Graffiti-themed bags make splash
Photo credit: Katya Pronin | The graffiti merchandise line called Tatoot created by Co-Owners David Ben-David (left) Eddie Shabot (right) sell backpacks and messenger bags with a street wear/graffiti style designs. The two owners believe that their line is an outlet for graffiti artists to express themselves legally.
A tagger in a gas mask rappels down a building; a DJ spins records with the No. 7 train in the background. These graffiti-themed backpacks and messenger bags say made in China, but they were designed on the streets.
The bags made by Tatoot, a new company in the city, are designed by well-known graffiti artists, including Sexer and Zimad, both of the South Bronx. The bags are marketed as works of art with labels that show the names of the artists and the titles of the pieces -- titles like "Swat Team" and "Five Boros."
"I've always had a love for hip-hop and urban street culture," said Eddie Shabot, Tatoot's co-founder who lives in Brooklyn. Shabot and his family used to own Record Explosion, a chain of music stores in the city that has closed down.
Shabot is a partner with David Ben-David, who is a fashion designer inspired by the streets. He has a degree from the School of Visual Arts and a clothing line called Nvsble.
They would not say how much they invested in the company or how it was financed. The brand evolved, however, after the partners hosted a competition among 10 graffiti artists in 2007. They called the competition Tatoot.
"We gave them a blank backpack and we said 'go draw loud' on it, and this is what they came up with," said Shabot, pointing to the brightly colored bags in their showroom on Fifth Avenue between 31st and 32nd streets. Tatoot is a combination of two words: tattoo, meaning to draw, and toot, a loud noise; combined it means draw loud, the owners said.
Shabot and David are sensitive to graffiti's negative image, and said they hope their company can be a positive force. Despite the guerilla-graffiti scenes on its bags, the company makes the bold claim on its Web site that it is the answer to vandalism in the streets.
"We are giving [graffiti artists] a positive outlet so they don't have to vandalize," Shabot said.
Six artists designed bags for the line launched this month. The bags sell for $60 in several stores in the city. Shabot and David said they have plans for another Tatoot competition to design their next line.
For now, there are about 2,000 Tatoot bags made. The Foot Locker on 34th Street has already sold about a dozen, an employee there said last week."Once back-to-school season comes they will sell right away," she said.
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