This Is Not Applicable

With a knack for unearthing the extraordinary, N/A’s Natasha Advani is redefining the meaning of modern luxury, trading fleeting trends for enduring stories. Through her unique approach to vintage curation, N/A offers more than clothes - she delivers an ultimate individuality, where each piece carries the weight of history and proves that true exclusivity lies not in trends but in timeless, unrepeatable style.

PHOTOGRAPHY AND STYLING CAITLAN HICKEY @chiefchiefnyc using only @itsnotapplicable and personal wardrobe items
INTERVIEW JESPER GUDBERGSEN @yessirjesper 
MAKEUP JASON CASE @jasoncase using @submission.beauty
MODELS AJAK @ajakndwol @suprememgmt HALEY @haleyflounders @kollektiv_mgmt PAK @pakyan___ @kollektiv_mgmt ZOE @zoekaitlynne @newyorkmodels
CASTING MOLLIE MAGUIRE SUBMISSION CASTING + MANAGEMENT @submissioncastingmanagement

Hi Natasha ! How do you introduce yourself and what you do?

I am the founder of Not/Applicable Vintage and also a brand and buying consultant. I’ve had many roles over the years, but that is where I am at the moment. I would describe my journey as a bit of an upwards roller coaster. 

Where did it all begin for you?

I started at Harvey Nichols 2006, and worked my way up through many roles in buying, primarily in menswear. I ended up at Selfridges at a really interesting time for the men’s market - the merging of luxury and streetwear was bubbling just under the surface. In my time there, I saw the dawn of younger brands wanting to exist on the sales floor in a different way - so-called streetwear being elevated to live amongst the high end luxury brands. It was a really exciting time, learning how to experience men’s fashion in a completely different and new way, and I’m really proud to have been a part of this evolution.

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How did you end up in Los Angeles ?

My husband is in the music industry and it made sense for us to relocate here, back in 2014. Moving out here wasn’t the most obvious career trajectory for me - New York would probably have made more sense careerwise - so I had to get on my hustle. When we arrived, the fashion industry in LA had a lot of things happening underground but the visibility was not where it is now. In addition to still working as a buyer, I started consulting with young brands that needed help and had goals of getting their collections into luxury retailers, which is something I could help them with. 

On my weekends I would go to the vintage flea markets and I found them incredibly inspiring. At the time, the menswear runways were full of vintage inspired looks, for example Saint Laurent’s 50s Hawaiian shirts, Gucci WW2 inspired souvenir jackets and Sacai military inspired pieces. 

I started to feel that styling vintage with runway was the future and became increasingly interested in exploring the idea of seeing vintage within a luxury environment.  I decided to make this idea a reality and started with a curated vintage pop-up at Selfridges London and that’s where it all started taking off. Ultimately, I was able to feed my passion and turn it into a business. 

Tell me a bit more about how you describe your particular niche 

I like to think of what I do as sort of curating a new type of luxury. My clients are looking for pieces that you just won’t find out there in the world easily. They’ll add their own flair to a look by  pairing a Louis Vuitton suit with a Lil’ Kim 1998 tour tee from us, showcasing their individuality and personal style, rather than just wearing a look straight from the runway. Our pieces are usually something no one else has and in this way becomes this ultimate grail, there’s almost no price tag on it. It’s an interesting way of looking at modern luxury.

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This makes me think of the word sustainable, which has been watered down to such a degree that it’s hard to take it seriously any more. What are your thoughts on calling what you do ‘sustainable’ - what does that word mean to you?

Vintage is by definition more sustainable, but it’s not a word I use much personally. When I first started, it wasn’t so much about the ‘sustainability’ selling point as much as it was about giving the customer access to the real deal and unattainable luxury - the original pieces that designers were taking inspiration from. Instead of buying a $500 brand new tee that’s been chemically sunfaded and thrashed - why not wear the original? 

I think it’s hard for any brand creating new fashion to be 100% sustainable - was this shipped, sourced and ultimately packaged the right way? 

What I do love about the word sustainability being everywhere is that it has forced brands to be more thoughtful and include this in their strategy - you can’t avoid thinking about sustainability today. I have made changes in my approach too, such as not using poly bags to ship and using recycled paper tags and things like that. 

I can’t claim to be fully sustainable, but I am proud to say that yes, we’re sustainable in terms of not putting more wastage into the world. The amount of water that is used to create a brand new hoodie, jacket or t-shirt, that’s all 100% eliminated and I am ultimately bringing forward all these great historic pieces that now hold so much value. Some of these tees are worth more than a vintage Rolex ! I’d much rather offer that than a logo tee that was churned out at a factory for $10-$20 and sold for hundreds of dollars.

I do find it interesting to talk about the high pricepoint…

I think fast fashion has really soured our perception of value. Consider the hours that go into sourcing, cleaning, refining when working with this level of vintage - I think there’s incredible value in these pieces. There’s a lot more that goes into this process than just producing a cheap tee in a factory in Asia in a very unsustainable way. I spend a lot of time doing quality control and making sure every piece is in great condition and every piece is cherry-picked for each drop we do.

Your love of music is such a driving force in what you do. Where do you see this going beyond what you’re currently working on? Would you ever consider the designer archive route?

I think that the market is too saturated. I think my niche lies in finding these great and true vintage pieces that designers today are using as their inspiration, whether it’s about the cut of a World War II jacket or a military style cargo trouser. Those are the kind of pieces that I love sourcing.  

What does your business look like now?

The idea behind our brand is acknowledging the past whilst considering the future. We do pop-ups around the world with stores that understand and believe in what we’re doing. I only work with people who truly understand what we are trying to curate and help move the needle of what vintage and luxury looks like in the same space. 

As well as the pop-ups, I curate vintage and consult for brands, and there has been a lot of interest from the music industry as well. I source vintage for artists to wear, but I am also looking to help more of them source vintage to incorporate into their merch, instead of just producing new pieces.. How do we look at merch through a lens of upcycling - instead of potentially adding more waste to the universe? There’s many ideas of working in that realm that I am excited about. 

What I would love is for music merch in general to be more thoughtful. I think a lot of new music merch is very wasteful and unthoughtful. I think if the artists were more involved - how they used to be - it would change the game, but instead it’s become something created by the label and licensee partners. There was more thought behind the graphics and around the pieces in the past

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Would you consider ever having your own retail space?

Yeah, I've always toyed with the idea. I’m always looking around LA - wouldn't it be cool to open up here? And to do it in London as well - I’d do it in so many places. But I think for the time being, I have such a strong thing going, working with really well established stores that are doing such a great job with their clienteleing. This is where I started in the industry and I think it makes sense to stay down this pathway for the time being.

What’s next ?! Where do you see the company going in the new year?

For now I’ll share that I am trying to curate more great vintage spaces around the world. That is key for me.

@ITSNOTAPPLICABLE