Moderator Note (Andy): Best of WSO - this post originally went up April 2012 and we thought it deserved to go back on the homepage for those who may have never seen it.
Fellow monkeys, I have a confession to make:
I am a hipster who wants to be an investment banker.
As I have lurked through these very boards, I've noticed that the hipster investment banker is a mythical creature that few of you have ever seen, or even spoken of. Some have argued that a few of WSO's most active members tend toward the obscure, but to call them hipsters would be a mode of extremeness that even the most trollish members of our community might not tolerate.
I am not, however, a full-blown hipster. I enjoy early-90s hip hop, the indie music scene in general, neo-noir movies, and intellectual conversations that always run in circles and never amount to much of anything. If available, I'll always choose an independent coffee shop instead of a Starbucks, not because I am a coffee snob (I don't even drink it often), but because the atmosphere is more appealing to me. I like hipster girls. I wear jeans that fit normally, casual dress shoes (think oxfords), and a non-plaid button down routinely, so I suppose that is another point of difference.
I'm a huge social liberal, but the classic hipster and I diverge on all issues economic. I'm not an Occupier. I am also not here to start a political debate, so I'll leave that aspect of this post here.
Are there people like me out there in the finance world? If I had to pick my crowd, I'd much rather hang around a bunch of people who drink PBR and talk about random, sometimes geeky, shit than around your prototypical "models and bottles" investment bankers. Is this social lifestyle sustainable in IB (not a trick question, I know social lives go out the window anyway), or will the other folks just ostracize me as soon as they pin me as a closet hipster?
In b4 IP asks you on a date.
Yes, there are people like you out there : Flake
He's from Romania.
I think you have an oversimplified view of what it means to be a financier and you assume a lot of things about this archetypal "finance-bro" which I really have yet to observe in such a one-dimensional fashion.
LMFAO u beat me to Flake. first thing that popped in my mind when i read the title.
If you guys think Flake is a hipster, it only means you have absolutely no idea what a hipster is.
You certainly don't sound like a hipster, frankly.
Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if you described a good portion of the less visible IB folks, no?
You sound like you're in the middle of the continuum between hipster douche and frat bro douche. Congratulations, you might be about as close to normal as anyone in finance gets.
FWIW, most financiers don't constantly talk about models and bottles, only the ones who don't get it touched.
Zing.
Wanna be hipster + wanna be banker. Nothing wrong with that.
There are plenty of traditional geeks and nerds with whom you would might identify. The kind of kids who probably stayed up late arguing about Marcel Proust or something.
In the book The Quants, one of the big quant traders liked to play guitar in subway stations and things like that. A lot of smart people have very eclectic interests.
In fact, I'd say that someone who is actually cool in the traditional sense (good looking, funny) and in finance is relatively rare.
That said, divisions like "hipster" and "bro" are a lot less evident out of college. I sat next to and thus befriended people who were not at all like my friends in college.
Flake would be a homo before a hipster.
I've always thought that if you call yourself a hipster, you're not really a hipster.
i saw this really, really pretty hispter girl on the train the other day. I asked myself, "swagon, why does this perfectly hot - gorgeous, honestly - girl WANT to be part of some idiotic culture? Why doesn't she turn her swag on and be a normal hot girl?" She had the most outrageous 1960's glasses you can imagine and an outrageously conspicuous weird-ass poof in the front of her hair...swagon was saddened, but also confused because swagon thought the whole point of subculture is that you don't have what it takes to succeed in the mainstream so you join a bunch of losers in a subculture? But this girl was naturally beautiful? wtf?
''tonyperkis: pics or it didn't happen''
Rollin around with Daddys Credit Card = 50% of dumbass beautiful hipster girls in the world #fact
Jeans that fit normally?!? Then no worries, you're no hipster.
[quote=Vontropnats] http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu172/mintychinchilla/tumblr_l6lyhk3…
this.
OP i hate you and don't even know you.
Man. I hate hipsters. One of my best friends is a hipster and I rag on him all the time about it.
I think Wolverine's right about hipsters not calling themselves hipsters, though. Unless... you're such a hipster that you're too cool for the regular hipster crowd, so you call yourself a hipster to differentiate yourself, which makes you even more hipster, which... wait, what
first reaction upon reading the subject line: lolwtfwhyareyouhereagain
Thread fail XD
This post blew the fuck up
Shave that beard. Make sure the Kings of Leon doesn't put you to sleep when you're in the office late at night... and have a suit that isn't plaid and linen. Then you may or may not be fine.
You don't sound like a hipster; you just sound like a pretentious douche.
