Stuff Interview

 

 

A father-to-be has overcome a debilitating disorder to launch his own fashion label.

Landscape gardener Aiden Treston has battled Obsessive Compulsive Disorder most of his life.

He is set to launch his own label, Obsessively Confused Design Clothing (OCDC), in a bid to provide a brighter future for his baby daughter, who is due next year.

The 20-year-old hopes his range of young adult and men's street wear will get snapped up.

The entrepreneurial Blenheim man works fulltime and also attends night classes in business management one night a week.

He says he always makes the time to create his designs, which he gets made in the United States.

"I've always been interested in fashion but I was more of a sports player at school and didn't really get into it until after I left. I play around on the computer until I get something I like.

"A lot of my influence has come from listening to rap and hip hop and I'm all about keeping it fair.

"I did a study on sweatshops and don't mind paying extra to keep the range sweatshop-free. I don't want to take advantage of others," he says.

Treston was diagnosed with OCD last year but says the condition has been a part of his life for years.

Counselling and awareness of the illness has helped him keep symptoms at bay.

OCD is a common, chronic and long-lasting disorder in which a person has uncontrollable, recurring thoughts and behaviours.

"I used to do everything in the same order every day. For example I'd wake up at 7.45am and then clean my teeth. I'd have to leave the house at exactly the same time too.

"It made things very tricky, especially when I left school. I'm all good with other people being out of control, it's just me I have a problem with," says Treston, who has saved hard to launch his new venture.

The young designer has already received offers from stores in Blenheim to stock his range, which includes T-shirts, long-sleeved tops and caps but he hopes to one day open his own store.

"Quality is a big thing for me and I test out all my stuff first. People can buy through my Facebook page but it would be great to one day have my own street wear store," he says.