“Now we’re part of a culture that once shunned us, or we were shunning,” says Oliver of partnering with the fund, he continues, “but it’s cool because they’re liking us for being us, which is why it’s dope. You never hear shit like, ‘Oh you should do this to be more commercial.’ It’s surprisingly chill.” To describe his aesthetic, Oliver is at a loss for the first time since we began chatting. He ums, and ahs before saying, “I don’t know, that’s why I have a logo. I agree when people say I have a New York aesthetic, but that comes from the mixture of inspirations growing up in New York affords you. It’s not so streamlined, it has a cut and paste aspect to it.” He knows the person he’s designing for, as an extension of himself and what he’s into across music, art, and fashion, he asserts, “What I do know is that I like a strong, powerful individual who is very confident in the way they give off their sexuality. They’re in this place were they’re ok being sexy, but also confident when they’re not being sexy. I like someone who knows how to take control of their hormonal output and the energy they put out.” For Oliver and his team, Hood By Air will always be about shows, not to “show off,” he says, “but to dress up.” For a while the label disbanded, they couldn’t afford to produce the social-commenting pop-pageants they wanted, “We were like, let’s cut it out,” says Oliver. Akeem Smith, who’s responsible for most of the visual imagery behind the label, went deeper into styling, and Oliver toured as a DJ. Like malleable boy bands from the 90s they reformed, after their sole endeavours helped finance the flamboyant runway shows again. “Being able to collaborate and just express certain things that drive me insane in my head [is why I show]. It’s also therapeutic,” says the nimble designer.

The early conception of the label as a passion project during Oliver’s teenage years is now seeing real strength as a business, a feat Oliver takes great pride in. “The label’s grown as opposed to this thing where I’m being thrown into an arena and I’m being blind-sided. I know what I want now in general, and every moment is about figuring out how to get it done. As opposed to me being like, ‘What do I actually want from this thing’? Or not even understanding myself. I started it pretty young, so I kind of grew up with it.” As for other side projects, Oliver is taking an interest in music creative direction. “I want to nurture artists, I think it’s quite old school in a way… Direct their whole album, show them how to wear the clothes. Perhaps it was one element of the music industry that people thought was frivolous, but was actually quite important. Now it all moves so quickly, the artist gets their hits and fades away, and that’s proving to fail,” Oliver reasons. For Oliver it’s about building positive relationships within a hub of well-deep talent, for a consumer experience that is artistic driven, rather than commerce-fuelled.