For centuries, the Japanese have rung in the new year by eatingozoni, a bowl of hot soup consisting of mochi rice cakes. It’s an ancient tradition (dating all the way back to samurai society) that now circles the globe, from the Far East to my grandma Nancy’s kitchen in Los Angeles (where I’m making homemade mochi),… but for many of you reading this, I bet it’s probably the first you’ve ever heard of it.

Likewise, every single day, someone else finds out about The Hundreds for the first time. Although we’ve been around for over 7 years, selling worldwide to hundreds of stores, catering to an online presence in the millions, and a Facebook page of 60,000 people and counting, we are still very much an unheard-of, underground, and under-the-radar brand. Not a day passes where we don’t get an email from a fresh customer inquiring as to what “The Hundreds” means, or a passer-by who accidentally stumbles into one of our stores. It still blows us away — just because in our own bubble, it’s all we know — but for most of the world, they have yet to experience The Hundreds.

2011 is set up to be a banner year for us, just as far as the development of our apparel and accessories goes, The Hundreds Footware’s expansion, The Hundreds Eyeware’s progress, and there may be a new The Hundreds retail store for you somewhere in there. Plus, if you thought the Garfield project was a big deal, prepare yourselves for a series of even more elaborately detailed collaborations. Our goal here is to keep The Hundreds’ core following happy and intrigued — the diehards who’ve been with us since the start. At the same time, we want to continue sharing The Hundreds’ story to new ears, because it’s a message we want everyone to hear, and it’s really the only way we can continue to grow.

Ozoni has been carried on through the generations, and will continue on as long as the storytellers uphold their heritage… more importantly, as long as they have new people to share it to. In a year, a decade, even a century, those new hands will knead the mochi, prepare the soup, and explain to the world the importance of tradition. We hope that same truth applies to The Hundreds, that our message can keep on, and that we can reach as many open minds as possible, so that — truly — The Hundreds is forever.

Here’s to 2011 and beyond.

by bobbyhundreds