He might fit in nicely at some shops after all.
What cut of Urban Outfitters suits do you recommend?
hipsters scares me
They shouldn't, they're humongous pussies. Unless you're terrified of being looked at condescendingly, you have nothing to fear.
If you take a job in banking, you'll still be yourself. Wearing a suit to work doesn't change your identity. Stop being so petty - your entire post is about what kinds of brands you prefer and what kind of clothes you wear. Those are meaningless factors when you are considering banking as a career. Your definition of investment bankers seems to be quite shallow.
There is one hipster on my floor and he's not over the top. But super skinny pants and dress shirts with the sleeves rolled up above his elbows. He works in IT.
Also a question: You said you are a hawk in the workplace. How do you know this given you haven't likely ever had a white collar job before? Or are you just making shit up?
A very presumptuous post.
Contrary to what CNN has told you about the banker archetype, it is a career full of different people.
My first supervisor was a brainy Welsh MILF by the name of Molly. Molly was gregarious & fun-loving. Life of the party & overall great gal. But Molly could never be found outside office hours. Molly had a terrible secret you see....Warhammer 40k!
And there's Jeff Simpson and his 13 dogs. Kuvani Gupta, the hippy, and her endless collection of B&W arty movies & painting hobby. David Chang and his vitamin-popping yoga/health fetish. [all not real names but close enough....God I hope you guys arent on WSO]
Ex-employer but jeez dude...you almost got one of the names correct & had me going for a second there.
i remember seeing a UK recruiting video for one of th BB's a few years ago. One of their star employees had a "Flock of Seagulls" haircut.. let that be inspiration enough
Funny you mention this, I just saw Mike Score of the Flock of Seagulls two weekends ago and, I am sorry to tell you this, but he no longer has that haircut.... in fact he is now a middle-aged Bald Fat guy who looks like someone's uncle...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pdproductions/7013130371/
As to OP's question, if you are a star producer then you can get away with "eccentric" fashion sense, hair style etc. Also folks on the buy side tend to have much more relaxed dress code in general. If you are making money for the firm, then nobody cares if you come in flannel shirt, pajama pants and fluffy bunny flip flops.
Seeing as hipsters don't believe in personal hygiene, I'm not sure anyone would want to hang with you in the workplace.
You aren't really hipster, but I can see compared to frat lax-bro's you would be. I am also not really "hipster," but stereotypical sorostitutes might label me as such. I think you would be surprised at how many share our sensibilities...basically we are the in-between of being complete hipster douches (looking like homeless people) and the models-and-bottles assholes.
[quote=anaismalcolm]You aren't really hipster, but I can see compared to frat lax-bro's you would be. I am also not really "hipster," but stereotypical sorostitutes might label me as such. I think you would be surprised at how many share our sensibilities...basically we are the in-between of being complete hipster douches (looking like homeless people) and the models-and-bottles assholes.
] Haha great video, and I think you and I are pretty much on the same page in a lot of ways.
For the record, I wasn't operating under the assumption that everyone in banking is a lax-bro, it's partly funny to think about whether or not it's true, and partly funny because it's mostly untrue. Most of my friends at BBs are just driven people who want to get somewhere in life, and don't really belong to one sub-culture or another.
But I'll thicken the plot a little bit: I'm located in the Southeast (not NYC, where I imagine the scene is a lot more diverse). This might be a game-changer.
I am actually from the Southeast, but now in NYC. And for someone mentioning Toms, I totally wear those on the subway before work...but then change into Louboutin's.
warhammer 40k ftw
but on the real if ur a hipster we wont be seen together @ fuqua. ill disacknowledge your existence even more so than the typical MBA does to the MMS there :|
Short, I'm not a tried and true hipster man! I wouldn't be caught dead in vintage Levi's, Tom's shoes, with unkempt hair.
Tom's are some of the most comfortable shoes known to man...granted I only wear the boots but still don't bash Tom's just cause you like your indie rock and hole in the wall coffee shops..
Why do you "want to hang around people who drink PBR"? I am not not saying I don't drink it or that I have an issue with those that do. I just find that amazing..."this guy/girl seems really cool but whoa hold on one second they're drinking ______ beer! what a loser". I just don't get it. I have friends who have shitty taste in beer, I really only care about what beer I like. Also, jeans that look like they would fit a little girl don't fit "normally" you fucking try hard.
You sound like a doucher. You attempt to paint yourself as some sort of bohemian intellectual but you fail at it miserably. Why do u give a shit what other people will think? Do you really think you'll be the only person at your workplace that likes to engage in intellectual discussions or the only one w eclectic interests?
