New York Times trend pieces usually warrant a read if you're in need of a good chuckle. An article in this past weekend's edition wasn't necessarily asking an absurd question—whether Coogi was set to enjoy a resurgence or not—but lines like, "the brand is pursuing a wider audience, from the 'Rag & Bone-wearer to Macklemore to hipsters,'" quoting the brand's creative director Willie Esco, are just too good.
There are some decent authorities who participate in this piece. A$AP Yams waxed nolstagic, saying that, “It was kind of the holy grail of urban luxury. If you was rocking it on the train, you had to make sure you knew how to protect yourself or you were with your peeps.”
And Dao-Yi Chow of Public School reminisced on Coogi, saying “I always associated it with the whole Versace, Iceberg, drug-dealer-fresh look. You couldn’t pull it off unless you had a certain level of confidence.”
After giving a brief history of the brand, the NYT asseses the label's recent perception and status. "' The brand was considered an urban brand — meaning almost ghetto,' said Pamela Weisfeld, the president of Coogi." Uh, your words.
Currently, the label has pretty lofty ambitions now that nostalgia has seen Drake and A$AP Mob members rock Coogi, as well as high-fashion labels have taken inspiration from the signature look: “'It’s vaguely ethnic, aboriginal, but very street, very downtown New York,'" a designer at Rag & Bone said. With this present momentum, Esco says “'My vision is to get it back to competitive with Gucci and Missoni.'” If a New York Times trend piece is the first step towards that, then get ready to see monocles and shirtlessness flooding the streets.
[via The New York Times]
