According to WWD, the Thom Browne and Brooks Brothers Black Fleece collection, which debuted in fall 2007, will see its final collection with the F/W 2015 line. Apparently, the collection will be put on hiatus for at least a year before Brooks Brothers revisits it and decides whether or not to revive it with Thom or its internal design team.
Black Fleece, while never overly promoted, always felt like the true essence of a collaboration in my eyes. The aesthetics matched up exceedingly well and the prices, while still high, were a tad more affordable. Blending TB's style with the traditional Brooks Brothers vibe always felt like the right thing. It really worked. Brooks Brothers told WWD that it was initially supposed to only be a three year project and mostly a PR move to bring Brooks Brothers back into the consciousness of the modern shopper, but kept it going for a total of eight years after seeing the end product.
With TB's continued success, growing empire of cropped grey suits and the recently established in-house tailoring facility for his brand, he wanted to branch out, which effectively ended the partnership. Estimates about Black Fleece's sales hover around $10 million, which is nothing to shake a stick at. For those of us who wanted some TB in our life but weren't able to afford it, Black Fleece was a great opportunity to have some. You can shop the final collection right now.