Do what makes you happy bro. I like fucking sorority girls, day parties, jerseys and Jordan's , fitted snap backs, and everything else you would prolly associate w the "bro" culture. Doesn't mean I don't spend half my time on food blogs, reading academic journals for fun, cooking, or hanging in coffee shops.
If you only drink PBR, you're trying too hard. It's bland beer for a bland personality. Try something with a little bit more "hoppssss".
Don't be a douche, don't be a bro, don't be a hipster. Be yourself and do a ton of different things. And please do not join a fixed gear bicylce crew.
There's some hot hipsters serving me my daily americano at starbucks every morning
unfortunately I believe that this "models and bottles" banker stereotype is the minority that those not yet in the profession (90% of this board) believe they will soon be.
You'll be fine man, if youre good at what you do and people like you then that's all you should worry about.
Who the heck cares? Really dude.. if you can put on your game face and act like a professional and get stuff done... why do you really care what you do after work? You have the choice of how you spend your time outside the workplace.. and showing up after work with people not in your 'culture' for an hour or two isn't going to kill you... even if they are a 'bro'.
No one cares. Do your job, do it well and don't dress in anyway that will make you stand out negatively and it won't matter.
lol I never read the whole post until now... funny how you even mention that you/d like to hang around people who drink pbr... why even mention the brand of beer? my god. I can name 100 better beers than PBR. All else equal, given the choice between friends who drink Guiness/Killians/St. Paulis Girl/etc. or PBR, I'd have to sniff A LOT of paint before I choose the guys with PBR.
If you call yourself a hipster and honestly have "-drink PBR" on your criteria of who you want to hang out with, you're probably so confused about yourself it's sad. I'd rather hang out with a "models and bottles" type of guy who goes completely over the top as long as he knows that that's who he is than some wannabe hipster who tries too hard. You're not a hipster, you're just trying too hard to label yourself.
http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/BK1/
hipsters suck dick
You sound like a social liberal/fiscal conservative...just like most young people on Wall Street. As for your taste in music? I don't care what my friends listen to. I like both independent and studio music. Most people do.
I think you are too tied up in identity. Nobody really cares what you do, so long as it doesn't bug them...I mean, a fair portion of Wall St. borders on being clinically narcissistic, and the rest are too tired/stressed/busy to care.
I beat up hipsters with my twig, when I'm not shooting top cheese of course.
I was going to tell you that you were a day late on your April Fools post, but then I realized you probably are a real hipster since you just wrote a 2,000 word essay all about yourself. Did you also post it to the 17 blogs you write?
k
UPDATE: Hipsters in Finance (Originally Posted: 04/22/2013)
Oh WSO, how I've matured since I wrote this now infamous post that even made it to Business Insider and even elicited some pretty funny responses.
Yeah, it was kind of a troll post, but maybe 10% of it had some element of meaningful substance -- what is a hipster to do in the finance world?
I guess now I'm qualified to tell you. These things don't matter at all once you're out of college. They matter even less if you work in IB.
Now that I'm "living the dream" -- and trust me hardened WSO college kids, you're in for a rude awakening when you get there -- I haven't once thought about whether my self-proclaimed eclectic leanings have mattered in the workplace. Truth be told, there isn't time to think about much of anything beyond work and your longing for sleep...and yes, this includes your clothing, hairstyle, car, music you listen to, etc.
Since starting my job, I haven't once thought about how expensive my shoes are (they're not, but this is beside the point), how nice my suit is, whether my tie is Hermes or any of that other nonsense that pops up on WSO seemingly 15 times a day. These things do not matter.
I wish I could tell you that hipsters fit like a square peg in a square hole in finance, but honestly I don't know the answer to this question because it matters so little. All anyone cares is if you suck at your job, and if you do, having pledged 17 different fraternities in college (or conversely having a playlist of only-Pitchfork-rated albums) isn't gonna save you. Neither will your suit, or your Allen Edmonds Park Avenues, or the fact that you think you're hot stuff because you went to a target school.
And that's all I have to say about that.
TL;DR: most of your questions about banker lifestyle, etiquette and culture don't matter. Just read the damn Rosenbaum book and get a job, wondering about the other stuff is a waste of time and arguably a bit tooligan-ish.
P.S. Can't wait to ride my new fixie to work tomorrow!!!
Alfred Jones, the founder of the world's first hedge fund, was a hipster journalist sociologist. He was doing long-short equity before it was cool.
