Despite what might seem like yesterday to many of us, that miracle primo slide we saw Lucas Puig do in Lakai’s Fully Flared happened near enough 8 years ago now. Since then he’s come a long way and is now without a doubt a globally recognised professional skateboarder. As a certified favourite of ours we jumped at the opportunity to chat with him over email about his ever-growing company, Hélas.
Quartersnacks called you “the skater of the decade (thus far)”. What did you think when you saw that?
I was hyped! It’s cool to see something like that knowing I’ll never be skater of the year.
What was it like growing up skating in France? Do you think It’s influenced the way you skate now?
It was cool as I’m sure it would be growing up skating anywhere. I’ve always been inspired by my local French homies JB Gillet and JJ Rousseau, two French legends.
There’s a big list of household names riding with you for adidas. What’s it like skating with newer members, Nakel (Smith), Tyshawn (Jones) and Miles (Silvas)?
It’s always good to skate with newcomers. They show up with their fresh legs so it’s motivating for me.
Cliche and Adidas have worked with Hélas in the past. How has the support you’ve received from them helped you develop the brand?
All my sponsors had been following Hélas, then they offered to collaborate with us spontaneously. It was really exciting for me to feel that backing from everyone. It’s definitely helped us to spread the brand overseas as well as in Europe.
Are you working on any new collaborations at the moment?
TOP SECRET!
Skate companies from all over the world are getting a lot more global recognition these days, especially in Europe. Do you think that has helped Hélas get to where it is now?
For sure, European brands are way more welcome overseas than they used to be. All the Euro brands are doing it properly with a sort of different approach compared to the US scene, which is good.
What was the inspiration behind starting Hélas as a hat company?
We’d always been big fans of 5 panels and at time it was still kind of rare to get our hands on one. Me and my homies thought it was time to dive in!
Could you tell us a bit about the name Hélas and the inspiration behind the umbrella logo?
Hélas means unfortunately. We like to leave the name and the logo to the imagination of the people that check us out!
You’ve drawn inspiration from designer brands in past, notably in the “GUCCIT” collection. Do you think that designer brands particularly influence you and your products at Helas?
GUCCIT for Good Shit haha! Of course, we’re definitely influenced by some minimalist “classy” brands that we love to wear.
What can you tell us about the latest Hélas collection?
Its better than the previous one but a lot more wack than the one coming after this!
There’s definitely a strong sense of brotherhood and camaraderie in the videos you’re putting out. We’ve seen plenty of clips in the Hélas mixtapes of friends and family from around the world showing their support for the brand. Is this sense of brotherhood part of the vision at Hélas.
CAMARADERIE, FEELING, BROTHERHOOD, those words define the Hélas spirit for sure! No pressure, we skate together and we like to push our underdogs!
How’re things going with the video?
Real good, my partner Stephen is killing it behind the lens. We’re trying to meet more and more with the boys to film and push it. People we might not get to skate with as often are also filming in their own time as well which is exciting.
Is the majority of the video being filmed in Europe?
Most of it will be in Europe and some in China where Stephen is also based.
Should we expect full parts?
Full parts and some chaos for sure!
Be sure to head to helascaps.com for more information or to shop the collection. You can also pick up the latest from Hélas at flatspot.com.
Words: James P.Lees
Imagery courtesy of Hélas
