Thursday, April 8, 2010

Ben Sherman Winter 2010

With new creative leadership in place Ben Sherman is poised to take things to the next level.  I haven't really talked about Ben Sherman on the blog all that much because, well, the cookie cutter gear was pretty off the mark in my opinion.  This was extremely disappointing to me considering the brand's rich history and mod roots - what was once a symbol of London cool had gone the way of watered down mall wear.

Winter 2010's theme is "Rock and Roll Gentry" with the collection "inspired by images of British rock starts and the elecetic mix of formal styling fused with traditional rock n' roll attitude" - now that's more like it.  I'm liking what I'm seeing so far (that last red jacket is lust worthy) and it seems obvious to me that Ben Sherman has taken a page out of the J. Crew playbook to make things right again.  Check out the gear below (highlighted by the outerwear and chinos) modeled by the man making this all happen, Head of Menswear Design, Mark Williams.  It may very well be time to start talking about Ben Sherman again...


-L.A.S

21 comments:

  1. Made the mistake of reading this as
    "Ben Silver", rather than "Ben Sherman".
    Boy, was I wrong!

    http://www.bensilver.com/fs_storefront.asp?pagegroup=shop

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  2. OldSchool- I was wondering where you were at. Yeah, this is definitely not your thing.

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  3. LAS,

    Really like the blog.

    I couldn't disagree more about Ben Sherman.
    Of course you're right that it had devolved into tacky mallwear, but I fail to see how this is any better.

    It's a brand with an enviable history, heritage and a rock solid association with a particular style

    This looks like every other americana/heritage/neotrad line out there.

    If you put out a heritage line, shouldn't it be your own?
    Why does every store/company's hertiage line look like J.Crew? (not that Crew originated this)
    Banana Republic used to have some great, well made stuff back when they were psuedo-safari, why not re-release that? (rather than their current shawl and chambay hertitage line)
    Why doesn't Ben sherman highlight the (many) distinct things they've put out over the years?

    Again, just found your blog, and really enjoy it, just hate the groupthink in men's wear.

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  4. Always have had a love/hate relationship with this brand. You would think they would have been the first out the gate to get a forward designer on board and rock that ish keeping true to the heritage and history. I'll find myself buying something really feeling myself and then a day later wanting to donate it to goodwill.

    That being said, I'm kinda feelin some of these looks like the ones with the Cardi's. You never know.

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  5. There are a couple of nice bits in the collection and you're right about the heritage too.

    But in terms of the UK market I can't see how the brand could ever shake off its image as a retailer of clothes for scally kids and beer boys that it's unfortunately descended to (go out at night in any Northern town to see this in full effect).

    I guess in the US this isn't as apparent but over here Ben Sherman isn't really a name you'd want on your shirt. Maybe going forward they can shake this off, it'll be interesting to watch.

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  6. that quilt jacket is the tits. good to see ben sherman stepping up their game, their stuff is widely available to me but i've never actually bought any of it, because it's always been so shit.

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  7. jcnfh- All group think and trend exploitation aside, the collection above does have a few modish pieces. The cigarette trousers, pops of red, and various outerwear pieces do point back to BS's roots...just playin' devil's advocate.

    Thanks for stopping by and I'm happy you dig it.

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  8. Have to agree with lineageofinfluence, Ben Sherman will never lose its fat, tattooed middle-aged skinhead image on this seide of the pond.

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  9. I think the clothes would look better if the model didn't look like such a douche.

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  10. I just wish Ben Sherman would make more the their high button-down collar tartan shirts. All I ever find are their more fashion forward pieces that never look quite right.

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  11. It's good to see someone put out something that's a little bit rock n' roll these days. I'm so over this heritage americana bullshit everyone is trying to do. Enough with the chambray!

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  12. Even if it looked good, you can count on Ben Sherman to be made with cheap fabric and lousy construction.

    I agree with the above posters. This line looks derivative and out of touch with the brand's history. The wedge soled work boots sealed the deal.

    Time to send this bearded homie over to Lands End Canvas. They'll get all worked up about his small gingham / large gingham knockoff of Fall '08's Woolrich Woolen Mills shirt.

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  13. Hi dear
    So much gorgeous Ben Sherman Shirts really anyone who would wear this shirt will appear charming and enticing...

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  14. A mish mash of trends ripped of from other designers 3 seasons ago. Nothing new nothing original about ben sherman. The model is a joke.

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  15. I am surprised at the negativity in previous comments. From what I have seen of Ben Sherman recently, they have really stepped up their game. In the past, my understanding of the brand was that it was predominantly checked shirts worn by overweight taxi drivers. However, the images above clearly show that the product has moved on and is as directional as anything I have seen from other look books. FYI, personally I think the model looks hot.

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    Replies
    1. no, the model definitely looks like a prick...

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  16. I buy Ben Sherman BECAUSE it's not American. I can't stand boring Gap-like clothes. I won't buy any Ben Sherman items that look like hunter's gear. No thanks. I will stick with the sophisticated British-style clothing that the brand is famous for. I always get compliments when I dress that way.

    Fashion Fred

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  17. Terrible model, by the way. What's with the beard? Who needs a lumberjack as a model for Ben Sherman?

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  18. You call yourself "Fashion Fred" - REALLY? Ben Sherman has been whack for years - get a clue.

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  19. no hipster for ben sherman!
    http://thepaludians.blogspot.it/

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