I agree, to many wannabes
There's value to knowing basic mistakes to avoid right as you enter (cufflinks as an intern kind of stuff). After that, to each his own, you decide how gunner/fratty/hipster you want to and can get away with being given your office culture.
Maybe I'm not in the same culture, but if I have a rockstar SA who wears cufflinks vs. a moron SA who wears a navy/charcoal suit, with a light blue/white shirt with button cuffs, a conservative tie, black lace ups, etc. every day, the rockstar is going win every time. Why do I care if a SA wears cufflinks?
As OP mentioned, once you're on the job, the only thing people care about is if you can do your job or not.
(The rockstar would likely know enough to not wear overly flashy shit unless he could back it up.)
Also, cufflinks aren't a very big deal.
I don't get the post. So you used to be a hipster, but now since you're a corporate drone, it doesn't matter what you used to be?
Go life, go go life!
What about the ladies? I've always wondered about that. I feel females would take these things to a whole new level... But then again, when you're lacking sleep, nothing really matters.
Meh
Finance Hipsters (Originally Posted: 11/18/2012)
Morning Monkeys!
I'd like to take a moment to discuss the growing multitude of "finance hipsters" and why they annoy the crap out of me. No, I'm not talking about hipsters who happen to work in finance, I'm talking about all these bankers who love to hate on the more ubiquitous methodologies in finance like CAPM (or portfolio theory in general) and DCF models. You all know what I'm talking about, in fact, at some point, you (or someone you know) has probably had this conversation:
Banker #1:
Banker #2:
Replace "the cost of equity using CAPM" and "the intrinsic value from my DCF model" with "Modest Mouse's new CD" or "non-organic milk" and you have the quintessential hipster conversation. Are they perfect models? No, far from it, and "Banker #2" is right about the assumptions. But, both were huge leaps forward in analysis and deserve a bit more credit. To really appreciate this, it's important to understand what came before them:
Dow Theory: The predecessor to modern technical analysis was developed from 255 editorials written by Charles Dow. Imagine developing a financial theory from 255 of Paul Krugman's editorials, it would consist entirely of methods to purchase assets that reliably vote democrat and numerous footnotes on the awesomeness of inflation. Luckily, Charles Dow was a pretty smart guy so the resulting theory isn't complete and utter gibberish, but some of the 6 tenets of Dow Theory would strike most of you as pretty ridiculous (e.g. The Market has Three Movements.)
Theory of Investment Value: Finally, after figuring out that looking at candlestick charts leaves something to be desired, John Burr Williams thought, "Hey, maybe if we look at a company's cash flow or dividends, we'll be more readily able to determine a stock's intrinsic value." This is when Fundamental Analysis was truly born and with it, the dividend discount model and the DCF model.
Portfolio Theory: While actually checking to see if a company made any money, then buying said stock was a massive improvement, the concept of "diversifying risk" was still absent. This is where portfolio theory truly formalized the concept of a "diversified portfolio". Not to suggest that previously everyone had only one stock in their portfolio, or that the general concept was foreign to a professional analyst, but there wasn't a generally accepted formulation for HOW to diversify. This is how Markowitz's portfolio theory brought us into the modern world of stock analysis, by taking the next jump to include a formalization of risk and portfolio diversification.
So, the lesson here is, while models have improved dramatically in terms of their ability to model reality with more reasonable assumptions, they're still (more or less) innovations on portfolio theory and fundamental analysis (one could argue that the Black-Scholes option pricing model was an equally impressive leap, but I'd rather not muddle up my own argument.) This is precisely why every finance undergrad is forced to learn all of these seemingly outdated models.
Stop hating.
tl;dr - DCF models, fundamental analysis, and portfolio theory are awesome and a similar leap forward in how we analyze assets has yet to come about. Stop hating.
oh wow anaismalcolm still reads/posts lol
I lol'd...
Yes. They are awesome I concur :)
I don't get it...you think it's annoying that people have come up with better ways of doing things and are touting their ways?
No, not at all. In fact I'm a huge fan of people coming up with new things and subsequently touting their new and improved methods. What's annoying is when people come up with absolutely nothing but still complain about the assumptions and methods of others. For example:
"I've found that [insert assumption] doesn't represent reality in an empirically meaningful way, so I've developed [insert new method] that solves the problem" = Awesome and constructive.
"The assumptions that are used in [insert model/methodology] don't represent reality, so obviously everyone who uses [previously inserted model/methodology] is an idiot because they so obviously don't realize how useless and limited [previously inserted model/methodology] is" = Annoying and makes me hope the author gets ambushed by a pack of squirrels.
