In 2008, Matt and James McManus created and developed Check Your Six, a Minneapolis based streetwear brand. But the story doesn't start there, it starts about two years prior, in the summer of 2006...
We had no money, no connections, and no experience. In the basement of our house, we started a small tee-shirt brand called Sanktuari (sank-choo-air-ee). Armed with a backpack of poorly printed, poorly designed shirts, we went to local boutiques around Minneapolis trying to sell our products.
For a year and a half, we did everything we could to expand our brand. It never happened. We lost money, time, and confidence in success. There was one thing, however, that we did gain. Experience. We met valuable contacts, we learned what did and did not work, and we started to understand streetwear. That was the year everything changed.
At the end of 2007, after being told that our brand name was too difficult to pronounce, we agreed that if we wanted to continue pursuing our dream, we would have to re-brand. And at that point, Check Your Six was born.
Using our experience and small amount of personal investment, we created an entirely new brand. We wanted this brand to stay true to the counter-culture roots of streetwear, so we developed a small line of edgy, controversial, unique products. We just needed a name to match our vision.
Check Your Six, which is a military term meaning 'watch your back', held true to the brand direction that we envisioned.
Today, Check Your Six has had four official releases, each embodying our original aim of edginess and controversy. We are stocked by select retailers around the country, are distributed internationally online, and have enjoyed exposure on some of the most influential blogs in streetwear.
Who We Are:
Matt McManus is currently a student at UW-Madison, balancing the fast times of college with the faster times of running Check Your Six. Designing shirts, attending class, traveling, and taking a whole lot of photos to capture the ride that comes with it.
James has since taken a backseat to brand operations, helping Matt with brand direction and creative ideas when time permits. Regardless of current involvement, Check Your Six will always be the McManus brothers. Homegrown, family operated. The American dream.
Copyright Check Your Six. All rights reserved.
