OBEY

The sticker that started it all 

It started by accident. A late-night experiment in subversion and screen printing. Shepard Fairey (Founder of OBEY) cut out an image of wrestler André the Giant, slapped it on a sticker, and unknowingly ignited a cultural movement. The sticker: bold, stark and completely ambiguous found its way onto city walls, alleyways, and skate spots. No meaning, no agenda, just presence. 

People noticed. People questioned. The sticker became a social experiment in propaganda, a reminder to question everything, especially authority. OBEY was born from artistic expression and it still remains today: in galleries, on street walls and as a global apparel force. Already on Shopify, we reworked the strategy and built something stronger for OBEY and its extended technical architecture - three brands on a single codebase.

Brands united on counterculture 

Chris “C-BRO” Broders, a veteran in surf, skate and streetwear had been quietly building a multi-brand empire behind the scenes. What started as a chance meeting with Fairey at a screen-printing shop turned into something bigger: a partnership that would catapult OBEY and eventually bring Loser Machine and Dark Seas under the same roof. 

Each brand had its own pulse, its own crowd, but all three thrived on counterculture, craftsmanship, and the art of doing things differently.

OBEY: A bold rhetoric in fabric form, where clothing is another canvas for art and activism - drawing from classic military design, workwear basics, and cultural movements.

Loser Machine: A gritty, rebellious ode to skate and motor culture, founded by pro skater Adrian Lopez and built for those who live unapologetically.

Dark Seas: For the human spirit's natural draw to water. Designs that honour tidal traditions with a wave of disruptiveness.

Three brands, three identities, one movement. But online? A fractured, outdated experience that was costly and an operational slug. The challenge: How do you unify three brands digitally, without stripping away what makes them, them?

The challenge: a disjointed digital experience

Managing OBEY, Loser Machine, and Dark Seas on separate Shopify Themes was limiting growth. As Fairey uses the streets to connect with people, in ecommerce, we use digital experience to connect with the user (UX). Their previous UX strategy wasn’t keeping up with the speed of their demand - and that needed to change. Here’s what we noticed: 

• Each site ran on its own setup, requiring individual updates, maintenance, and integrations. This created operational bottlenecks that made scaling slow and costly. Ecommerce didn’t match the strength of brand presence leading to an experience that felt anything but seamless.

• Lacked conversion power. Customers weren’t staying on site pages long enough to engage, and those who did browse were dropping off before checkout. Clunky navigation and an outdated filtering system caused rising bounce rates and a growing cart abandonment problem. 

• Culture and design disconnect. These brands built cult status over deeply loyal customers. Their sites, meant to serve as hubs for unique brand worlds, felt static and secondary to the product experience. They needed a solution that could bring storytelling and shopping together, allowing customers to move fluidly between brand and commerce without feeling any  disconnect. 

Three designs, zero redundancy

Merging three distinct brands under one design system - it’s impossible to find the middle ground stylistically. Creating something that’s high-performing relies on strong functionality, but also freedom to pursue visual variation. A framework built to handle high-volume, but flexible enough to let each brand’s identity shine.

To align the technical and design strategies we went modular. A single design system to unify ecommerce operations while letting typography, textures, and colour palettes flex:

• OBEY portrays its street-art lineage with an editorial design approach that feels raw and bold. Expressive typography and layered textures bring rebellious subculture roots to the forefront.

• Dark Seas integrates elements of sea and surf culture while maintaining a tech-apparel focus. Layering fluid gradients with retro 70’s tones, it’s like a sunrise surf session frozen in time.

• Loser Machine rides on skate and motor culture energy, with gritty textures, high-contrast visuals, and a no-BS aesthetic that feels straight out of an underground skate mag.

We designed for conversion and to spotlight photography. Now free from a rigid framework, all three brands can update product SKUs, on-site displays and localise content - without disrupting the others: it’s zero redundancy design in full force. 

Solving ecommerce with community in mind 

Shaped by culture, subcultures, and the communities that live them. These brands do more than sell products on websites. Our job is to make sure ecommerce advocates for that - deeply connected to their roots and serving customers the full story. This how we achieved it: 

• Unified yet distinct
  A single codebase and design system allows for shared CMS operations while still giving each brand space to maintain its voice. No unnecessary complexity, just easier management, faster site performance, and the flexibility to evolve front-ends as they scale.

• Lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)
  Our zero redundancy approach maximises efficiency and reduces long-term maintenance costs, allowing owners to invest more in creative and community initiatives instead of constant site upkeep. 

• Immersive storytelling & conversion-driven UX
  OBEY’s artistic legacy is preserved with dedicated media sections that supports rotating campaign photography. With Shopify Native we improved call-to-action buttons, product placements, and upgraded filtering in an effort to reduce bounce rates and cart abandonment. 

• A dedicated space for community
  We designed a dynamic blog environment for OBEY: three unique sections covering news, awareness and OBEY records in a format that reflects their influence beyond fashion.

• Maintenance simplicity
  With minimal platform-specific integrations, the project harnessed Shopify Plus, promoting speed, stability, and ease of maintenance. 

• Strategic marketing tools
  We integrated Klaviyo for advanced email automation, Tapcart to boost mobile shopping, Judge.me for social proof via customer reviews, and Triple Whale for data-driven insights to refine the sales funnel.

• Global accessibility without friction
  A country selector replaced previous hard redirects, ensuring a smoother, localised shopping experience and stronger SEO scores.   

Reclaiming digital space with Shopify

In an era of commercialised fashion, OBEY is anti-establishment, yet everywhere. Rooted in the underground and pushed up market from a community that loves them. By leveraging Shopify’s native capabilities we reworked the framework and made room for more. It's efficient, multi-brand ecommerce - built to serve the people. 

Sparked your interest? Hit us up, we’d love to help unify your ecommerce roadmap while keeping brands distinct! We’ve also done it for ID&T, North Sails & Vespo. Let’s talk.