Bed-Stuy Fly With SoHo Swagger

Fashion designer, businessman, entrepreneur, stylist, these are just a few words to describe Bed-Stuy native Stephen Usenbor, who is better known locally as S. King.

Usenbor is the owner and operator of Bed Stuy Fly, a clothing boutique located at 287 Ralph Avenue between Fulton and Sumpter Streets, or “in the hood, across the street from the projects” as Usenbor unabashedly describes it.

Usenbor makes no apologies for his store's location and goes one step further, describing the apparel he sells as a street wear clothing with a SoHo flair.

It's true. The boutique's interior is quite uncommon, compared to most urbanwear stores in Brooklyn, modeled after a swanky and small specialty shop, but with a more personal, unpretentious feel.

“My personality definitely influenced the shop being the way it is,” said Usenbor. “I wanted [the store] to feel like I was selling clothes out of my living room.”

Specializing in rare brands, Bed Stuy Fly features hats, t-shirts, watches, sneakers and jeans by brands such as 10 Deep, Crooks and Castles, Rocksmith, Play Cloths and Cult of Individuality.

Usenbor says that all of the labels offered in the store are brands that would otherwise be hard to find and somewhat pricey anywhere else. S. King Drygoods, Usendor's own exclusive label, is also a featured brand.

“When other people would go right, I would go left,” Usenbor said about his selection. “I wanted to sell stuff that nobody else was selling.”

Even though Usenbor owns his own label, he says that it only makes up about 15 percent of what he actually sells at the store.

“In this neighborhood, people don’t respond to new things as quickly as in other neighborhoods. This isn’t Soho, or Park Slope, or downtown Brooklyn, its Bed-Stuy.”

Usenbor's entrepreneurial foray began in 1998, when he opened his first barbershop, Planet Cuts, on Fulton Street, between Howard and Ralph Avenues.

“I grew up cutting my family’s hair. After high school, I knew I wanted to open [some kind of] business,” said Usenbor. “All I knew at the time was how to cut, so I started with that.”

It was only a matter of time before Usenbor expanded the Planet Cuts chain, opening five shops open, as well as We Are Beauty, a women's beauty salon. During his days as a barber, he began to notice a trend:

“From the very first [Barber] shop and every one after that, I always winded up selling clothes from the shops as well,” said Usenbor. 

It was from here, he began his eventual transition towards starting Bed Stuy Fly.

“I always wanted to open up a clothing store, but never wanted to truly deal with the headaches. The second to last shop I opened, I did a hybrid boutique/barber shop. After that I figured I would do a complete clothing boutique.”

Currently, only one Planet Cuts remains, at 36 Ralph Avenue, between Gates and Monroe.

“At some point during my transition towards selling clothes, I started selling the shops off and concentrated on just selling clothing.”

Eventually Usenbor wants to expand Bed Stuy Fly to other locations in the neighborhood, just like he did with his first business venture, Planet Cuts.

Future plan for the boutique include a website launch in October and some small local advertising, but he wants to shop to remain “elusive.”

While he admits to still “doing cuts” at the barber shop, most of Usenbor’s time is now devoted to Bed Stuy Fly.

Bed Stuy Fly is open seven days a week, Monday through Sunday, from 11:00am to 7:00pm. You can also follow the store on twitter at @Thebedstuyfly.