Chris Cole is no stranger to the timeless art of the hustle. Aside from the fact that he’s perpetually progressing on a skateboard, racking up coverage, touring and hitting contest stop after stop, Chris is a family man, married with two children, multiple business owner and founder of the newly formed, Omit Apparel. Gnarly, right?

Chris took some time out of his endless dropping of life hammers to answer some questions about Omit, his new DC shoe, his daily routine and what’s up next on his ambition painted horizon.

What have you been up to lately?  I’ve been trying to stay on top of all my things. Juggling time with family, skating and Omit. It keeps me really busy.

What ultimately made you decide to do your own thing with Omit? The synergy that came from a meeting I had with my business partners, really. I wanted to design and have something that really represented the way I wanted to look while having a look as a brand that I would wanna skate for. A place to put all my ideas. I recognized this as an incredible opportunity and I needed to make it happen.

Omit definitely has a certain aesthetic. How would you describe the look and feel of Omit?  It’s an intricate look. The attention to details is really what we work real hard at. It has American imagery, archaic feel…like a merge of good  material garments with an aged graphic. High-end look and feel is important to us, and in order to give that we take the pricing in the teeth. Most companies would charge 100 bucks for the tuxedo Jean. It’s a expensive material that looks and feels killer.

What are some of your direct inspirations for the brands designs? History, people, places, nature…it really comes from my head, what I think is really cool. Now we have a group of like-minded people in house to come up with ideas as well. This world inspires…and to that so does the universe. If you don’t get inspired by this world, you’re messed up.

What have you set out to do with Omit to make it stand out against some of the other brands out there? To add those small details on a good piece that makes the clothes your favorite. It takes a perfect fit, details, good material and good design. If one fails a hair, we are so bummed. Also, [we want] to create a rider owned brand that has an efficient back end. I’ve been in the tour van so long, I wanna bring that to the other side of the desk and merge the two sides.

What’s been your role in running Omit?  Team Management somewhat, creating the image of the brand, the name, the look of the line, design some. We all do lots, without my team, in office, it would be nothing really. They are the ones who should take credit.

The fit of ones clothes can be just as important as the clothes themselves. How do you ensure the right fits for your designs? Oh man! Well for instance we will make sure prototypes are perfect. We also found a pair of pants that weren’t perfect so we went through a thousand pants in the warehouse and had them all measured to insure that they were all correct. Seriously, one thousand.

When you’re not on the road, what’s a regular day like for you? I wake at 6am to take my son to school on time. Then I skate or go to Omit depending on the day. Come home and play with the kids until dinner is done. Clean up dinner, play with kids again. Get them ready for bed. Then my wife and I each put a child to bed. Then we both get to finally hang out together and watch True Blood or something. Grown up life really is about taking in the small things in your day that make you smile. 

How was the Fresh Til Death Tour? How was it skating and rolling with the DGK squad? It ruled! What a great time, and such a good crew. I have always been a huge Stevie fan. I watched him skate at Love Park growing up and I still have a fan-out feeling when I hang with him. Marquise is the coolest dude too! Jack, TX, Marcus, Keelan…etc. Honestly, it was a sick crew

How have things changed since you started riding for DC? Well, they have really been pushing the skate program majorly. So the trips are great, good crew. They sponsor Street League and so they show me tons of love there too…like promoting my ads and stuff. I work with different people, which is fun, and I learn about the different markets they are in.

Can you talk about your new signature shoe? What inspired the design? What are some elements you wanted to incorporate into the shoe?  I wanted a shoe that had a different look while remaining a skate shoe. It’s hard to make a good looker while not just doing a repanel of an old shoe. DC has always pushed the progression of new designs and technology into the skate scene. I took full advantage of that and made a super light but stable, fast looking shoe.

How long did the design process take? Not that long, the dudes are good! Like two weeks maybe.

What projects do you have lined up for the near future? Will you be skating in the next Maloof stop? We are taking mini trips with Omit. Hitting small areas, filming and shooting photos. I am trying to free up my time from anything extra. If it isn’t family, skating or Omit, I’m not doing it. The next Maloof is TBA. So we are waiting to hear when it’ll be.

All images courtesyo of Omit.

Get Chris Cole’s signature goods and the newest from Omit Apparel now at CCS.