By Grace Gavilanes, Assistant Features Editor
The Chronicle: What is your name?
Eric: Eric Massengill aka “Trouble” or “Dwight”
The Chronicle: What is your major/minor?
Eric: Economics/Japanese. I’m changing it to Mathematical Business Economics, so I may be stuck here a little while.
The Chronicle: How would you describe your style?
Eric: Preppy-Punk, I guess.
The Chronicle: What would you consider to be your signature item?
Eric: I really like my jackets. The one I’m wearing now is the newest, but I have a felt trench coat that looks really awesome. I get comments on that one all the time.
The Chronicle: Who inspires your style and why?
Eric: Actually, I really like No Doubt’s style, especially Tony Janal. I’m planning on growing my hair out to get the Mohawk he had in “Hey Baby.”
The Chronicle: Where is your favorite place to shop and why?
Eric: Basically everything I own comes from R.A.G. down in the Times Square Station. They get overstock urban clothing that you don’t usually find, so everything’s good and cheap. My jacket, shirt and pants all come from there, and they were just $20 each. For my higher-end stuff I go to Ralph Lauren Rugby.
The Chronicle: What are the most and least expensive items you’ve purchased?
Eric: The most expensive item I’ve got is my navy long coat; it’s a black felt-like pea coat, but with a trench design. I bargained that down to $150. The cheapest thing I’ve got is my socks.
The Chronicle: Do you shop online?
Eric: No, I don’t shop online because you can’t put things on and see if they fit or look good.
The Chronicle: What advice would you give to other guys who are looking to update their wardrobes?
Eric: I don’t try to follow trends, so I can’t really give advice. I just try to be creative and look cool—just have a strong aesthetic and buy things that all go together so you don’t have to spend an hour dressing yourself. Try having a unified color pallet, like black, white, and green. It’s usually not a good idea to wear more than three colors; it looks messy.

Eric Massengill gets his unique preppy-punk clothing from a little-known store in Times Square. (Grace Gavilanes/The Chronicle)