TU Student Designs Clothing Line for Hunt Valley Store

If you stop by Wavedancer Board Shop in Hunt Valley, you're likely to discover a OLLIElife, a clothing line designed by Towson University student Ali Seirafipour.

Seirafipour, a senior accounting major, started designing clothes after he graduated from Dulaney High School, simply because he wanted to move away from the hand-me-downs he always received from his older brother.

With a simple logo, bright colors and the slogan “Get Weird” printed on each piece’s stitched tag, OLLIElife brings an inviting nature to the action sports industry.

“I just wanted to make clothes that were fun to wear and broke away from the direction every other company was heading in with conservative designs on conservative colors,” said Seirafipour, a longtime skater and snowboarder. “A fun loving culture that aims to enjoy life and wear whatever they want.  I want to create clothing that is unique both graphically and how it is constructed."

The brand, which lauanched in early 2011 incorporates custom seam work and screen-printing, Seirafipour said. One of his major inspirations stemmed from working in skate shops.

The niche culture that many action sports brands create is one factor that motivated Seirafipour to take his skate, snow and surf inspired line in a different direction.

“I think people forget how kooky they were when they started out skating, surfing or snowboarding,” he said.

Response to OLLIElife has been very positive so far because of a supportive community of friends, family and mentors, Seirafipour said.

“What I see with his brand is that he hasn't gotten caught up so much in the fashion-end of things, but relies more on promoting a certain kind of culture that in turn shapes the way people view his clothing,” said John Prater, a Wavedancer employee.  “Public reaction has been stellar so far.  We’ve marketed it well in our shop and the bright colors naturally catch the eye.”

In the future, Seirafipour said he wants to create a great base for the brand and then focus on growth.

“For now we are trying to build a strong foundation for the brand before expanding into more stores,” Seirafipour said. “Another major goal down the road is to get into custom manufacturing, meaning designing the cut of our garments ourselves rather than being forced to abide to the sometimes boxy cuts designated by the mills we order from.”