I was feeling a bit nervous as I walked into Welcome Edition (a menswear tradeshow) that Wednesday morning.
It wasn’t the socializing or the lack of experience with this; it was just the fear of knowing that I was about to be absorbed and overrun with an exorbitant amount of product in a super short amount of time.
And for a clothing nerd like myself, that is overwhelming.
I must have spoken to 20+ different brands, all showing their best of upcoming products for the next year. Some were brands everyone would recognize, like Red Wing, and some were brands I had never heard of before, like Thunders Love.
As much as I’d love to share it all, we’d be here all day so here’s a summarized round up of what I saw, what I liked, and what I think is going to be on your Instagram feed in the coming months.
Keen
We’ve been fans of Keen for a bit now, especially with their Jasper Zionic models. They’ve got some great new colorways coming out soon, that yellow suede pair and green/brown nylon pairs being standouts.
They’ve also got this Jasper mule coming out soon that’s sure to be used and abused for bodega runs, errands, and taking out the trash. They also have some new stuff incoming…
Mary Jane on a Zionic sole? Loafers on a sneaker sole? A slim, leather offering of a Jasper-adjacent model?
Keen’s got some new and interesting things coming down the pipeline, and I’m sure if you’re willing to zoom in on those shelves you’ll see some other heat there as well.
Acid Running
Acid’s offerings were really cool, especially their technical jackets & shorts. It’s hard to find stuff you can run in and wear out to grab coffee without looking like a nerd, but they’ve found a way to make all their products functional and fashionable. Also, their graphics went unreasonably hard. Peep this design below:
Need this in every colorway. I think their price range of slotting between a Bandit and a Satisfy gives them a ton of room to explore making great products at really competitive prices.
Arrow Moccasin Company
(This is the greatest website I’ve ever seen and should be preserved this way forever)
Arrow Moccasins were my biggest surprise at this show. I circled back on multiple occasions to get pics of their offerings and those tan suede mid-mocs have been living in my mind rent free.
They’ve got a really solid offering of moccasins (duh), boots, loafers and o-rings that look like they’d fit right in on the shelves of any Americana-esque menswear store. Getting ahold of them now in the US is pretty hard, but seems like we’ll have some options to get them in here soon so you can start making space in your closet for these soon.
If you’re in the market for this style of footwear, you should check out what they offer and how you can get it before succumbing to another L.L. Bean purchase.
Thunders Love
I’m a sucker for good socks and a good story: Thunders Love offers both. I love getting to hear people speak passionately about what they do, and getting to see and hear about the range of socks, the materials, the processes and the partnerships they’ve built with local hosiers to make it happen. I also love that they have pairs in every possible material configuration you can imagine, from a recycled mix to wool and mohair, they’ve got them all.
Kestin
Do you see that jacket that looks like it’s some type of army camouflage? Yeah? Well its actually a textured jacquard with differing colors & weaves to make it appear like it’s camo from a distance, only for you to walk up close enough to realize it’s actually an extremely detailed and texturally rich take on a carpenter/chore coat. Nuts.
Everything I saw was right up my alley of semi-military inspired that can still be worn without looking like a stolen valor nerd. Loved the fishtail parka and different versions of their coats and pants that would be at home in the office and while out adventuring through the city.
I was really surprised at how everything was executed, and it surprised me that I hadn’t previously heard of them. Turns out Clayton did an interview with them 3 years ago and it’s worth the quick read here.
Snow Peak
Do you like aluminum mugs that weigh lighter than air? How about mosquito repellant outwear? Maybe a fire retardant coat for when you’re around the campfire? Or maybe it’s a jacket and pant combo that are paper thin and still higher effective against wind? If you answered yes to any of these, you’ll love everything Snow Peak is doing.
I’d argue they were the most practical brand I saw that day by a landslide, and I’m constantly blown away by how they outdo themselves with [genuinely] new and interesting technology every season. If you want a deeper dive on that, peep our interview we did with them here.
It really begs the question, why would you shop anywhere else for your outdoorsy needs?
Dr. Martens
I gotta’ be honest and say I was going to bypass this stand entirely because I really wasn’t sure what Dr Martens could show off that would be worth talking through. I’m so glad I didn’t.
One of the things that I was really surprised by was how little of the yellow-stitched sole I saw at this booth. It’s still there on most models, but they’re also making a ton of new models without it and replacing it with this super sleek, all black sole.
On some of their those models, they even offer a thinner sole option as well. I’ve always been a fan of Dr Martens and have worn a few pairs into the ground, but I could never stand the yellow stitching and would take a sharpie to it every time.
Glad to see these updates and I’m sure this is going to be (1) a great new set of options for people entering the footwear space for the first time on a budget and (2) a cool opportunity for people to explore their made-in-England line with premium leather, just now paired to a new sleeker sole.
Original Madras Trading Company
Final stop on this list is Original Madras, one of the most surprising visits of the day. I had been on the site a few times but just never really understood the hype until I got to see it and feel it in person. Their team was incredible with our questions and guided us through the process, explaining their history, who they’ve made madras for in the past, and the freedom they have to shape their line today.
That thinly striped chore coat in the first image was a winner, and the multi-colored version with the bear tucked in the pocket was done incredibly well too. I think this is a great example of why visiting stores and brands in person is so important, because it’s easy to say ‘Yeah that’s just another nice shirt,’ but you’d be missing the point entirely.
I’m officially a showroom veteran and will be doing my Man/Woman post shortly as well so stay tuned for that.
Thanks to the Welcome Editions team for being so hospitable (and choosing an incredible catering offering too), and shoutout to my second shooter David for keeping me on mission.
the arrow moccasin website??? ICONIC
do we know when jasper mule drops?