Intro
A Conversation With Greg Lauren, Nigel Cabourn, and Reese Cooper
How Three Designers Sustain the Identity and Honor of Military Wear
For centuries, the push-and-pull of war has created an intricate web of interactions that entangle themselves in the cultural and political fabric of the world. While each conflict’s outcome is different and its lasting effects often argued, it can be universally agreed upon that the sartorial innovation and aesthetic of combat eventually lends itself to civilian fashion. With 60 years of history, outerwear brand Alpha Industries stands unequivocally as one of the contemporary vanguards responsible for militaria’s proliferation into the zeitgeist. Wartime regalia eventually transcended its original design intentions, trading function for fashion. From the cardigans worn by British Army officer James Thomas Brudenell to the tailored trench coats donned by the British and French during WWI — and even the common T-shirt — the now ubiquitous garbs are the backbone of commonplace clothing and have been reimagined time and time again. Silhouettes that once served the ultimate utilitarian purpose were eventually appropriated by consumers and designers who recast them as style-forward offerings.
For Alpha Industries, who is known in the contemporary for its trendy bomber jackets and military-inspired parkas, its global influence starts in the trenches. At its inception, it was made of three brands, Superior Togs Corporation, Rolen Sportswear and Dobbs Industries. Working humbly out of a basement in Tennessee in 1959, founder Samuel Gelber began the uniform manufacturer with partner Herman “Breezy” Wynn, scoring a contract with the Department of Defense just a few months into his operation. The first of its now many iconic silhouettes to be produced was the MA-1 bomber jacket, though at the time, it was hardly noted for its stylishness. Instead, craftsmanship and durability stood as the cornerstones of each of the company’s designs, making them incredibly attractive to members of the Armed Forces. What was once intended for strutting down the tarmac for impending aerial maneuvers eventually found itself on a different sort of runway, influencing culture for decades. And for Alpha Industries, that legacy was built on far more than just style.
“The problem with movements is that they start to lose sight of humanity.”
The brand, nor its peers, had any idea how much of a role they would have in shaping the landscape of fashion. Consequently, various references of the military became more pervasive within the modern fashion landscape creating an accessibility that meant anyone with an idea, textile and financial backing could engage in their own adoption of military themes. In short, this has opened space for vapid designs that replaced the stories and emotions that were once imbued into the garbs with vanity and profit. As Fugazi’s Ian MacKaye once put it: “The problem with movements is that they start to lose sight of humanity,” he told in 2009’s film Edge. However, for designers Nigel Cabourn, Greg Lauren and Reese Cooper, their ideologies evade trends and instead invoke a noble narrative that labels like Alpha Industries have maintained over the years.
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Greg Lauren
Nigel Cabourn
Reese Cooper
WWII garb inspired the M-65 jacket
Sylvester Stallone wears an M-65 inspired jacket in Rambo 1982
Alpha Industries SS18 collection featuring modern upgrades to the M-65 jacket
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Head to Alpha Industries’ website to learn more about the brand’s sixty years of rich history.
GREG LAUREN
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It’s no secret that designer Greg Lauren grew up around fashion, but perhaps one of his more surprising sartorial inspirations came from his days perusing the aisles of the army surplus store on Canal Street Army Navy in New York City. “I was taught at a very young age to appreciate these kind of garments, the story behind the garments, the aesthetic, the quality, the details,” he says. He would pay close attention to the classic outerwear staples and Boy Scouts jackets outfitted with an abundance of patches and insignias. Despite his fascination, not once did he ask to join the Scouts nor did he have immediate family members that served. He was caught up in the hunt and obsession for vintage military and would treasure each find. “I would wear them with the pride of somebody who actually earned those stripes on those shirts,” he says. He knew they were endowed with a legendary and heroic status that needed to be honored, but grappled with whether or not fashion could do history justice. It wouldn’t be until 2010 when an art experiment under the guise of a tailored peak lapel blazer made from repurposed duffle bags gave him a clear answer. “I was interrogating and celebrating that I grew up around the appropriation of military vintage pieces, but I also witnessed firsthand the best reproductions of those pieces,” he says. “I felt conflicted about it. Why are we trying so hard to recreate someone else's story because of how it makes us feel, but we don't want to do the work.” He sought to answer this through his own eponymous label, which reimagines uniforms using utilitarian and reclaimed fabrics.
“I would wear them with the pride of somebody who actually earned those stripes on those shirts.”
Lauren’s fine arts background came into play, as he began to use the garments as a canvas on which to tell stories. Art has the ability to evoke emotions within us and he wants his designs to do the same. “I want people immediately see something that is different for [them] but universal,” he says. A hard task, but he always goes back to the narratives that were held within the fabric of those real piece, honoring those who once lived in the clothes without distorting their stories so the new wearer could experience his or her courage. “I'm trying to do it without the artifice of it being a reproduction,” says Lauren.
“I’m trying to do it without the artifice of it being a reproduction.”
For Lauren, Alpha Industries sets the bar for the authenticity and legitimacy he aspires to create. “Before appropriation became reproduction in fashion, I've always associated Alpha Industries with the best of the best,” he says. “There’s no one better that made authentic military wear through the ages.” His own garments from the brand serve as a mixtape to his life, as each one plays back a different moments in time. It is this exact feeling that he tries to embed into what he does. For instance, when you see that ubiquitous orange lining of Alpha’s MA-1 bomber jacket, you can feel kinship to an Air Force pilot who wore the same jacket on a similarly frigid day. It’s this conversation between the garment and the wearer he wants to sustain and build upon. “What I love is that every single person who ever puts on one of those uniforms gives it their own story,” he says.
