Established in 2018 by Parker Jeppsen, Absent USA has gained tremendous success and grown a large cult social media following. With distinctive and eye-catching designs, Absent has created pieces worn by some of the most stylish celebs, such as Billie Eilish, Tyga, and Quavo. Originally starting with hoodies and sandals, Absent has now grown into the world of accessories as well, producing rugs, jewelry, sunglasses, and more. Absent is hard to miss and impossible to forget on social media, especially for all our avid Twitter users out there.
Sheesh Magazine had the pleasure of chatting with Parker Jeppsen, co-owner and creator of Absent USA, about his creative process, thoughts on resellers, experiences designing for all your favorite celebrities, and more.
Q: How did you start Absent USA, and why did you originally have an interest in the streetwear market?
Parker: I started by having fun with customizing my own vintage pieces in my high school sewing class, from there I got into screen printing, sewing pieces from scratch, making patterns, designing on Photoshop, and eventually realizing that I had the creative knowledge to build a clothing brand. My interest in streetwear definitely comes directly from Twitter, that was where I took it off the ground and I will always tell people the best place to start if you want to get into this game is on Twitter.
Q: What role does social media play with Absent USA?
Parker: I like to think that it doesn’t and that I have a core support base that can outlast the internet in general, we go months at a time without posting and still sellout when we do drops. I believe that social media is a tool, and if my job didn’t depend on it I probably wouldn’t be on it. There’s a lot of great things on social media but there are also a lot of bad, I try not to look into the bad.
Q: Can you tell us a little bit more about the relationship between you and your co-owner, Unathletic?
Parker: Absent USA wouldn’t survive without him. I truthfully think he is one of the best graphic designers and creatives in our age group. While being great at his job he is also one of my closest friends and honestly couldn’t think of a person who inspires me more on a daily basis.
Q: Can you tell me more about the process and creative intention behind making the Absent rhinestone hoodies and sandals that were a large influence in the hype around Absent Clothing?
Parker: The intention behind those pieces was just to make something fun and refreshing, I don’t think any of us ever expected it would’ve gone so crazy. The average shelf time for a product is 2 weeks, meaning that’s how long people will care about it. We just passed 2 years since those pieces were released, and while I’m not the biggest fan of them looking back they are definitely one of Absent’s most covetable items and a big part of why Absent is what it is today.
Q: How do you feel your successful experiences at ComplexCon, shaped Absent as a brand?
Parker: ComplexCon was a great learning experience for myself and my two other friends who were involved in it. I definitely think that it helped as far as putting more people in Chicago onto the brand.
Q: How does it feel to be working so closely with the designers of Half Evil, Ransom, and Sukamii, and do you feel a connection to Chicago for being up and coming in the streetwear industry?
Parker: It’s always great to have like-minded people in your corner. I love all of those guys and always want to see them win. Definitely have a strong connection to Chicago, nothing inspires me more than landing back in Chicago after a long flight. Seeing the skyline and seeing all of my close friends always lets me take a step back and remember why I started in the first place. While I would never claim a city I’m not from out of respect for Chicago natives, this city will always hold a special place in my heart, and I am forever grateful for the way it’s shaped me as a businessman and as a person.
Q: How much does the Absent Discord influence your work for Absent drops, and how have you almost used it as a marketing tool for the fans to promote and retweet Absent’s new releases?
Parker: I use Discord as a fun way to give supporters a behind the scenes look at the day to day process of Absent, I guess kids are amused by it. I gotta give a big shoutout to my dawg Giovanni for holding it down and running the discord for me. But I definitely don’t see it as a marketing tool, those kids mean everything to me and if me making clothes makes them happy and inspires them to do what they want to do with their life then I’ve done my job.
Q: What are your opinions on people reselling your clothing?
Parker: The only thing about reselling that bothers me is that whoever sold it no longer wanted it, I do however respect the hustle. That’s part of the reason I got into streetwear in the first place was reselling Supreme and Palace. So if kids can make money off my clothes, more power to them.
Q: How were your experiences working with celebrities and their stylists like Billie Eilish and Quavo? Do you think that they have had a large part in the success of Absent?
Parker: Definitely, I still get messages today about the sweater Billie wore. Definitely have a great relationship with Quavo and his stylist. While I can’t talk about much of the behind the scenes work, they’ve put me in a lot of great positions and I’ll always be grateful for that.
Q: In a recent interview you said that Chinatown Market was one of your first and biggest influences in the streetwear scene, how does it feel to be working on a collaboration with them currently and can you tell us more about this collaboration?
Parker: Haha, you did your homework! To be honest the day of the interview we had just left Chinatown Market’s office, in the video you can see me wearing a 1/1 Absent x Chinatown print gun hoodie. That was the day the collab first came up. So it’s definitely crazy to look back and see how all of the hard work we put into this collaboration and how it’s just now being shown to the world. All imma say is be ready!
Make sure to follow Parker and his brand Absent USA on Instagram to keep up with the journey.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
