Local business promotes indigenous culture

The Roil Soil Clothing stall at the recent Flame Tree Arts Festival at Civic Center in Susupe. (Kimberly A. Bautista)

Young entrepreneur Shayne Villanueva takes pride in the island’s indigenous culture and has used that pride to inspire his business, Roil Soil Clothing.

There are numerous local clothing shops on Saipan today, but Villanueva believes that what sets him apart from the rest is the fact that his clothing line features local artists like Peter Aldan. Through featuring local artists, Roil Soil Clothing can capture the essence of the island’s indigenous culture.

During the Rotary Club of Saipan’s weekly meeting last April 24 at the Hyatt Regency Saipan, Villanueva introduced and explained the meaning of Roil Soil Clothing and its mission.

According to Villanueva, “Roil” is pronounced “Royal” and stands for “honoring the past,” and “Soil” represents “our land, people and history.”

“We represent all races and all lineages. We erase lines of separation and we promote connecting people through music, clothing, marketing and other services,” he said.

Roil Soil Clothing is a brand sold at Legends clothing shop. Like Legends clothing, Roil Soil is a boutique brand and according to Villanueva, he wants to keep it that way so that the merchandise remains high quality and unique.

Roil Soil Clothing also partners with different groups and organizations to promote their groups by creating merchandise or murals for them, and also to perform charity work.

““We want to promote more events in the CNMI and continue to help our local charities,” he said.

One of their upcoming events is the Danny Cho Show with Jay Sanchez and Gerard Van Gils set for May 6 from 5pm to 7pm at Naked Fish Bar and Grill in Susupe.

Roil Soil started in 2015 as a clothing company representing the CNMI at the Pacific Islanders Festival in San Diego, California.

“Now we also develop concepts for companies and bring them to life with local artists. We develop products and markets to grow with our clients,” Villanueva said.

Today, Roil Soil Clothing has expanded to marketing, business development, product development, clientele engagement, social media development, charity engagement, and more.

For more information visit www.roilsoil.bigcartel.com, www.instagram.com/roilsoilclothing, www.facebook.com/roilsoilclothing or contact Shayne Villanueva at 785-4269 or at roilsoilclothing@gmail.com.