This is an ode, a tribute, a flick of the peak of your lime green visor.
It's going out to the backbone of the streetwear scene of the early to mid-2000s, targeted at working-class families: Planet 8.
There was no end in sight to the evolution of the streetwear scene. Dressing the youth that listened to Alien Ant Farm's smash hit remake of 'Smooth Criminal' and ate raw Maggi Chicken Noodles was no mean feat.
SMP. WORLD INDUSTRIES. VON DUTCH. ETNIES. GALLAZ.
It was a f**king blood bath at the top, every high-end brand was out to rinse our parent's wallets of all petty cash that was there for the taking. Trends switched up faster than you at bullrush after you’d been on the back end of a tropical Raro sachet.
It was brutal, and no one felt this more than the humble skuxx of the working-class family.
For kids that were on a low or solo parent income, it was hard yakka keeping up with fellow Dax-waxed verandah-fringed spotty-faced runts at school. You know the ones, who had the luxury of parents with deep pockets who could afford things like a timeshare in Mt Maunganui (though that was a shit life choice and terrible decision when it came to the allocation of wealth. Good one Pete, who gets a timeshare?!)
"Planet 8 is flamin', I remember going to mufti days and lying to my mates it was a new brand from Amazon" says Daniel from the George FM txt machine.
But in rode Planet 8, the saviour, the knight in shining 3/4 zip-off cargo shorts that plunged itself into battle for the blue-collar families of Aotearoa. Providing low cost and questionable streetwear items that swiftly followed all the trends of the big dogs. Trucker caps, Hawaiian shirts, rude as f**k board shorts and hoodies. It was all on. For the first time in yonks, the David and Goliath battle was swinging in favour of the underdog.
Woof woof ya mongrels.
“Planet 8! I had Shrek green long pants with zips at the shins to turn into shorts," another listener Zayne adds.
But as quickly as it came in and laid damage to its “must be niiiiiice” spec competitors, it was wiped from the planet (no pun intended).
Unfortunately, for some reason, there is little to no evidence to be found online that this brand ever existed. It's possibly the greatest ever 'Mandela Effect' of our generation. You'll seldom find even a single thread hanging in the local SaveMart exhibiting that iconic and undeniably simple logo.
So from one Lynx-Africa-donning, Beyblade-ripping, Vortex-Mega-Howler-hiffing skux to another: Planet 8, I salute you.
Kia Kaha Planet 8, you mad dawg.
“Planet 8 chain wallet, jeans two sizes too big and a belt with a foot of a tongue hanging out.” - Jordan
