Mark Smith Clark of archie
December 19, 2023 — Interviews
written by Moses Naughton-Garrison
![a man with shoulder length hair looking down into a film camera that is pointed forward behind him is a white studio space](https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=2400&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=912949d98cc0f880dc0e29645d86e56d 2400w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=2160&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=ff6627cda096a6b1339caf7978c24634 2160w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=1920&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=1f429936c7fa790e133d0350da3218ac 1920w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=1680&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=163e0b16ae043a8fe178c4e4de620cfd 1680w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=1440&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=d71b930827997ef1429f35629c438d34 1440w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=1200&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=c7b012e9168830d2523e2bf0055ba23f 1200w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=1080&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=aae0ae668ce686d56429eb9f090b715d 1080w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=960&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=259dd9f09c9d536cab292f8a57b2b489 960w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=720&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=f35ae0ea975004d835bf769cc18dea41 720w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=640&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=369f19ddc41c858b6433483a165d79c6 640w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie1.jpg?w=480&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592143&s=1b159e0569a12f9848e419a3264880a8 480w)
Hey Mark, thanks for taking the time to talk. Would you mind introducing yourself to our readers?
I grew up in a small town in New Mexico, four hours from Albuquerque. I ended up moving to Colorado for grad school to study chemical engineering. While I was there, I started working at a menswear shop and kind of grew into the idea of trying to push my life in that direction. I ended up leaving grad school in 2017 to move to New York, kind of on a whim, after I got an opportunity for a full-time position at a fashion e-commerce brand.
How important was your time working there in regards to getting a foothold in the New York fashion scene?
It was instrumental for sure, I picked up a lot while I was working there. It was a small company, so I could be involved in every part of the process, from the day-to-day operations to the larger scale things. Through that alone I was introduced to pattern making and production in the New York Garment district, which is how archie began to take shape.
![A man with curly brown hair modeling beige pants, a boxy zip front navy jacket over a beige turtleneck](https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=2400&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=6995cb227e70d1f4a3d4066f330cbef5 2400w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=2160&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=c52ae7b763ddf5d9d951b1cc2c64fe8e 2160w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=1920&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=cbba3d22b0e5a85b3a883272cc147b38 1920w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=1680&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=7867d2ecbfe53b0129e301d4fbd0b486 1680w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=1440&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=155ef019aa54f12af03bb1cc9be8fd45 1440w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=1200&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=363e3962bd68e9fcb5dceff72165a75b 1200w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=1080&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=33acccc85abb086cf0a2c82e5eaaf922 1080w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=960&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=c324bf0c3eb810a8280c29ae00cb57a7 960w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=720&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=ed44e837d657d255acb3fbbf01ce650f 720w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=640&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=49a630cd5be07b9a55daf96b8a9e77e9 640w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/Archie2.jpg?w=480&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592219&s=a8ae563fd13573986d1c8f86a7a2f362 480w)
Speaking of, what were those first few years of archie like?
It started around 2017, I was mostly doing small runs, maybe 12 to 15 garments, of clothing that I felt like I could wear in my everyday life. I had developed good relationships with a few factories in the New York Garments district through my work, so they would let me pop in whenever they had a hole in their production calendar and would take on my projects. It was a lot of just figuring things out. I was learning about how to change the cutter's must in a way that felt like you were bringing some originality to the clothes you were making, things like that.
I was also grateful that the store I was working at let me sell the clothes I was making on consignment which allowed me to put more money into archie. I’d do a run of sweatshirts and they would sell through those and from that I’d build a couple more patterns and so on.
![a woman with shoulder length dark curly hair models a pair of cream pants with a beige button down top and a sweatshirt tied across her chest](https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=2400&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=b97a70d652cbfd3dc22fbaac4c257b8f 2400w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=2160&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=46b9b31a9fbd1473041d0522147a8629 2160w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=1920&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=4f27425c865dd68198319ee865e900d0 1920w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=1680&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=422d2f3903601652e18ddd96e38d9dc6 1680w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=1440&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=16c19d9e0124a7f705edd7286f18c3ba 1440w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=1200&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=4530f1c38c32e5c1cb63a5222f7e276c 1200w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=1080&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=da40421146ece2a1b873a00a6f87021b 1080w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=960&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=f5a31a72cd7ba33807c5bac35bc6e19b 960w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=720&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=16a08b7adab897764d8475a257945ddd 720w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=640&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=049eca691bf4da716e8003f3fe9df55e 640w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie3.jpg?w=480&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592306&s=9088651b55f73f59ff841ab6064bf55b 480w)
When did you decide to take archie from something that was more or less a hobby to a full-fledged brand?
It happened pretty naturally, the clothing store I was working at sadly closed in the midst of the pandemic, so like summer of 2020. I had a few other gigs after that, a photo studio I ran called Wrythe, but archie was always in the background. It came to a point in the spring of 2021 where I realized I had enough patterns that I could manipulate to put together a full collection.
I found that from the beginning, I was really interested in the language between the clothes that I was making. Even in the early days when it was just a button down and a pair of pants, I loved seeing how the clothes interacted with one another. So, there was sort of an itch that I had to play with color and texture and see how those things spoke to each other, how the models wear it, how the lookbooks are shot and everything. That to me feels like the most ideal form of expression given the tools that I have.
