New York-based designer Julio Colon III is a man of many talents but has the objective to perfect them all. In his New York studio, natural light fills the room, and a small case glimmers in the corner of the space—it’s his newest earring made of sterling silver (he doesn’t do brass, nope). Titled “Earring One,” the fine jewelry piece delivers a new meaning to the phrase “quality over quantity”.

Colon started designing in 2017, and gained the attention of athleisure arbiters like Nike and Calvin Klein—quickly garnering industry titans under his belt at a young age. Honing his craft through those previous creative endeavors, Colon has now shifted his focus to his entrepreneurial conceptions. Utilizing his unconventional approach to design paired with a flair for business, the New York-native is fueling the future of genderless jewelry through his brand Intellectual Athleticism.

The brand embodies the marrying of the consulting skills he’s acquired along the way with his love for design, amplifying his multi-hyphenate ethos. Eliciting the feelings of luxury and nostalgia for him, he tinkers with packaging his precious metal pieces with prudence. Colon is someone who is consistently executing an idea that has a distinct backstory; there is nothing that he overlooks in the mundane. From apparel to accessories to unimaginable concepts, Colon does it all.

Connecting with VMAN ahead of the launch of his latest masterpiece, the rising designer details his creative process and what’s in store for the future. 

Read the interview below. 

VMAN: Tell me about how you started designing.

JULIO  COLON III: Have you ever listened to a song and wished that a word was said differently, and then it would become a perfect song? That’s how I started looking at clothes. I would look at the pieces, and be like, ‘If this pocket is somewhere else or seam, it would be the perfect piece.’

VMAN: How does being from New York influence your design process?

JC: Being born and raised in Southside Jamaica, Queens, I feel provides a certain authenticity that can’t be replicated, and that carries through my work.

VMAN: What was going through your mind when you started designing this new earring?

JC: I wanted to look towards my past, my childhood, to be exact. So, the earring comes from my mother’s carabiner that she used to carry keys. Every school year, she would give me a new and fresh one. So I looked at that carabiner, provided a contemporary lens, switched different angles, and made it an iA piece—immortalizing that memory.

VMAN: Who would you say are you designing for when you create these pieces?

JC: Everyone, but the visionary seems to be touched the most.

VMAN: Who is someone you’ve looked to for inspiration in your journey as a designer?

JC: Virgil Abloh, since 2017, he was a giant motivator, and I always looked at the stuff that he did. Whether it was Drake’s plane or XYZ, I wanted to do stuff to the scale that he did. Long live Virgil.

VMAN: What have you looked to outside of fashion to inform your design process and creative sensibilities?

JC: I always look internally to inform what I put out externally, and what affects me internally is always my environment, my feelings, and my location.

VMAN: How does your identity intersect with the way that you design?

JC: Being Afro-Latino, I like to always keep those communities in mind. Just push for the best for us; mostly ownership, to be exact.

VMAN: How are you moving with intention in your design process?

JC: Quality over quantity, less is more, everything is purposeful. Honestly, that’s why it took me a year to put something out again. And I feel like there’s enough product in this world, this world is already on fire. So, I think everything should be purposeful from now on, especially as we approach 2023.

VMAN:  What do you look forward to in the future?

JC: Creating worlds.