My take is that the models were a stepping stone to multifactor models ( which have been proven to work so long as there are no pattern breaks i.e. 2008 crash) and that is why they are studied, its like studying Plato or Socrates its part of the classic foundation of Finance Theory.
Then the industry (i.e. bankers) just because it needs a common method to communicate to clients adopted the CAPM model, it does not mean its the best one, think blue-ray vs. HD DVD, its just the one that everyone uses, hence it is more practical.
For the sake of accuracy a well greased multifactor model should effectively get a better cost of capital(if its properly built), nonetheless most of those models are proprietary and hence any one not familiar with the model would have a steep learning curve in order to understand how the discount rate was arrived at WHICH IS KEY WHEN COMMUNICATING THE VALUE OF A COMPANY.
So in summary:
For Bankers or Valuators: Using CAPM is part of the industry language, so I would not frown upon it, as valuations can be tweaked by other drivers like growth, margin %, etc. to arrive at the right number for the company.
For Investors: If you use CAPM you are seriously delirious as we all know its not accurate, and if you base of an investment decision on a piece of knowledge that you beforehand know is inaccurate, guess what?! YOU ARE AN IRRESPONSIBLE INVESTOR!!
just my $0.02
@Suchislife
This is really interesting. I'm studying asset pricing right now, and I agree with how you think CAPM was a stepping stone to the multi factor model. Could you shed some light on your view of the arbitrage pricing theory and it's relevance in the real world? (If you have knowledge of it) From what I have learnt the imposition of arbitrage framework on the multi-factor model underpins it's modern use. By eliminating the systematic and systematic risk, the inclusion of variables outside the realm of measure like macro-events provides a linear relationship between these factors and the rate of return on an asset. I'm interested in how applicable this is in the real world. Does it help reveal patterns between asset pricing?
OMG is CAPM important? I totally just ignored it in my Financial Economics assignment. I thought half of this stuff was crap. Aghhhh
Out of curiosity...how long does it generally take for new finance concepts from Universities to find there way onto the floors of an IB?
That's a really good question (hopefully someone has a better answer than the one I'm about to give.) The research I read tends to be pretty math heavy, which I'm assuming is typical (this could be totally wrong.) So for a quant shop with plenty of mathematicians and programmers, I'd imagine it would be pretty quick, if not in reverse (i.e. the research starts at the quant shop then is formalized by academia.) But if you were involved in deals which require a lot more flexibility from day to day (a trading machine can be run for quite a while, but a pitchbook is probably only good for the one client) it probably takes years, if not longer.
Just a guess, though.
Never. I remember I learned this ultra theoretical LBO analysis method senior year of college (supposedly was on the bleeding edge of academic corporate finance). After having been in IB and PE for a few years, I can safely say that no one on the planet (outside of academia) uses that analysis or anything other than a straight sources and uses / IRR / multiple of capital model to analyze the financial impact of an LBO.
Yes, banks do use DCFs to fill pitch books and satisfy accountants and lawyers for reporting purposes, but no one is actually going to write a check based on a DCF.
The reason none of the theory coming out of academia makes it to the real world is because unlike actual hard sciences, corporate finance and economics hypotheses cannot really be tested so most "theories" are just BS speculation.
And if you are ever left wondering what your cost of equity should be, here it is: the percentage by which you want to grow your money.
Bros you've got this all mixed up. A model like CAPM is vintage given its from the 60s, and not only that but it's also ironic because its usefulness is so limited and yet so much money is on the line. Then again all the banker bros worship it so it's also in the finance mainstream. What's a finance hipster to do when something is simultaneously vintage, ironic, mainstream and passé? You couldn't have liked CAPM before it was cool because you weren't even born yet! So that's off the table. Man, let me tell you, it is not easy being a finance hipster.
Lol! Epic.
I just use the classic "whichever stock price is higher is more expensive" theory. Am I missing something here?
@ Oscar_Chow
Well I'm pretty rusty on the subject but I'll give it a shot (last time I studied finance theory was in 2011 when I was wrapping up the CFA, have been working in PE where all of this is mostly irrelevant to my day).
Well my take is that first of all there is no defined model for APT and hence the factors and betas are to be defined by the actual statistical analysis of the user. Assuming you have a model built on APT, which mostly looks at system wide macro factors, as long as the factors you incorporate in the model in the case of APT are statistically relevant factors which improve the correlation this should positively impact the accuracy of your model, and the more accurate your model is the better it will be on achieving the right cost of equity, and hence it will be better for making investment decisions. (This model definitely appears more relevant to the real world than CAPM, you could argue that CAPM is a subset of APT)
On the other hand there are other fundamental statistically relevant factors which are not necessarily macro which affect company values, examples of such factors are stock liquidity, firm size, reporting quality, etc. As you built your model thought the statistical analysis of certain factors you will want to incorporate the number of statistical factors which positively improve your correlations, whether they are macro, or fundamental.
