(Filed Under wholesale Hosiery News). Brendan Choi, clearly anxious to build a brand, rather than remaining as just an OEM supplier, created Wonder Socks a little over a year ago. Now he is looking expand the number of retailers who buy from his huge collection of colorful, original and fun fashion socks.

Parent company Joseph Corporation was launched about a decade ago, and the Korea-based manufacturer, spend most of its earlier years supplying various importers, at least one of which we have profiled previously in BODY.

In August, in his quest to find more retailers, Choi was exhibiting Wonder Socks in a large booth at the back of the Magic Show at the Las Vegas convention center. It was his first time at that show.

“We have hundreds of patterns of very color socks, “explained Choi, adding that as of the second day of Magic (when we stopped by his booth) he had already garnered 200 orders representing over 10,000 pairs of socks.

Many of the styles are clearly aimed at young — and sometimes very young — women, and are goofy, funny and bright. He makes both crew and knee high socks, for both men and women.

A current favorite is a Halloween orange knee-high, printed all over with a squadron of flying black bats, each with huge owl eyes. The effect is humorous.

Another knee high features dark raspberry foot paired with a light green upper sock. Across the field of green are scattered dozing sheep — puffy white a looking like a flock of very young chefs in full uniform. Again, goofy, cartoony, funny.

On another knee high, bright yellow egg yolk dribbles down towards the dark purple foot of the sock. Scattered across the purple ground are white eggs, cracked white eggs, fried eggs and eggs over easy.

A mid-calf style called “Missing Kodak” is a tribute to film and film cameras of the once all-powerful company. On a Kodak-yellow ground are displayed rows of film (complete with sprocket holes) and cameras.

And so it goes. Definitely original and often with unexpected results even when the starting point is a familiar cliché. The strong colors and very different design concepts allow retailers to get a significant mark up, according to Choi. Socks wholesale for about $3 but are sold at retail for as much as $12 (including on his own website), he said.

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Published 10-03-2013 by Nick Monjo