Asian and Samoan hip-hop lovers share their story through a KC streetwear brand
Born in American Samoa, Mark Launiu grew up in a small village where the values of community, generosity, and looking out for one another were central to daily life. Although his village had limited resources, the people always came together, sharing food, lending a hand, and making sure no one was left behind.
Tragedy struck early in Mark’s life when his mother passed away due to health complications when he was just five years old. A few years later, his father also died. Launiu was 10-years-old when he moved to Kansas City to live with an aunt. Despite the hardship, he carried the commitment and community spirit of his village with him.
Now 35, Launiu is the co-founder and director of community engagement and events for MADE MOBB, a Kansas City-based streetwear brand he started with two fellow Asian American entrepreneurs. Together, they created a brand that merges their diverse cultural upbringings into a unified and original expression.
MADE MOBB, 221 Southwest Blvd., has become a champion for Kansas City small businesses and regularly hosts vendor events that help others businesses expand their reach. Their First Friday events in the Crossroads Arts District have become a popular destination.
Launiu recently sat down with Kansas City Star culture and identity reporter J.M. Banks to talk about growing up in a Samoan village, moving to the United States and fusing his culture with others to create a brand that’s been inspirational.
Banks: Can you tell me about your early life and upbringing?
Launiu: I’m originally from American Samoa, it’s south of Hawaii. I grew up in a village of about 200 people. We didn’t have many opportunities or resources, but we had each other. Community meant everything. If someone went hunting or fishing, they made sure to bring back enough to feed their neighbors. That mindset, taking care of your people, is something I still live by today.
We moved to Kansas City in 2000 when I was 10. After losing both of my parents, my aunt took us in. Losing my parents at such a young age was tough. I had to learn how to deal with a lot of things and I had to grow fast. I didn’t speak English, so I was placed in special classes at school. As an immigrant kid, I always felt like I had to prove myself and earn my strips.
I went to Dobbs (Dobbs Elementary School) then Ervin (Ervin Middle School) and graduated from Hickman Mills High School. After that, I got my associate degree at MCC (Metropolitan Community College) then went to Kansas State University for engineering, I wanted to be an architect at the time.
Did you grow up around other Samoan families in Kansas City?
Not really. I grew up in South KC, and I was usually the only Samoan or Islander in the room. That made me really aware of how important representation is. Now that I have kids, I try to expose them to their culture and heritage. I want them to see themselves in different spaces and know they belong.
I also feel blessed to have a team around me at MADE MOBB that reflects different backgrounds. That’s what makes our brand special, we’re building a new kind of community made up of people from all walks of life.
How did the idea for MADE MOBB come about?
Thirteen years ago, I met Vu Radley and Jessie Phouangphet, two guys with this wild idea of starting a clothing brand. One of them I met while working at Sprint, and I met the other through his sister at K-State. She mentioned her brother was looking to launch a brand and once we connected, I just felt the energy.
I dropped out during my senior year to go all in. I turned down an internship in Houston because I felt this was something I needed to invest in fully. We didn’t grow up seeing people who looked like us running businesses or leading brands. So we wanted to create something we felt was missing. We started planning in 2012 and officially launched in 2013. At the time, there weren’t many streetwear brands in the Midwest. We were inspired by hip-hop, mob movies, and groups like Mobb Deep, that’s how we came up with the name.
What were the early years like building the brand?
They were rough. We were grinding, doing three to five pop-ups a week at bars, clubs, fundraisers, anywhere we could. For about four years, we were literally selling clothes out of a truck. On top of that, we were all working full-time jobs, so any free time we had went into designing and selling merch.
We were losing money at first, paying for everything out of pocket. But eventually, we started traveling to places like Atlanta, Vegas, Dallas, and Chicago. As we posted content, people started paying attention. We finally opened our first store on Grand Boulevard in 2017, then moved to our current location in the Crossroads in 2019.
How do your different cultures come together at MADE MOBB?
Vu is Vietnamese American, Jessie is Lao American, and I’m Samoan. It’s rare to see founders from different communities come together like this. But we realized our cultures have a lot in common, family, food, values. That connection made our bond stronger.
We also shared a love for hip-hop and streetwear. That’s been the foundation for everything we’ve built. We wanted to leave our mark not just as designers, but as storytellers representing our backgrounds.
What kind of community work does MADE MOBB do?
Community is everything to us. We mentor students and take field trips to local schools. Just last week we visited Grandview High School. The week before that we were at Ruskin (High School). I love sharing my story with students who might feel like they don’t have options. I love being able to tell them you’re not alone, there are resources, support systems and people who believe in you.
We also prioritize mental health. Whether it’s First Fridays or our fashion shows, we always make space to talk about it. Entrepreneurship is tough and without a strong mindset, it’s hard to succeed. We try to be honest about that and encourage others to take care of themselves mentally and emotionally.
Why do you think MADE MOBB resonates so strongly with people?
We built this not just as a clothing brand, but as a platform for other small businesses. We host events where vendors can sell, connect, and grow. It’s about creating an ecosystem of support. We share information, resources, and opportunities. It goes way beyond fashion.
Since the beginning, we’ve championed collaboration and community. The creative and entrepreneurial scenes in KC have shown us so much love because we try to give everyone a shot. People connect with that, we’re all just looking for a chance.
What’s your favorite part of the work you do?
I love highlighting Kansas City. A lot of people from outside the city only hear about the negatives. But when I travel, I get to show the world the creatives, entrepreneurs, and beautiful things happening here.
And I love seeing people grow. We meet so many individuals who are struggling with self-doubt. We were in their shoes once. So if we can be that voice telling them, “You’ve got this,” that means everything to us.
For more stories about culture and identity, sign up for our free On The Vine newsletter at http://KansasCity.com/newsletters.
This story was originally published May 6, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