If I’m not mistaken this is what happens in the real world, you build your model across a whole host of factors and betas (could be 2 could be 100 betas) trough statistical analysis in order to improve correlations and the accuracy of your model (always looking out for statistical traps, that’s another conversation).
It is important to note that any pricing model developed through statistical analysis will be valid only until the patterns holds, if there is a structural break (example: oil stops being used and nuclear power becomes the power of choice, your statistical model will not likely hold) your model will break down and it will become useless (for a period of time at least) hence models are always constantly evolving 24/7 as the world and the economy evolves and that is why there will never be one model for anything as it is a constantly evolving analysis which incorporates all of the applicable factors for today!
DISCLAIMER: SOMEONE IN Asset Management PLEASE CHIME IN, TO MAKE SURE I’M NOT MISTAKEN, AS I AM VERY RUSTY AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE I DON’T GIVE BAD ADVICE! (I APOLOGIZE AHEAD FOR ANY MISTAKES, IT’S BEEN A WHILE) What a rant....
Thanks a lot for the reply, refreshing to hear real life applications instead of theory!
How did the hipster drown?
It went ice skating before it was cool.
Ha!!
How many hipsters does it take to screw in a lightbulb?
It's a really obscure number, you probably don't know about it yet.
personal favorite: How much does a hipster weigh?
An instagram
Why are farmers better than Hipsters? Farmers can go a day without their Pitchfork.
What happens when a Hipster falls? They Tumblr.
Who the hell still uses CAPM or DCF to value a company? Professional knife catchers that had AAPL at $1000 PT and bought from $700 to $525? Or professional value investors that bought HP from $25 all the way to $13?
Even value shops' water cooler talks are spoken in P/E or P/S.
Your model and valuation is only as accurate as your forward prediction of the company.
Your scenario typifies very well the common-place arguments over financial models. Because, in your example, both sides are competing for the gold in the special olympics.
These arguments are merely components of the hollow confidence game required from this part of the industry.
None of you actually know what you're talking about. None of this is value added.
how did you calculate the risk premium to reach that conclusion?
i think the more important topic here is actually what about finance hipsters? i mean, who the fuck tries to pull off a skinny tie at a BB amirite?
Ha ha.. 'How much does a hipster weigh? An instagram' This is good stuff!
Hipster Rankings - North American Cities (Originally Posted: 09/04/2012)
They're everywhere. Smooth comb-overs and black frames, they breed like bunnies. Some are rich, some poor, but rest assured, the love is free. Organic dinners. Gluten free. It's all so post-global.
Things are all grooved out as we enter year 5 of the recession. Food trucks, fading keyboard loops, freelance photography
For the finance hipsters in disguise, shall we draft a list...
My prelim:
1) Portland 2) Brooklyn (Bushwick, Brooklyn Heights) 3) Seattle 4) San Francisco 5) New York (Lower East Side) 6) Montreal 7) Chicago, Toronto 9) L.A. 10) San Diego, Austin
...
572) Cambridge, Massachusetts
Well vontropnats, it seems you've fallen under the label of hipster by accident, in my opinion. Hipster has become a catch all label for people who may actually enjoy being cultured, and partaking in culture. At another time in history, the label was referred to as the "renaissance man" or "woman", as it were. No Mr. Vontropnats, I am not saying you are not a hipster by any means, because you can give yourself any label you choose. What I do know is that I myself, as a complete finance nerd, also enjoy many things "hipsterish". I am not a social liberal, indeed, I'm about as conservative as they come. And yet, I've always gravitated towards indie music, random philosophical conversations, and non-chain coffee shops. The hipster chick, with her flannel and purposefully large, non-prescription spectacles delights and elates my senses. One might even say I'm a conservative hipster, though the term may seem paradoxic. And yet, and yet, to be cultured, and to enjoy partaking in culture, is to me the one of the most satisfying things.
I would say that the NW is miles ahead (Seattle, Portland, Vancouver,etc.) anything after that is null
Being a liberal hipster is so mainstream, conservative hipsters are the real hipsters.
"Being a liberal hipster is so mainstream, conservative hipsters are the real hipsters."
Haha love it!
