INTRODUCING COTTWEILER
27-Nov-08 by Elias Redstone

Brand spanking new fashion label, Cottweiler, are friends Matthew Dainty, 26, and Ben Cottrell, 24. Both young, charming and attractive, but quite different. Matt’s the talker, a skinhead born in New York and raised in Essex (the accent is definitely Essex). Ben is a little more reserved, wearing a button-up shirt and slick side-parting, raised in Bristol on a council estate and now living in east London. They’ve just launched their sexy and very masculine (I’d quite like some myself) menswear brand, with a collection for S/S 2009. I dropped by Matt’s studio in Dalston to meet the boys and chat about their first collection.
Elias Redstone: First off, what’s the soundtrack in your studio? Give us a couple tracks for the interview.
Belle Epoque , ‘Miss Broadway’
Grace Jones, ‘Man Around the House’
ER: So how did you guys originally meet?
Ben: We were both studying fashion in Bristol at the University of the West of England. Matt was the year above but dropped out, so we ended up studying in the same year.
Matt: There were forty girls in our year and we were the only two boys, and only four of us did menswear. It was a bit of a shit university but it just meant that we stood out more. We really helped each other with our final collections. Ben was good at patterns, tailoring and shapes…
Ben: …and Matt is amazing at the overall vision and styling. Although we had different skills we shared a similar style and used the same models for our shows.
ER: You mention Matt’s overall vision - what is it?
Matt: I like to create a lifestyle, an ideal. What I and others might aspire to be or look like. I dont see the future of Cottweiler as just a clothing label - the overall image has to be relative to the people that wear it.
Ben: I agree it’s not just about the clothing - it’s about confidence, aspiration and belonging.

ER: How did growing up on a council estate influence you and your work?
Ben: For me, it gave me a sense of realization. Being surrounded by red brick government funded housing and unemployment on a daily basis gave me and a lot of my childhood friends a desire to do better, or at least to appear as if we were doing “alright”. The want for designer clothing and the latest trainers were mine and my friends way of being a part of something amongst ourselves, and without knowing it we created our own little trends. Although we were a group it was also very important to stand out as individuals. This has definately influenced the way we design - a sense of belonging but also standing out.
ER: What did you do after you graduated?
Matt: I was assisting Kim Jones for a year, and then started freelancing for designers like Hackett and Buckler, and got a full-time job designing for high street brands. It’s very commercial but great for understanding manufacturing, production and how the industry works. Ben was interning at Ozwald Boateng during college. They offered him a job when he graduated. He’s amazing at tailoring and you can see that in our range.
I ask to see the new collection and Matt rifles through the racks and pulls out the designs for S/S 2009. The vests are all long and square cut, the tops low slung and structured. The colours are light and washed out, influenced by vintage sportswear. There are a couple of big printed tees that will no doubt be picked up in the editorial pages. There is also a line of accessories. I get to see some black and white leather boots, and on the way are leather bags, cuffs and more boots.

Matt: All the tops are long and square cut. It’s a really good cut that looks good on different guys. We get influenced by skinheads and lads we see on the street so our cuts are really masculine. We were inspired a lot by a book I found on teenage Russian prisoners. I also love Larry Clark’s early work.
Ben: For me it is about identity amongst a group of boys, about ‘being the boy’. We wanted to keep everything British-made, but that’s proving really difficult at the moment. If we could reach that point it would be really amazing.
ER: ‘Being a boy’ has been interpreted by a variety of people: Bruce Weber, Jack Spade, Peter Pan… What does it mean to you?
Ben: Getting away with it!
ER: How do gay boys fit in there?
Matt: It’s been really interesting to work with Ben and have the straight man’s point of view. He can really see what the gay attraction is to the image of the label from us being mates, and the same goes for me. We like to do stuff that’s a little provocative - that appeals to both gay and straight boys.
Ben: I agree. I don’t think it’s about being gay or straight it’s about a knowing admiration from other boys.

Matt shows me his mood board. Disengaged boys. Punks. Jocks. Dogs. It looks like a mix of fashion and fetish.
Matt: We both like skinheads, but for different reasons. If it was left up to me the brand would be more gay. Ben keeps me in check. And our work is really collaborative. We work with people we know and love. My boyfriend, Ben’s girlfriend and our mates help with accessories, jewelry and graphics. They know what we like.
ER: What does it for you about skinheads? Why do they turn you on?
Matt: I just get turned on by anyone who looks like they are going punch the shit out of someone.
Ben: For me, true skinheads (not the racist cocks) are one of the most style-conscious subcultures to ever come out of England. The attention to detail in appearance is impeccable.
ER: Who would you like to see wearing your clothes?
Matt: So many guys (with a cheeky grin), but I don’t know all their names.
Ben: Just normal guys really. Lads.

ER: Young offenders are an obvious influence. You must have seen Scum - what’s your favorite scene?
Ben: Yes I’ve watched Scum a few times. To pick a favorite scene is hard, there’s so many, but the sock and pool ball, the potting shed, and the “that ain’t a tool” scenes are pretty dark, but honest.
ER: What’s the shoot for EVB going to be like?
Matt: We’re shooting it in a council block. It looks like a young offender’s dorm room. Lots of gym shorts and boots. We’re filming and photographing it so it will look quite grainy.
ER: Who’s the model on this shoot?
Matt: His name is Billy. He was scouted by a mate and it will be his first shoot. I scouted another boy the other day to model for us - he was working on a construction site for one of the new towers in the city and hasn’t modelled before either.
ER: What is your ideal model?
Ben: Clean, but rough.

ER: How would you describe your own look?
Matt: Ben’s more Mod. I’m more preppy.
Ben: Matt’s more street. I like wearing suits.
ER: Matt, who is your preppy style icon?
Matt: My older brother (who is far more handsome) has been a huge influence on the preppy side of things. When I was at my primary school in America, he was at a prep school in New England. I still wear his hand-me-downs from high school now. I think my prep style had been ingrained at an early age.
ER: Ben, who is your Mod fashion icon?
Ben: Otis reading. Have you seen how sharp the crease is in his trousers?
Photography and film stills shot for EVB by Nicola Steele
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Scooter LaForge: Ahhhhhh my name… I was working at a 7-Eleven in San Pedro, California, during my coming-of-age years, and hated all the the trash coming in there bossing me around to make the Slurpees and nachos, so I gave myself that name, after my sister’s dog, and ever since then I’ve gone by Scooter. It fits and I’m know as Uncle Scooter to all my nieces and nephews - it’s really cute.






I love them all and most of them have been my lovers or fuck-buddies at one time or another. Every time I have a trick over at my house they get a t-shirt or get to pick a painting to take home. I’ve always been afraid of people forgetting about me so they get gifts.




WB: Your work isn’t overtly, or even intentionally gay - what do you think is “queer” about your work?

























