Feature
Issue No. 18 - August/September 2004
Klinical Approach
‘Work isn’t work if you’re doing what you love’ is a trite expression – but what if you can build a business that way?
At first glance Da Klinic is enough raise any shopkeeper’s hackles. It’s a business dedicated to ‘graffiti culture’: the skateboard-riding, scratching hip hop groove whose ‘tags’ cost business so much to efface.
Look closer and you see an outlet that gives young people a chance to follow their fashion and express themselves constructively. It’s a well-run, significant business and a significant employer.
Da Klinic was formed in 2001 as a retail store, teaching clinic and event management company. Owned by DJ Shep – otherwise known as Adrian Shepherd – and his business partner ‘JJ’ Jeff Ottoway, the company was founded to give young people music and cultural alternatives.
Adrian, as a schoolboy deeply involved in hip hop culture, developed his talents as a performer and DJ to set up a career for himself. Hooking up with the Carclew Youth Arts Centre, he began to build a clientele among schools, demonstrating hip hop in its many facets.
After three years of solo performance Adrian saw the potential for a wider business and involved JJ, a uni student at that time.
Da Klinic is a cultural depot where young fans can find the material they need, from clothing, audiovisual art and hardware, skateboarding gear and the training they need to participate in skate, dance or DJ roles. Cleverly, DJ She...