Moody brooding Artsy fartsy flannel wearing fake glasses indie snob ["one percenter" (uneducated bullshit label)] conservative constitutionalist hedge fund hipster. This is an aspirational aspect of my psyche.
1) Berkeley, CA 2) Berkeley, CA 3) Berkeley, CA
Clearly none of you have been to Richmond. 3rd most tattooed city in the country and cheap enough forth is people to subsist with their ironic 'jobs'
tattoos are more punk than hipster
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_subcultures
This. Richmond FTW
This. Richmond FTW
East Village / Lower San Fran / Berkeley
I saw this list three years ago.
^ no you dint
I came to say Portland
So what's your beef with Cambridge?
Boston's a beautiful city but it seems a bit behind in terms of nightlife / arts compared to other cities. All the bars I went to, save for one in Cambridge, were playing crappy Destiny's Child music from the 1990s.
Cambridge is a geek town. All the twenty somethings have been on the straight and narrow...
Maybe HBS is different. Brady?
How is Denver area not listed? Boulder is probably the second behind Portland (which is on there because of Eugene).
I second this. Check out the slopes this winter and you'll see a bunch of CO hipsters...that is...if hipsters existed...which they don't...
Bushwick doesn't outhipster Williamsburg! Bushwick is actually the more alt-type place. If Im in a Bushwick girl's apartment , what Id most expect to see is some hard rock/heavy metal poster - not a hipster band. Williamsburg is cliche but it is , without a doubt , th Goldman Sachs of hipster locations.
fact. it's almost like within the hipster universe williamsburg is the mainstream.
Anyone knocking Boston...have you been to Allston? Just gotta know where to look. Also a few good "hipster" live music venues in Cambridge
rule #1 of being a hipster: never admit that there is such a thing as a hipster.
+1. Everyone who knows, knows that hipsters don't exist.
providence
Brooklyn Heights is far from hipster. I'd say BK Heights is more like the Upper East Side of Brooklyn. Don't know who the hell told you that it's hipster.
Williamsburg & Greenpoint, for sure. Portland, OR is up there. And San Francisco is also one of the big ones.
I'd say Bedford Ave is more yuppie than Hipster these days. It looks like Park Slope now..
Bedford easily has some of the hottest girls in the city
LA - los feliz and Silver Lake; parts around downtown are under their influence
Bay area - other than the mission SF rents have driven them to oakland. Berkeley is a stronghold of course.
Seattle - capitol hill
Portland - everywhere
I'm so hipster, I like mainstream because not liking mainstream is too mainstream.
I'm going to throw Minneapolis in the loop...
Unfortunately for hipsters, aspiring to be one is the most ironic thing ever.
I don't cross the bridge into Brooklyn for this specific reason, but am I reading that some of the hottest girls in the city reside there? Might have to change my habits...
Yes, this is true. Cruise around Bedford Ave and you'll have a chubby in no time
lol
williamsburg has all the trust fund hipsters...
williamsburg has all the trust fund hipsters...
Agreed but only really around Brown
Portland
Portland
Portland
Trailblazerzzz
Hordes upon hordes in Austin. Which isn't bad, because the coffee is now better.
Yeah, I'm sure all you bros realize that all this talk about hipsters and which cities are hipster is very non-hipster. Actual hipsters fervently deny that they're hipsters or that such a thing even exists. Perhaps some of you folk are "yipsters"...a combination of yuppie and hipster. What's ironic though is that if you frame the discussion from the yipster perspective, you may have to take out a bunch of these cities because they're not yuppie enough, even though only a yipster would be able to have this discussion in the first place.
It's the best way to get laid in a hipster community. Just talk about how passe stuff is and how the restaurant you're eating at is so up and coming...no one knows about it yet except the two of you. Then just laugh about how tasteless New Jersey is for half an hour or so... presto, you're waking up at her place drinking coffee that know one's heard about, except the two of you of course.
What's wrong with Cambridge, MA ranked so low?
This guy is obviously dumb; a hipster is not even a "hipster" anymore everyone is in some way a goddamn hipster. Its not even cool anymore. You should do what ever makes you happy. I hate indie rock, but love hiphop from the 90's to the mid 2000's back when NY ran everything. I also like the "bottles and models" idea but its not real because coming out of school there's no way you afford to drop thousands every weekend at places like one oak or lavo; you'll be living on the street in no time even on 80-90k salary. I also started getting to the art scene recently and the girls that like that kind of thing; their just more interesting than you everyday abercrombie model from nebraska that seem to have over run the city. Just do you and stop caring what sub-culture you fit into this isn't high school
Have I become a hipster? (Originally Posted: 02/23/2012)
There was this girl I was seeing a while ago, a little younger and different to what i usually go for (I'm 28, she was 23 and in some arts program at Columbia). Anyway, she was smoking and it was good while it lasted. However she left some of her imprint on me. She was a hipster but as everyone knows hipster chicks are hot, but some of her music choice has made an impression on me, to the point I found myself hanging out with a bunch of hipsters the other day.
