Friday, May 21, 2010

The Revolution...

...will not be televised, but will feature cheap as hell cropped chinos - or at least thats what Dockers and Urban Outfitters wants us to believe.  Reports from the recent Dockers launch party in NYC focused on how the brand was moving forward in an attempt to appeal to more style minded folks.  Their new Ankle Chino sits at the heart of this push.  Dockers slimmest pant yet is a flat front cotton chino that comes pre-tapered with a 30" inseam for an off the rack Mashburn effect.  Not only that, but they come in a variety of colors (including the coveted Nantucket red) enabling you to literally get a pair for every day of the week if you saw fit and at $49 a pop that's not too much of a stretch.  UO's styling shows the pants both rolled and unrolled and while rolling a 30 inch inseam is bordering on manpri status letting the pants rest naturally right at the ankle is something I can get down with (aka the aforementioned Mashburn effect) - straight lines are an easy route to a handsome and flattering look.  Even if this is a sartorial maneuver you are unsure of the pants are cheap enough that you could conceivably cop a pair for a "test drive". The strangest thing  for me is that the inseams don't increase with waist size, even a little, according to the product information virtually eliminating taller guys from copping these - if you're any taller than, say, 6'2" I would be wary of sniping.  Surely this is a bold move for such a traditional brand, but a move that will definitely help Dockers appeal to a younger, much more style oriented demographic.


[Picture courtesy of The GQ Eye.]

-L.A.S

15 comments:

  1. Why did they need to do this?? They have a slim chino already and it only comes in 30 and 32 inseams. I'm 6'3", so I could cop the old ones anyway. On behalf of tall guys that like to dress well I would like to say F--k you very much, Dockers.

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  2. Chris- This is way slimmer than the pre-existing Dockers slim chino. With your height I wouldn't be too afraid to test a pair out especially if you've got an UO by you.

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  3. Being 5'7 and having short legs, I always find the 30 inseams too long for me. Maybe these will actually fit me.

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  4. I feel a sudden urge to poop...

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  5. Sid Mashburn is a goon.

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  6. These appear to hang about the way my chinos do when I pack on an extra ten pounds or so.

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  7. I have my daily routine of blogs that I visit in an order of which I discovered first and I always can't wait untill I visit yours. There always something legit on here. Good looking out.

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  8. Wouldn't mind seeming them in a nice army green..

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  9. For $50 you're better off getting a pair of J.Crew urban-slim essential chinos where you can choose your inseam.

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  10. Nicholas- What J. Crew do you shop at where Urban slim fits are $50?

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  11. 15% student discount. I think they come to $55.

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  12. Even without the discount they're only $65. If $15 is a deal-breaker then that might be a good sign that you shouldn't be buying any more pants.

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  13. I just bought 2 pairs of these and they are fantastic. The J. Crew chinos fit extremely weird in my opinion. This solves all my skinny chino problems.

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  14. Ha, I would still have to get these hemmed.

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  15. Sick Chinos, Wears like Chinos, feels like Jeans. Great colors, got 3 Pairs. NIce looking out!

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