Trade shows can be a lot of fun. Seeing the new trends and what will be in stores a year in advance is exciting and basically like Comic-Con for menswear nerds (cosplay included). But, they can also be very tiring. For three consecutive days (sometimes longer) standing for 8+ hours, shaking a million hands, and braving brutal weather make for an unpleasant recipe. But we do it anyway so you don’t have to.
From Capsule to Liberty Fairs to MAN, here’s what we saw on the trade show floors.
Andersen Andersen
Danish knitwear brand Andersen Andersen has been crafting some of the finest knits since 2009. Inspired by Danish sailors, they’re dense with great tension and make for some well constructed classics. The difference between these sailor sweaters and those of years’ past are the fact that they use merino wool that’s both durable and soft to the touch. This season showcased some of their indigo-dyed pieces which are more tame than a pair of raw denim jeans.
Kika NY
If you love leather goods, Kika NY should be on your radar. Using quality veg-tan leather and old school techniques, the brand’s overall style is cleaner and more modern than heritage brands and equally well-made.
Nanamica
Nanamica‘s Eiichiro Homma is known for blending the latest synthetic materials into high-performance goods in an elevated style. This season saw plenty of pieces using quilted down. They’ve used it to make a sweatshirt that’s a wool jersey knit as well as a reversible bomber jacket and more. Gore-tex is still strong in the collection having been incorporated into several outerwear pieces.
The Hill-Side
A ton of new shoes were on display this season for The Hill-Side, mostly familiar styles in new fabrics. The one standout was their mukluk shoe. If you don’t know what a mukluk is, you’ll know it when you see it. There’s a big emphasis on fabrics produced exclusively for TH-S and you can see it in the speckled wool shirt. Unsurprisingly, they’ve incorporated their exclusive fabrics across the board, so you’ll see that same fabric used in other pieces too.
They’ve also produced a throwback accessory–the velcro wallet. Same nostalgic velcro sound in a variety of Hill-Side fabrics! And, fans of their ramen-themed bandanna might also like this season’s burger iteration.
Tune in for the next few days as we bring you more coverage from Capsule and Liberty Fairs.