The Culture of Stash

BNOC, pre-lash, EG-ing, Fives and BUCS; these are a few of the popular acronyms and terms that mean so much to us but so little to anyone living outside of the University campus bubble. Another example of these “insider terms” is stash, which although holds a lot of weight in our diction is inevitably a lost word on anyone over the age of 25. When talking to parents, younger siblings and friends who have never been part of a University culture, stash is a lost concept. However at many Universities nowadays, it is a large part of the University experience we students expect and demand.

So how can we officially define stash? Well like ever other normal person I turned to the Internet and thanks to the ever-helpful Urban Dictionary I got this eloquent explanation…

“Stash- items of clothing, usually acquired whilst at University, baring the name of a club to which the wearer belongs and usually (bears) an obscure nickname picked up in Fresher’s week. Every club or team likes to believe they have the best stash.

Tarquin: “shall we do a bailey bar crawl in our tennis stash?”

Rupert: “oh golly! That would be delightful!”

Stash is basically a commonly used term within the University spectrum, mainly referring to items of clothing that express an affiliation with a college (halls), club, society, production, trip or team. Therefore we can divide stash up into sub-categories each with its own identity…

In my opinion, one of the biggest tribes within the stash-wearing population is the sports stash. Primarily serving a functional purpose, it is understandable why sports stash is so popular at a University like Exeter with many of us playing a sport, so therefore wearing it for training and travelling to and from matches. However when worn outside of the Wednesday afternoon match slot, putting on stash then becomes a conscious decision on how you present yourself to people you may encounter. Just like any other clothing, wearing something is an act, so when donning some Tennis Club trackies to the co-op or a Netball hoody to lectures, what are we saying about ourselves?

Having done some research into the world of stash, through the insiders viewpoint of stash secs, the overwhelming response I got on why stash is so popular was the sense of being part of a team. When wearing something emblazoned with Exeter University Hockey Club, you are not only involving yourself within a club and therefore a community, but you are also publicising something you feel passionately about. After all, we all inevitably endorse brands through our clothing, so why then should the brand not be a lacrosse squad of which we put a lot of time and commitment into?

This same rule can be applied to non-sporting clubs as well, Society Stash, ranging from musical groups and theatre companies to political alliances and charity work (we all know those infamous purple RAG t-shirts), is a common way to openly define yourself though your interests outside of the lecture hall.

Then there is the “flair”* involved in particular stash, I have to admit to feeling pretty swish when I play matches in my black university water-polo costume, and the Stash Sec for cricket admitted that the new blazers they are getting for the club have a solely “show purpose”*. But then do these items also double up as a memorable keepsake of our time at University? Apart from the photos, memories and friendships (and of course the degree itself) stash will end up being the bulk of the material possessions we will have in tribute to our three years here. Therefore if we keep good care of them, these purchases can also become items we hand down to children, as a friend of mine displays when she wears her Dad’s old Exeter hoodies.

However, stash is not only limited to teams and clubs, the infectious obsession has spread over many aspects and ages of university life. Not only can you get stash for your Halls (Made in Mardon says it all), the old ladies on the chaplaincy team have stash, as do the nurses in the Healthcare centre, and of course there is subject stash.

Subject Stash is usually characterised by a small University logo complete with the subject in question, but also a slogan on the back ranging from the funny (Physics last year had “Probably a Virgin”) to the absurd (Flexible Combined Honours started stash this year with the slogan “Sexy and Flexy, shall we combine?”). Why subject societies feel the need to jazz up a standard green hoodie with sexual slogans is beyond me, as a business student I see this as a last ditch attempt to diversify their product in an already saturated market.

Finally, in my research of the sub-categories of stash I looked into the University of Exeter Apparel Stash, and by these I mean the items that can be purchased from the little shop by the Ram. This breed of stash is in theory non-selective in its client; there is no pre-determined talent or interest need (you don’t even have to be a student here!) However price can come into play a major factor, with hoodies costing up to £44.99 and caps setting you back a sore £9.99, this breed of stash is reserved for the rich and keen. Although pricey, the products available at this tiny shop are all encompassing, from folders to bobble hats, notebooks to flasks and even pyjama bottoms or shorts, Exeter Apparel now provides for every area of your life on and off campus. The only question that remains is whether our student loan is grand enough for us to afford any of it?

So there you have it, a break down of the stash world within the university of Exeter. Now the big question remains… With every trip, team and production using a hoodie as its momento, do photos really need to be taken, as if all our memorable Uni occasions won’t be immortalised through the items hanging in our wardrobe?

*Quotes courtesy of Andrew Curtis, (Exeter University Cricket Club Stash Sec).

Photo credits – http://exeter.tab.co.uk/2012/10/14/the-price-of-sport/; http://as.exeter.ac.uk/divisions/se/sss/chaplaincy/about/; http://www.eubc.co.uk/; http://au.exeter.ac.uk/netball/; http://www.youtube.com/channel…