From selling print t-shirts and graphics from the trunk of their car to opening a store in Capitol Hill that designs and sells original fashionware heavily influenced by hip hop and Seattle culture, brothers Roger and Cesar Maldonado created Mediums Collective, a clothing company, to foster community and showcase cultural representation within Seattle, WA. Starting back in 2014, Roger said he and his brother originally gained inspiration to create Mediums Collective from one of Roger’s UW college project’s, using entrepreneurship as a way to foster community and creativity via fashion and design.

“It was really just a venture of being passionate about fashion, being passionate about culture, being passionate about representing a specific style” Roger said. “[It] is something that me and my brother always shared.”

Being at a crossroads between joining the corporate workforce or opening their own business despite having no previous experience, Roger said he and Cesar were driven by their passion and hustle for entrepreneurship to create Mediums Collective. Originally starting as a print t-shirt company from the back of their car, Roger said the business eventually evolved into one focused on fashion and textile design.

“[It was] really a curation of culture,” Roger said. “Clothing and culture kind of go hand-in-hand. For us, fashion was the medium that we used to be able to cultivate culture around what we believed in.” However, the road to their success has been long and very challenging, Roger said, including funding and resource hurdles in a very competitive market. “It’s been a challenge, especially right now with the economy and the climate the world is in today” Roger said. “It’s not an easy industry. Most of us in the creative space are undervalued for the services that we do.” With these challenges in mind, Roger said Mediums Collective benefited greatly from resources and programs such as The Liberty Project and Tabor 100 as a whole. The Liberty Project is a program that prioritizes the growth and representation of black-owned and minority-owned businesses in Seattle at a rate equal to their representation in the city’s population. Originally referred to the program through their existing relationship with Seattle University, Roger said both the Liberty Project and Tabor 100 at large have helped Medium Collectives immensely by connecting them to resources they’d otherwise not have access to.

One example Roger mentioned is that Tabor 100 provided Mediums Collective with a loan to help secure an account with Seattle University to produce urban streetwear merchandise. Mediums Collective would go on to secure additional accounts and opportunities and paid the loan back to Tabor 100 timely.

To reward them for their timely payment, Tabor 100 granted the funds to Mediums Collective- this time as a grant, not a loan. Completely shocked, The Maldonado brothers expressed immense thanks for the grant. “[It was] definitely unexpected,” Roger said. “Super grateful to Tabor 100 for sure.”

Fast-forward over ten years later, Mediums Collective now has a storefront in the Capitol Hill district in Seattle, acting not just as a retail location, but as a physical venue to curate culture and nurture community through fashion-centric shows and events. These decisions and accomplishments solidified Mediums Collective as a staple of the Seattle community, which would lead to incredible opportunities such as having a fashion show at the Bumbershoot 2024 Music Festival that further cemented the company as a credible brand.

“It was a beautiful moment” said Roger. “Seattle is not known for fashion, so it feels good to pioneer a street fashion movement in Seattle.”

Having a desire to help other up-and-coming small business owners, Roger said one of the biggest pieces of advice he’d give is that it’s always OK to ask for help.

“A lot of us sometimes think we have to do it on our own, tis’ the beauty and the curse of being an entrepreneur” Roger said. “Ask for help when it’s needed, when you need it, because you never know who’s there to help.”

Medium’s Collective will be showcasing their Fall and Winter designs at the “Back to the streets- De Vuelta A La Calle” fashion show on June 14th, 2025, at their location in Capitol Hill on East Pike Street in Seattle, WA.
To learn more about Medium’s collective, visit their website mediumscollective.com or follow them on Instagram @mediumscollective.