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WEST ENGLEWOOD — When Corie Luckett opened Englewood Branded in 2017, he knew the streetwear clothing shop would help him and his community flourish.
Two years earlier, Luckett started selling T-shirts out of the trunk of his car, generating a name for himself and his signature Englewood gear. On Nov. 24, 2017, he opened Englewood Branded as a pop-up store at 1546 W. 63rd St.
At the time, he hoped the money he’d make from Thanksgiving weekend shoppers would help him build a permanent store, Luckett said. He didn’t even have a sign for the store.
“I was only open Black Friday weekend, but that Monday, people were at the door, coming under the gate knocking on the door,” Luckett said. “Everyone was in there buying shirts. The community didn’t let me close.”
Greater Englewood helped Luckett’s store go from pop-up to permanent and “stand the test of time” for seven years, he said. After closing for a few weeks this fall for remodeling, Luckett is using his newly redesigned shop to continue giving back to his community.
Englewood Branded reopened Friday with space for community members to host meetings, drop-down projectors for presentations and musical performances and a textile print press where local youth can learn to make their own clothing brand.
“I’m pushing the same aesthetic I had growing up. Neighbors, community, everyone wanted me to do well, so they pushed me toward it,” Luckett said. “I want every kid that comes by to see the door is open for them to come in and talk. I’m giving them a ladder to step up and gain notoriety and confidence.”
Luckett will still sell his signature selection of vibrant clothing decorated with the store’s logo and EDub, the store’s teddy bear mascot, but he’s limiting new drops to once a month, he said. The store will also now offer items that are “closer to a souvenir shop to catch people’s eyes,” he said.
“I want to be creative and push the envelope to produce something new and fresh,” Luckett said. “We want to make sure we keep creating new things that are going to help people flourish.”
From now until Dec. 18, visitors to the shop can drop off new toys for the second annual Miracle on 63rd Street.
This year’s holiday event will have live entertainment, food and family-friendly activities 1-5 p.m. Dec. 21 at the Englewood Breakroom, 1532 W. 63rd St. More information, including how to support the event, is available here.
“I wanted to create a safe, nice, clean space to operate out of where people could have more meaningful opportunities,” Luckett said. “I’m using my platform to help and support those coming up in fashion. We’re getting ready for the future, which means helping our young people.”
Before founding his clothing line, Luckett worked in various fields, including a stint as a retail employee at Foot Locker, “but all those things were helping people that didn’t care where I wanted to go,” Luckett said.
Popular streetwear brands would drop new styles, but none resonated with Luckett, he said. The clothes “were the same, with the same brands having the same process.”
“I felt like I had to take the opportunity and put my stock in something that I wanted to do,” Luckett said. “I wanted to do something more flavorful and community-based to give our community that’s been looked down on looked at in a positive light. I wasn’t doing it alone because people were doing the work to change the narrative, but I wanted to do my part.”
Since 2017, Englewood’s 63rd Street has “evolved” from a corridor with vacant buildings and empty lots to community-led developments spearheaded by local organizers.
Englewood Branded and the Englewood Breakroom, a pop-up plaza Luckett co-founded with Teamwork Englewood in 2023, have contributed to that revitalization.
“I’ve been here for so long that I got to see the evolution of the street,” Luckett said. “I saw the good and the bad, and now it’s coming back to the good. Growth is necessary. If we put in more work, people will catch on and it’ll spread through the city.”
Luckett plans to operate Englewood Branded for another seven years, he said. Local youth “cannot be what they cannot see,” and his store will continue to inspire them to aspire for greatness, he said.
“I have two children, and I need them to see me getting up and going hard so they can gain the same work ethic and do what I’m doing,” Luckett said. “When I stop doing this, that means my clock stops ticking because the moment you give up on something is the moment you die, especially if it’s something you believe in.”
Englewood Branded, 1546 W. 63rd St., is open noon-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday and 1-6 p.m. Saturdays.
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