HAWAII X DESTROY: San Diego

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Us Versus Them San Diego, CA.

After a visit with Alyasha we headed over to Us Versus Them a few blocks away. We carry UVT at Blue Hawaii Surf and I wanted to see their buildout in person to get a better understanding of the brand and what they were all about.Outside of having a shop like this it's really hard for a consumer to understand and get a feel for exactly what a brand is. When we arrived it appeared that they were closed but James Banuelos the owner kindly let us in and gave us the lowdown and history of Us Versus Them.

This was the view from the small alley that UVT is located. Kinda tricky finding it but if you know where Horton Plaza parking lot is on the G St. side you'll run into it. Already was digging the window display when walked up!

300 G St
(between Union St & State St)
San Diego, CA 92101
Neighborhood: Gaslamp

usversusthem.com

VIP parking stall right in the shop!

I've seen this place online as well as Instagam but there's nothing like seeing a place in person. James Banuelos pictured here is the owner of UVT San Diego. He also owns City Fog his other company that makes surfboards as well as clothing. James is originally from Santa Cruz and grew in that 80's surf, skate, hot rod culture. He's a pretty passionate guy when it comes to what it is that UVT and City Fog is doing. I first noticed UVT a few year back because of a video that was online showing some lowbrow art, tattoo art, and custom lowriders on the UVT website. UVT came about in Temecula where one of the founding UVT partners just recently opened up the UVT Garage where they work on custom cars and have shows as well. This is definitely a place where someone who's into lowbrow art and custom culture should come to support. Unfortunately with all the big box mall shops packaging up image and feeding people the wrong message it's really hard to be heard and understood. It's shops like UVT were community is built and knowledge is shared with like minded people and people interested in this lifestyle should be supporting. Mahalo James for your time and for showing us some aloha!

Quiver of City Fog logs and old skool skate decks on display.

Custom striping and artwork on an old sewing machine, gas tank, and helmets.

More striping and artwork mixed in with some UVT gear and Social D video.

Custom lowbrow art on some surfboards. Would be cool to see these things out in the water. Wonder if the flaked out purple board would give the illusion of a lure. Maybe better on display!

Window display with a place to kick it and take in everything. Kinda bummed because I didn't take photos of the whole build out in the shop which was very well done.

Monday, January 13, 2014

5&A Dime San Diego, CA.

We finally made it down to San Diego around 3pm from Long Beach. We were here to meet up with Alyasha Owerka-Moore who I had briefly met a couple nights early in Long Beach. Aly was busy handling some things so we popped out heads in over at 5&A Dime. I've heard about and seen this shop online from maybe 5,6,7 years ago i think. I know it was here when ASR was around but I never got a chance to check them out. I used to check their site ocassionaly because they were one of the few shops carrying Brixton as well as some of the up and coming street wear brands at the time. On top of the they were carrying IN4MATION from Hawaii which struck my interest. I'm always stoked to hear of shops supporting local brands. This shop is very well laid out and draws a lot of influence from the architecture of the city of San Diego itself. Glad I finally got to see it in person.

Store front view from 8th and G Street

Address: 701 8th Ave, San Diego, CA 92101

Phone:(619) 236-0364

Hours:

Monday	12:00 – 8:00 pm
Tuesday	12:00 – 8:00 pm
Wednesday	12:00 – 8:00 pm
Thursday	12:00 – 8:00 pm
Friday	12:00 – 8:00 pm
Saturday	12:00 – 8:00 pm
Sunday	12:00 – 7:00 pm

I thought we were gonna get gear checked and vibed out as is mostly the case in most street wear boutiques but the cat working was actually pretty cool. I apologize but I forgot the fellas name due to short term memory. He was new to the shop and was very welcoming. He broke down the history of the shop from what he knew as well as pointed in the direction of the Neighborhood eatery across the street. Mahalo for the hospitality and the recommendation on where to get some good food!

5& A Dime choice of cabinetry display is very tastefully done to match the outside architecture and overall feel of the city of San Diego. The inside of their shop feels like it could be any of the longstanding bars or restaurants in the area.