I'm finding myself enjoying stuff like this more and more everyday:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LJtMrhb558&ob=av2e
...and you get the picture.
I'm seriously worried.
hahahaha you fuckin hipster
Smh
sick user name
I think having self awareness partially disqualifies you from being a hipster. Just don't buy a record player or drink PBR because it's trendy and you should be ok.
this shit made me laugh
and dufft, if anything hipsters are the most self aware people on earth
lol... keep your job and you'll be alright... don draper dumpster dives into hipster land... nothing wrong with it at all buddy... happy hunting!
Yeah exactly this. Just remember that you're not a hipster and dress accordingly. Hipster chicks secretly love that you don´t look like you just bumbled off the shortbus.
If I can't tell the diff b/t your hipster stuff and homo stuff can i use it to make fun of one of those groups?
Dated a hipster artsy chick too and same thing happened. On the plus side, you'll see a bit more of the big picture and fun sides of life. Like above poster said though, keep your job and your dignity intact, hipsters just want to see you fail once they learn you work for GASP a corporate company evil ohhhh noooo
Yah at my part time job i have met so many people who dont get up before 1PM and live in the sketchy part of town and are waiting for thier big break... hahaha and they always go "GASP, you have a day job? doing what? for the Government? thats crazy man i dont know how you do that"
the funniest thing are the people who have dreams of not being a hipster but because they have been a hipster for so long that they dont know how to get out of the hipster cycle... I know this one guy who talks about Hedge Fund, Consulting and Investment banking salaries all the time and then I ask him some of the easiest technical things and he stutters and stammers and gives some half assed answer... and I gave him a lead about a volunteering place whos alumni all work for top consulting shops and he says "interviews are 6 months away? fuck that im not waiting that long" ... lol
When can we go back to calling hipsters pussies? - GSElevator
my thoughts exactly!
As a follow up to your new music preference:
Did you grow ironic facial hair? Have you picked up a pair of hipster glasses and a pair of skinny jeans? Did you move into a co-op or loft in Greenpoint or Bushwick? Do you ride a fixed gear bike? Do you find yourself saying "I liked ________ before it/they were ________?"
If not, I think you're okay.
Pretty sure KJL is a hipster
I spend 45 minutes doing my hair every morning. Except I'm trying to make it look messy so you think I don't care at all.
PCs suck. Where's my Mac?
I only listen to bands that don't exist yet.
Most likely has been covered somewhere on the site at some point in time, but can someone tell me wtf a hipster does for work?
They try to find irony in the fact that they are unemployed, yet unemployable.
My cousin is a hipster and lives in Oakland. He works at a coffee shop. Soooo hip.
What do non-coffee shop employed hipster do for a living?
I hate you.
IP is a hipster.
Drinks PBR, was thrifty before it was cool, likes dive bars. Pretty sure we'll see him post about how he traded in his rusty Honda for a fixie that he found in an alley in Brooklyn soon.
Fuck you, I like PBR
One of my good friends is a hipster and has definitely influenced me in a musical and fashion sense and find myself being more open-minded.
As for work, he has no real skill set. He in school for "fashion" though and he seems to be doing very well. Ive seen some of the clothing he has design and constructed and its really good stuff. Hes also knows alot of hot girls which has pulled through enough times.
I still have my priorities and goals in check though.
Only one of those artists had a review on Pitchfork. Not hipster enough.
Best New Thread though.
is "hipster" a code word for being a fag?
PBR tastes like piss. Life's too short to drink cheap beer.
PBR, it doesn't taste good, it's not drinkable. It's like George Washington coming down your throat to fight the redcoats
I remember when I drank my first beer.
I'll tell you forthright that IP is not a hipster. If you've ever hung out with him, you'll know he's not hipster in the least bit. He's just thrifty.
I dont understand the negativity towards hipsters in general. As people, they are pretty cool. I see why they are perceived as that but they're not that bad. One of the guys I hung out even knew about the NBA.
It's not that they're not cool. It's that they think they're cooler than everyone else...
Haha. Thats where that glasses wearing thing comes from.
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