![a closeup of a man's chest, he is wearing two button down shirts one striped, one sage green with a boxy zip front navy jacket over both](https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=2400&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=47509207ff8aa12eace257503d545081 2400w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=2160&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=68f2945b16d5eeb3597c6b61b6605190 2160w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=1920&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=b7b32a7ad8f610a5e2524f4c950154be 1920w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=1680&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=565c39e6087f04b72763b899d2637d60 1680w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=1440&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=c68f38cf8c247271088e0e6e73b8f4db 1440w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=1200&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=07d893cee6dd67da61d0548ab50367c4 1200w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=1080&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=e7b1bacf7a87bb65078e275327c7e0e9 1080w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=960&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=566956d1b1542baa08faad1f8bd50c78 960w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=720&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=8e01eedffc38bbf080ddeb5ce6b33425 720w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=640&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=bdbd1fd981b5e66135f001ef6f705a57 640w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie4.jpg?w=480&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592366&s=e93971ea0bd5e6a18aebeb77f11d3798 480w)
In what ways are you exploring those ideas within archie today?
I think that making clothes is just a constant learning process. I’ll be shooting a collection, and think this is what worked and this is what didn’t. In that way I think I’m always sort of iterating on previous collections and taking notes on what I want to carry into future collections.
![A woman with shoulder length wavy dark hair models a voluminous gingham henley style top and khaki pants](https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=2400&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=15dc5908dcab20d6098e6d62e99abb14 2400w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=2160&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=2998bd14c758ce086facf59442598619 2160w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=1920&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=cbc8bef89faddc4e4326b964e872762f 1920w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=1680&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=e2d78a1a85d3f12f714b727b0e55ba6b 1680w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=1440&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=8fa52d500deb8a751980367335dc3893 1440w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=1200&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=78b72ea502f414e2e8de6b4184310341 1200w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=1080&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=ae022abcdf2a22cb5372d5d2cc2522ac 1080w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=960&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=1dfe6af0991a4a1fe967d1806846d432 960w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=720&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=59b9932ee4b2b18634d7ed4d5d7b253e 720w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=640&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=d593b98eac559c9877a27590fb81ff25 640w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie5.jpg?w=480&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1703010066&s=eacfd368f4eb18a0b458053e592e5a47 480w)
We’re coming up on three years since archie’s first collection, thinking back, how has the brand changed since those first few years?
I think that I’ve grown a lot as a designer, so to me archie feels way more put together than it did even two or three seasons ago. I think that creatively, I’m still approaching collections from a similar place. I’ll finish a collection and be completely dead for a few weeks, and then I’ll be out in the New York Garment District and see a fabric and think “I need to use this,” or I’ll be riding the subway and see some detail on a coat that gets the gears turning. I think in that way just living in New York is sort of an infinite resource for me.
At the end of the day I just want to make clothes that are self-informed, you know? I want people to buy the clothes because they like them, not because of the branding or anything else. That’s a pretty integral part of archie, it’s clothing made for clothing's sake.
![a man modeling a charcoal suit with a tan shirt beneath wearing a black baseball hat](https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=2400&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=df213061145a54530a4ea7f7352d495b 2400w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=2160&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=66f45806aa986e6ef8aa89b4884435e3 2160w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=1920&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=70e0b4a0169ab3552134000141b076df 1920w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=1680&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=518f24ad719adf3d5d1227a6279322f5 1680w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=1440&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=5d0c8784d4d219f80685fd9331f7c9f5 1440w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=1200&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=d752a3336b3788c1333c497d292a4577 1200w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=1080&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=dedda76a3d96209ddcef24f32e17ce70 1080w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=960&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=127f444327c219382b9e9a9d3d992f1d 960w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=720&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=04995dc49f58baf970c112da83cbfea1 720w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=640&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=0687d5a5f09a59478960e09be7e18c4e 640w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie6.jpg?w=480&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592553&s=772b5e4df8e73e9827f32df9eb622a8a 480w)
What’s next for archie?
We’ve got our SS24 collection coming to stores in February and March of next year, so keep an eye out for that. I’m also working on some editorial work with my friend, and very talented photographer Christian Michael Filardo which I’m excited about. On another note, I feel like archie is getting to a place now where it’s well defined enough to start taking on some collaborations, so I’ll be starting work on those in the next few months. It’s going to be an exciting year for archie.
![a man with curly dark hair models a brown henley style cotton top with brown pants](https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=2400&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=2a69dd9ae9554e2e95122192f31fb904 2400w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=2160&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=a97bfb87ea5e53a3a3c826ef0bd00a71 2160w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=1920&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=59ede64181671776830b781b3aa0e165 1920w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=1680&q=60&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=c16f81c3697918c4b995d9db76485b45 1680w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=1440&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=9e88dac021af120311e583972916b502 1440w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=1200&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=1dfc78b7c48982f7d21dc2e592895994 1200w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=1080&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=e000b771ee548490e03c24c59aa0480a 1080w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=960&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=7164fb5656aa68a06911221c1bb191cb 960w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=720&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=2b5e9d8a8a24a5f9085156816bd704f9 720w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=640&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=c0d39737a50ccaffb90ded649e4eb1d0 640w, https://transforms.noihsafbazaar.com/production/uploads/archie7.jpg?w=480&q=80&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1702592671&s=930c2225ba160a50bf75660b06ae4b8c 480w)
Thanks Mark for taking the time, where can we find archie?
Thanks, you can find archie at Colbo (New York City), Understory (Oakland), East + West (St. Louis), Meridian (Hudson), Pilgrim (Tokyo), Kiosque (Tokyo), 88 Curate (Seoul), and of course our website.