Ariel Stark-Benz for Barbour

Ariel is a doer. If you've known Ariel, been around him, or seen the fruits of his labor—you know that his natural rhythm is trying things, because, why not? So it came as no surprise to us when we first started working with Barbour seasons ago we received an excited message from him geeking out over the brand he'd already had so much personal history with, and whether or not we'd ever tried re-waxing a jacket ourselves (he has—many times). In a world where brands and retailers seem to pop up in cities all the time without context, Mister Green is one of the truly quintessential local LA-brands and somewhere we constantly send visitors to when they want to explore somewhere genuinely unique. Ariel's experience spans between companies like Converse, Ace Hotel, The New Order Magazine in Tokyo, and others, but his penchant for exploration, accessories, and lifestyle goods finds a powerful (& innately curious) focus through Mister Green. The Portland-native took some time to answer a few fun questions while modeling some of our favorite new silhouettes from Barbour's new Heritage+ collection and also several one-of-one gem from their Re-Loved program, which will be available in store only Saturday 10/17.

photography  Calvin Nguyen

image 1 & 2  Ariel wears a vintage Barbour Netherly Jacket from the Re-Loved Collection
image 3  Ariel wears a vintage Barbour Gamefair Jacket from the Re-Loved Collection
image 4  Ariel wears a sand color waxed cotton Barbour Transport OS Jacket

You’re someone who’s had a longtime love for Barbour. How did you first discover it, and how does the brand continue to fascinate you today?

I think around 2006-07 a friend was wearing one, and I liked the way it looked but was very curious about the smell. He put me on game, and that was that – I was in. Even better, I found myself in London a lot over the next few years and I was able to accumulate quite a few jackets in a short time. You could get a beautifully busted-up one for 20-30 quid. Doubt that's achievable still.

Barbour, like other "classics," are still able to surprise me in the way of doing one thing for so long and somehow still getting my attention by creating a subtle change, or re-contextualizing the image in some way.

When you first started Mister Green, you’ve mentioned frustration at people not being able to understand what you were trying to do. What gave you the confidence to see it through, and what would you tell a younger version of yourself today?

When I first started Mister Green, my frustration and people not understanding what I was trying to do were mostly brought about by my own inability to summarize exactly what it was that I was aiming to create at the time...which was a lot.

On one hand I wanted to make things like t-shirts, hats, and accessories, and I had multiple approaches that I wanted to take. On the other hand I also wanted to make things like pipes, ashtrays, and other types of at-home smoking-related products. Additionally, I knew that I wanted to create an actual line of weed products (as in a line of branded weed strains – pre-rolls, drinks and so on) that I felt wasn’t presented in the marketplace in the way I felt could make a genuine impact – and I believed that I was going to unlock that and make a ton of people really excited.

I also wanted to collaborate with all of the brands that I had been inspired by at one point or another in my life or that I felt sat really nicely next to the brand. I tried making a Converse shoe from day one. I knew Devon from Ojas a little, and started a conversation about doing something as early as 2019. I started and stopped conversations often – mainly because I didn’t have the cash (or didn’t believe I could get it) to create a meaningful project, so I would never follow through if it felt out of reach financially. It’s heartbreaking to think about now, because many of the people I reached out to (and some who reached out to Mister Green) that I let the conversation fizzle out for the reason of money – not always, but mainly – would have probably been meaningful to the brand, and definitely would have meant a lot to me on a personal level. If I could coach the younger version of myself: money can be an important step towards getting something done, and by seriously planning for what is needed to create a project, the financial portion is just a part of an overall project – not the boogeyman that threatens to expose you in some terrible way.

What’s something in your closet you’ll never throw away (and maybe pass on to your kids)?

Unfortunately my closet is brimming with things that I don’t want to throw away and certainly hope to pass the good stuff onto my kids. I keep a pretty large archive of Mister Green stuff that I am hoping they will get a kick out of wearing at some point... It’s been catalogued and organized, and now I would love for them to give it a second life out in the world.

What’s something surprising about yourself that you learned in the last few years?

The way I act is much weirder than I thought previously :-/

Although, I am comforted by a feeling that the weirder someone presents, the less weird they tend to be in private, and the real freaks are the ones pretending to be normal – and if a normal-acting person tries to convince you they are normal, you’d better be aware of your closest exit.

Biggest takeaway from your time living in Japan?

That taking things slower and appreciating detail – including imperfection – has immense benefits, especially in a world constantly striving for the opposite.

Is there anything happening for you or Mister Green that you wanted to give people the heads up for or highlight?

After a decade of doing this, we’ve gotten very good at making clothing and we do almost every type of thing. So there’s only one thing to say... I can’t wait to get better!