“There’s no one better that made authentic military wear through the ages.”
– Greg Lauren on Alpha Industries
Greg Lauren Collection Archives
NIGEL CABOURN
At 70 years old, British designer Nigel Cabourn doesn’t care how trendy a garment is; he cares only about making garments as they were. For someone who runs an eponymous main line and a chain of diffusion labels that rely on research, he is constantly trekking around the globe to inform his already 4,000 piece collection of vintage military garments. A lover of all things militia-related, the array of found articles become the source material for his own exploration into referential designs. When asked about the resurgence of military styles in the contemporary, he is candid in his response. “I don't believe military is ever dead,” he says. “People keep saying it's dead, but it comes back with a fucking vengeance!” With 53 years in the industry, there’s no one who can better attest to this. But before he was designing his successful line of utilitarian, style-forward pieces for men and women, he maintained a rebellious spirit. When he was around 17 years old, Cabourn began his tenure at a college in Newcastle, England. “In 1967, I had British pop music, American pop music. I had the Flower Power revolution mixed with the Vietnam War,” he recalls. “I had these huge inspirational things around me, although it came to me much later.” In tandem, the revolutionary movements he watched unfold in his hometown mirrored events happening across the pond with youths who felt disenchanted by the American government's efforts during the Vietnam War.
“I don’t believe that military is ever dead. People keep saying it’s dead...”
That year was the catalyst for defining the methodology that he would use to design. He witnessed his peers garbed in hippie clothes and ironically wearing infantry jackets similar to Alpha Industry’s M-65 jacket. It wouldn’t be until 1969 when he would combine those four movements into a distinct aesthetic language. He started fabricating voluminous, flared loom pants alongside army jackets. He delivered his garments in his “beach boogie car with a Porsche engine.” He was at the forefront of a movement. “I was the first to do this at this time. There was no menswear category back then,” he recalls. As a designer, Nigel Cabourn does not expect inspiration to come to him. Instead, he seeks it out, traveling six months out of the year in search of items that will pique creativity. “Every other week I'm in search of vintage clothing or vintage books,” he says. What might seem like a trivial pastime to some defines his acumen and craftsmanship. “I'm not designing replicas,” he states emphatically. A replication would infer the stories are being reinterpreted for modern context. He’s a contemporary artisan using the same materials found in keepsakes and, if possible, employing the same techniques as when they were originally fabricated.
“I'm not designing replicas.”
Considered a cultural anthropologist in his own right, Cabourn is only interested in telling real, personal stories. “I don't just do clothes for the sake of it. There has to be a story in it,” says Cabourn. That’s what makes Alpha Industries his ideal collaborator. Together, they amplify the volume of voices of yesteryear. When talking about his collaboration process with the brand, he found himself looking into its past to find the connections to him that could authentically mesh with his ethos. Towards the end of the conversation Cabourn was asked what he thinks about the future. Without hesitation he said, “It just keeps evolving. I just do it my way and hope it's okay, because I’m not really fashion-forward at all. I'm just using my skills, my heritage, my knowledge of fabric and the great factories and fabrics available in the U.K. and reforming it my way. You know every dog has its day.”
“I don’t just do clothes for the sake of it unless it has a story in it.”
Nigel Cabourn Collection Archives
REESE COOPER
Los Angeles-based, Florida-born designer Reese Cooper represents a distinct perspective on how millennial and Gen-Z creatives look to the military for inspiration. From early on, his fascination with its iconography came from seeing it on his family members. “My grandfather built his own house, and he would wear something really functional,” he recalls. “He had a bunch of old vintage army stuff from when he was actually serving.” His interest was compounded by his mother, who he saw transform his grandfather’s relics and other vintage military pieces into stylish outfits. Later on, in a different context, he saw how a brand could pay homage to the history of such garments. A collaboration between BAPE and Alpha Industrie left an impression. For him, the collection provided an example of to approach the forms with sophisticated nuance that proudly left its references on display.
“He had a bunch of old vintage army stuff from when he was actually serving.”
Perhaps unconsciously, he would adopt a similar approach to personal style as his mother and grandfather. “[Alpha Industry’s M-65 jacket] was one of the first purchases I made when I was starting to buy my own clothes,” he says. The jacket signified far more than another garment in the closet — it was an entry point to understanding the craftsmanship and history that goes along with military wear. “I was really interested in how they constructed this one item as a staple of their brand. These are core military pieces and this company is making sure people understand they’re from a certain time period, but in a modern way.” It left him craving his own version of this.
The result was adopting an approach that evades the short life span typically associated with the fashion industry. Instead, he would choose three or four reference points and extrapolate in-depth, cohesive narratives that — like a military piece — have timeless character and a meaningful story. “Acknowledging the reference points is a big thing in terms of being able to deliver your message clearly,” he explains. “My method is understanding the pieces and appreciating that they are a heritage product then playing within the rule to make it your own. You don't go to someone's house and fuck shit up!”
“[Alpha Industry’s M-65 jacket] was one of the first purchases I made when I was starting to buy my own clothes.”
– Reese Cooper on Alpha Industries
“Acknowledging the reference points is a big thing in terms of being able to deliver your message clearly.”
Reese Cooper Collection Archives
