On a sunny afternoon in Oak Cliff, a group of young Black and Latinx men sat in barber chairs. Hair clippers buzzed. Crisp Air Jordan 1 sneakers are displayed alongside gray concrete walls. Will Polite is here, wearing a graphic shirt, snapback, and shorts. He’s the creative director of Daily TX, this streetwear boutique and barbershop on Jefferson Boulevard.
Polite is checking in on barbers and telling customers the latest price on BAPE shirts. The welcome greeting is indicative of the North Ervay Street transplant.
In December 2021, the downtown Dallas brand moved to a larger location in Oak Cliff. Polite, who joined the brand in October 2020, was integral in how the boutique was built out.
Daily TX is reminiscent of a high-end streetwear store found in the fashion capitals of Tokyo, Los Angeles, and New York. When old school, chrome gold-encrusted Chevrolet Impalas slow-roll down Jefferson Boulevard on Sundays, the bright, minimalist boutique stands out. Its eye-catching design is a ploy to attract customers into the hybrid space.
Founded in December 2019, Daily TX was located on the 10th floor of 211 North Ervay Street. Over the years, the brand expanded to offer beautician and barber services, in addition to apparel and sneakers. Despite the success of its downtown location, difficulties with parking and visibility spurred its founders to open the location in Oak Cliff.
The brand added the neighborhood to its in-house design. According to the creative director, the Oak Cliff addition has been well received.
“We are proud to be here as well,” Polite says. The Wichita, Kansas native admires the energy of Jefferson Boulevard.
“Bring all the cars out!” he says in an energetic tone. “I haven’t got this feeling in Dallas until I got here. It’s unique.” In 2007, the creative director followed his mother to Dallas after he graduated high school. Since then, Polite has started his own brand, Mars Mansion, which attracted the attention of Will Scott. The two knew of each other as peers in the local streetwear scene.
Scott introduced Polite to Robert Menyweather, owner of Daily TX. After the two met, Menyweather commissioned him for freelance graphic design jobs, which eventually led to his current position.
At Daily TX, Polite curates the boutique’s selection of apparel, clothing, and sneakers. He also designs Daily TX Oak Cliff, the store’s in-house brand. In the space itself, Polite incorporates a mixture of local and well known streetwear brands for customers to choose from.
“We want to show them [local brands] that we mess with them, just as much, if not more than, BAPE, Heron Preston, and KITH,” he says. “We are designers too. We know about the hard work. We know about the vision.”
When asked about his personal favorites, the creative director lists a few: Blase company, E.N.G.L.I.S.H., for them good people, Weston Bronco, and By Way of Dallas. The last brand, founded by designer Hance Taplin in 2015, reinvigorated Dallas streetwear.
Polite describes Taplin as one of his “biggest influences in Dallas.” He explains encounters with the By Way of Dallas founder, where Taplin offered great advice. “He’s our Virgil,” he says.
Shortly after Virgil Abloh’s passing, Taplin posted an image with the legendary artistic director and fashion designer on Instagram. The post, a picture of the two designers in 2019, told the story of a fruitless collaboration.
Taplin described the moment, “When you live in the world of creativity, it’s nothing but highs and lows. It’s an orbit of uncertainty. Thank you for giving me a shot, Virgil.”
Although streetwear originated in 1980s New York City, the modern generation of designers like Jerry Lorenzo, and Kerby Jean Raymond inspired like-minded fashion professionals to pave their own way in the creative space. Designers are creating, and stores like Daily TX are there to support them.
“There are some great things bubbling [in Dallas] that the world needs to see,” says Polite. He believes people should be tuned in to the current iteration of streetwear in Dallas. “[Designers] are thinking outside of the box.”
Thinking outside of the box is a characteristic of leaders in Dallas fashion. From Carrie Marcus Neiman‘s visionary approach to a world -enowned fashion collection at UNT, Dallas loves fashion.
There is a reason why the city has the second largest Fashion Group International chapter in the nation.
All of these culminating factors make the existence of Daily TX sweeter. The Oak Cliff boutique not only carves a unique space for itself, but uplifts fellow brands along the way.
Author
