Jordan Bentley, one of the original stars of the beloved Issa Rae-produced reality series Sweet Life: Los Angeles, has launched the first brick-and-mortar location for his brand Hypland.

The brand, which brings together streetwear, anime and gaming through apparel, accessories and home goods, was firstfounded in 2010 and has collaborated with Hello Kitty, Dragon Ball Z, Yu-Gi-Oh, the NBA, Netflix and more. 

The store opened on June 8 in downtown Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo. Hundreds came to the opening weekend event, with a line into the location spanning the block. From Denzel Curry to Thundercat and more, the building was filled with brand loyalists and people who may have just heard of Hypland.

Bentley, 27, first started Hypland from his mother, Stephanie Carter’s home at 13, and it’s an ongoing journey documented during his time on Sweet Life: Los Angeles. Carter cut the ribbon at the grand opening, symbolizing what it took to get to this point.

Hypland is not just a clothing store and retail space; the brand describes the location as “a community hub for gamers, anime fans, and streetwear enthusiasts to shop, play, and connect.” With vintage home accessories, gaming equipment and more, the goal is to replicate the aesthetics and ambiance in an anime or gaming fan’s home. The space has apparel and accessories from past collaborations as well as new pieces and products from similar brands.

Blavity: How do you think the opening of this physical location exemplifies this next era of Hypland, and how long have you wanted to bring this to life? 

Bentley: Opening a physical location for the brand allows us to further connect with our community and customers beyond the experience they have had online. With a retail store, we are able to host events, test product launches, and give our community a place to connect with each other on a deeper level and more consistent basis.

Our brand has seen success and excitement from customers with popups, so giving the same customers a place where they can constantly engage with the brand will be huge. I think having a physical location also allows for other partners to get involved beyond clothing. We want our space to be a true hub for our community.

I have wanted a retail space since 2021, but we had to make sure the location was perfect before signing any lease.

How important was location in choosing where to have the first Hypland storefront? 

Choosing the right location was the largest determining factor when we decided to open a store. We are deeply committed to our community, and we wanted to make sure our store was in an environment where not only our fans would want to gather, but also where the neighborhood and surrounding foot traffic would accept and understand the brand.

The store is much more than just a place to buy clothes. Explain more about what the location offers and what you want customers and the Hypland community to get out of it.

The Hypland store is an open shopping environment that was designed as an anime/gaming fan’s ideal living space. We have several gaming systems, ranging from classics like Nintendo 64 to modern systems like PS5, as well as vintage toys, statues and collectibles from popular IP and fan-favorite shows. We also have tons of artbooks, manga and vintage videos as well as board games to make the space an interactive experience. On the outside of the space, we also have a huge front patio that can be used for activations in front of the store.

When we created this space, we wanted our community to feel at home. When I was growing up, the Fairfax/Melrose area was a hub for connecting and hanging out with others, and I wanted to create that same space and sense of community for our fans through the Little Tokyo store. 

We saw much of what went into your brand on Sweet Life: Los Angeles. How did that platform help increase awareness of your work and Hypland itself?

The largest takeaway from having the brand showcased on Sweet Life was showing people that Hypland was Black-owned. The show raised awareness for the brand in general due to the size of the audience and really opened my eyes to how large our following was. When the show aired, we had a lot of our customers telling us they had no idea we were Black-owned or understood the magnitude of Hypland until it was on HBO.