is getting things done and doing it right.