Custom hat maker draws on Chicano culture for inspiration
BOYLE HEIGHTS, Calif. -- Based in a small shop under the 6th Street bridge, between the Downtown Los Angeles Arts District and Boyle Heights, Pachuco Supply is producing unique, custom-made hats for fans of Chicano and Pachuco culture. The small business co-founder, Gilberto Marquez, started making hats for himself. But when his creations drew interest from friends, and eventually Instagram followers, he knew he had something special and he teamed up with his co-founder Daniel Robles to open up shop.
"I'm not a great painter or a tattoo artist or anything like that, so my canvas is a felt hat," said Marquez. "Pachuco culture to me is style as resistance. It's pride and self care."
He counts among his customers the likes of actor Edward James Olmos, civil rights activist Dolores Huerta, Madonna, and the musical group La Santa Cecilia.
