Jordan Curtis speaks to Jake Knight, owner of independent clothing store Knight Vintage, about his love for fashion and Welsh music, and how these two passions have weaved together in his successful Cardiff-based venture.
Take a stroll through Cardiff Indoor Market and you’ll find Knight Vintage. A clothing store that’s an intrinsic part of the city’s culture. A unique vintage clothing store founded by Jake Knight, it offers some of Cardiff’s most unique items. Ranging from rare football shirts to one-of-a-kind high-end fashion items from brands like Ralph Lauren.
Jake’s always loved fashion, and it’s something that’s been woven into everything he does. ‘I’d always been into clothing as a kid. My three main loves were playing football, skateboarding and music. And fashion is integral to all three of those things,’ Jake explains.
The idea for Knight Vintage – or KV – came about when Jake took a trip to Thailand. After being there for two months, he stumbled upon a vintage clothing store in the north of the country. At that moment, he had an idea.
Jake brought these vintage items back to Cardiff, establishing himself as a leader in the vintage clothing scene in the city. By November 2020, he was able to open his shop in Cardiff Market.
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The importance of Cardiff Market as a space for local, independent businesses is not lost on Jake: ‘The thing I love about the market is that it’s real. I feel like Cardiff Market is the last stronghold of independent traders.’
‘It’s so important for any city to have independent traders doing their thing because that’s what gives a city its culture and identity. I love being surrounded by loads of other traders who’ve been here for 30 or 40 years,’ he tells me.
Today, his operation has moved from the top floor of the market onto the ground floor. There’s always a buzz around his store, with customers perusing the clothing rails to find their statement clothing item. If you look carefully, you can even spot the original flooring that was laid down when the market first opened.
What helps Jake to stand out in the fashion scene in Cardiff is his links to Welsh music. As someone who grew up listening to a variety of genres, you can see how this has shaped Jake’s identity and style.
‘When I was young, my uncle gave me a cassette tape. One side was the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, and the other was a mix of Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Foo Fighters. A lot of rock. That led to me getting into heavier stuff like Slipknot.’
His love of music and skateboarding then led him to discover other genres of music. ‘I used to watch loads of skate videos that had music from Wu-Tang Clan, Big L and all of the 90s Hip-Hop heads,’ Jake elaborates.
This love of music helped him discover a range of talented artists based in Cardiff and Wales. Welsh music is enjoying a meteoric rise in popularity, with artists from across the country showcasing their unique styles. Newport-based DJ Douvelle19 even appeared in the store in May this year to play a special DJ set at the heart of the market.
Welsh music is enjoying a meteoric rise in popularity, with artists from across the country showcasing their unique styles.
Jake developed a deep connection with the music scene in South Wales and took time to shout out some of his favourite artists like Local, Mace The Great, Marino, Nathan Misra and Razkid.
As he has become more engrossed in the music scene, Jake has been able to showcase his fashion expertise in other ways. Having previously styled Mace The Great and Local for their 2020 hit ‘Bosh’, he’s been working with Nathan Misra on his latest track ‘Please Don’t Waste Your Life’.
His friendship with Nathan extends beyond music and fashion. ‘Nath and I are really close. There’s a real brotherhood there and we support each other in a lot of ways. As men, having those people you can talk to and be open with is such an important thing,’ he tells me.
‘We’ve had similar things happen to us in our journeys through life. And the way he’s writing music now, the uplifting message behind a lot of it, is important to me. I loved what he was doing, he loved what I was doing, so we just collaborated.’
This affinity between the pair translated into this musical project. Nathan wanted his video for ‘Please Don’t Waste Your Life’ to stand out and reflect his style.
‘Nathan’s lucky! Because he’s one of the boys, he gets to come around the gaff and look through my archive. There are pieces in there that I haven’t shown anyone. I’ve been stashing them away for another time,’ Jake jokes.
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He worked with Nathan to figure out the vibe they wanted to achieve with the music video and was able to style it from there: ‘Before I go into any project, I want to know what the vibe is. From there, I kind of have a picture in my mind of what clothing will work with that vibe,’ Jake explains.
When it came time to shoot the video, you could find Nathan walking through Barry Island and onto the beach, wearing a distinctive varsity-style jacket from Jake’s archive. It’s a look that helps define the tone of the video.
Jake’s role as a stylist for videos like this helps Welsh artists define themselves through fashion and stand out from the crowd. ‘You could wear what everyone else likes, but that’s just playing it safe,’ he says.
He takes this mentality into his work and daily life. Jake’s role in Cardiff’s cultural scene is growing all the time, and it’s due to his passion and desire to bring his style to everything he does.
He talks more about his mentality: ‘At the start of the year I wanted to bring the fun back. That means doing things I like and love, and that goes into the clothes. If I’m selling something I genuinely like then that makes it easier.’
Having this mindset helps Jake to stand out in a city that is full of big-brand clothing outlets and huge shopping centres.
Jake’s role as a stylist for videos like this helps Welsh artists define themselves through fashion and stand out from the crowd.
Despite this, several independent creatives are helping to change the fashion scene in Cardiff and Wales. Jake took time to pay homage to other local brands like Valé, Ceams and Fountain, who are carving their own path.
‘I feel like it’s the beginning of something. I feel like people are recognising Wales for more than tourism now. It’s definitely having its time and it’s got more to come,’ Jake concludes.
What Jake is doing with KV is helping to shine a spotlight on the incredible fashion and music that is emerging out of Cardiff and Wales right now. There’s no doubt that the two go hand in hand, and Jake’s understanding of that helps him thrive at Cardiff Market.
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