Iowa City’s Vice launches podcast about fashion, culture
Since opening its doors in 2018, Vice has become a staple for men’s fashion in Iowa City. In April, the store launched a podcast about fashion, sneakers, and local culture.
(From left) Demetrius Perry, Peter Krogull, and Tony Casella pose for a portrait at their store Vice in Iowa City on Wednesday, May 8, 2019. Vice sells streetwear and vintage clothing to the Iowa City community, and online through their e-Bay page. In April Perry, Krogull, and Casella started a podcast about sneakers, fashion, and the fashion culture of Iowa City.
May 8, 2019
The shelves of Vice, the Vintage Iowa City Exchange, host an array of sneakers boasting $300 price tags, and racks of T-shirts sporting Supreme logos and classic rock bands line the walls.
Located at 114 E. Prentiss St, the store was opened by Iowa City vintage traders Demetrius Perry, Tony Casella, and Peter Krogull. The three met when Perry set up a sneaker expo called Kick It in Iowa City, Casella said.
A year after opening, the store has launched a new venture: a podcast about sneakers, fashion, and Iowa City culture. The show is called V.I.C.E.S., the Vintage Iowa City Exchange Show.
The owners decided to start the podcast based on the conversations and the interests that they all share, Perry said.
“It just seemed natural from some of our conversations we have in the store,” he said. “We were like, ‘Man, we should probably record this.’ ”
The first episode of the podcast, released on April 29, features freewheeling banter among the owners about their history and the process of starting the store. The owners said they don’t have much of a structure to the show, and the conversation flows naturally.
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“I came up with one question, but the rest kind of just flowed, and we just let it go,” Casella said. “And we do the same thing in the store all day, every day, so it’s just kind of translating that to recording.”
There isn’t a structured plan for the upcoming episodes of the podcast, but Casella said they want to talk about trends in fashion, new sneakers, movies, music, and anything else they’re interested in.
The owners are also planning on featuring guests on upcoming episodes of the podcast, including artists, musicians, and anyone influencing Iowa City culture.
(From left) Vice owners Peter Krogull, Tony Casella, and Demetrius Perry pose for a portrait in a recording room at PATV in Iowa City on May 8. Vice sells streetwear and vintage clothing to the Iowa City community and online through its e-Bay page. In April Perry, Krogull, and Casella started a podcast about sneakers, fashion, and the fashion culture of Iowa City.
“We know a few people who make music, who paint, who do graffiti,” Casella said. “People who have been in the culture for years doing cool stuff.”
As of May 2, two days after releasing the first episode, the owners said they had garnered 300 listens. Perry said he hopes the podcast will make Vice better known around the community, but promoting the business isn’t going to be the main focus of the show.
“If anything, the biggest thing is just helping build the culture in Iowa City,” he said. “We’re just adding one more layer to what we’re doing and letting people know who we are.”
In the future, Casella said, they hope to incorporate video into the podcast so fans can watch online.
On May 2, Teagen Kiel and Taylen Anderson, members of the local band Mystic Cats, were perusing the shelves of the store in preparation for a show they were playing that night.
Kiel said he enjoys the style of clothes available at Vice, and it’s one of the only places in Iowa City for men’s fashion.
“There are not too many options for guy’s clothes,” he said. “To dress creatively as a man is kind of frowned upon, and I think it’s really cool that people have shops where guys can shop and wear some clothes that you don’t see every day.”
