Club Chair Bulletin #11
Turning up the volume
What’s he been up to?
Considering overstatement
Confidence is the real vitality of style, I don’t think that is unreasonable to suggest. This is perhaps why the most remembered stylish folks are the ones that push to boat out a little. Regardless of where you look, social feeds in varying clothing pedigrees tend towards loud in some manner. Even what we might think as being “classic menswear” we’re looking to labels like Drake’s and ALD, who, even whilst engaging with more classical styles, are putting together more unorthodox expressions.
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Of course to a certain extent this is a socials thing, novelty is going to attract the immediate attention. Thing is though, if that’s we’re seeing, that’s the inspiration we’re taking.
I think it’s a consideration that needs to be made in regards to the accessibility of fashion in online spaces. It seems that there’s become a tiered system of influencers and online spaces dependent on the degree to which one wishes to commit to “loud” fashion. Though we might follow a number of individuals who adhere to different styles, we do look for consistency in the level of effort put into their dress. I think with this being the case, care ought to be taken not to become cliquey, to accept mobility from one online space to another, but also to consider the fact that the degree to which some people are willing to commit to their fashion, might be daunting for others.
To put it more plainly, not everyone is down to wear patchwork madras, yellow sneakers, or super wide pants, but those who are tend to get more airtime.
Every subculture within fashion spaces has a spectrum of commitment to the bit, perhaps there should be consideration made towards how far along that spectrum you sit, and how far along the folks on your feed sit.
Half your wardrobe is owned/ licensed by a few companies
Heard of the G-III apparel group? Maybe not, but you’ll know their brands, between licensing and ownership they have under their wing: Levi’s, Dockers, G.H. Bass, Champion, Tommy Hilfiger, Nautica, and Calvin Klein, among others. Swiss holding company Maus Freres owns GANT and Lacoste, and VF Corporation has VANS, The North Face, Timberland, Dickies, Jansport, Napajiri, and Supreme. Sperry and Brooks Brothers* owners, Authentic Brands Group, also own Juicy Couture, David Beckham, and Forever 21. BasicNet owns Sebago, Kappa, and bizarrely seatbelt manufacturer Sabelt.
I’m not going to get into a moral discussion on this matter at this time, but it is nice to be aware of where your sh*t comes from, and who is making decisions at the top level.
Just a couple of cool outliers, Ralph and Bean are both currently still majority owned by themselves, or their own holding arrangements.
*Authentic Brands’ ownership of Brooks is a part of a joint venture between the aforementioned group, and property investors Simon Property Group, they also share this partnership for Forever 21
Recent acquisitions
Surprise! Its boat shoes
What tends to happen is, I’ll find a particular item to which I decide to dedicate an article, and shortly afterwards I’ll purchase an example. If we wanted to, we could get into some sort of chicken-and-egg discussion about whether I chose to write about an interest or developed it as a result of writing, but that seems fairly inconsequential.
I picked up some Timberland handstitched 3-eye lugs, for a cut-price on Vinted. Joining the wardrobe with my other budget-friendly footwear acquisitions from a few weeks ago. Members can expect a return to the discussion of the 3+2 shoe wardrobe coming soon, with my perspectives having continued to refine tastes and acquire footwear.
These things are damn solid, I haven’t been able to put an exact date on them, but they’re welted, and sport the sturdiest lug sole I’ve ever experienced. As a piece to take me from late summer through into autumn, I’m very happy.
On the Radar
Studio Shibuya
These guys are on the radar in the manner of wondering what the hell is going on. It is pretty fascinating, watching the growth of a label that doesn’t actually exist.
It’s the first instance I’ve seen of a proper coming together of AI and heritage fashion in a big way. A surprising number of folks don’t clock it. The interesting question is what they’ll do next, coming close to a hundred-thousand followers on the gram, a lot of grassroots brands would kill for that kind of following. So do they set about making the clothes? That seems like the most obvious way they might monetise something like this. Of course the AI is operating in the realms of fiction, it can manufacture age and quality, there’ll never be a perfect recreation of these designs, but if they do decide to give it a go, what then? How does the heritage fashion consumer feel about rocking robot-designed garms?
The crazier thing really is that these works break the mould of AI work being invariably a bit sh*t. Of course the renders aren't perfect, but the design work itself is really quite good, the pieces are things people want to wear, judging by their following. Perhaps this is a calling card for what AI designed fashion might look like when a company with some serious finances starts messing around with it.
aldanondoyfdez
From a whacky apparel company that doesn't exist to one that does, Aldanondo y Fdez stylised as aldanondoyfdez are turning out some properly fresh interpretations of mocs, huaraches, and derbies. It looks like the craftsmanship is there to back it up too, which is nice.
Some of their stuff perhaps extends beyond the point of reason (see those derby mules), but things like their drop-top mocs shoe a sense of playful innovation. Having a shoe that can go from open to closed, perhaps for a vacation day-to-night, is a clever idea. I think we can be a little starved of innovation in fashion spaces these days, so its worth pointing it out when it happens.
