One of the many things that keep constantly changing is fashion. In the world of style and glamor, trends come and go. Before you know it, what’s in now is out next.
But what people from all walks of life look for in shopping for clothes and even shoes is – comfort. Comfort without compromising style never goes out of trend and what’s synonymous with comfort is streetwear.
What is Streetwear/Skater Style?
So, what does streetwear or skater style mean exactly? Most of us as well as fashion connoisseurs find it hard to put it into words. But it’s simply the latest fashion revolution that has taken the fashion industry by storm. And it looks like it’s here to stay.
Interestingly, streetwear used to be exclusive to skater kids that it’s known as skater style. In today’s fashion landscape, a mashup of haute-couture and urban fashion graces the runways of Paris.
Hoodies, graphic tees, and pairs of sneakers become a pretty common sight in unveiling a fashion label’s latest collection. This crossover, according to some, gives birth to the term “streetwear”.
How to Sport the Streetwear Style?
To get that streetwear/skater style look, just keep in mind the following tips:
- Opt for loose, comfy, and practical styles.
- Wear graphic T-shirts and hoodies on top.
- Go cargo or chino pants or shorts.
- Choose classic footwear by sporting traditional skate shoes like Vans or Converse.
- Add accessories like a logo cap, tube socks, and a backpack.
What Are the Best Streetwear Brands For Men?
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A slew of OG streetwear brands has championed the skater style including Nike, Supreme, Carhartt, Off-White, Palace, Noah, and Vetements. In fact, we round up the best 22 go-to streetwear brands for men that everyone talks about.
This complete guide will help you start your quest for anything streetwear and sport that awesome skater-style look.
Stussy
Streetwear has gained prestige in the world of fashion, all thanks to Stussy. Californian surfer Shawn Stussy established his streetwear empire with a small line of graphic t-shirts that became a hit in the 1980s.
This OG streetwear brand all started when he scribbled his name on his handcrafted surfboards using a marker pen. More than 40 years later, this scrawl graces hoodies and tees and expanded to skate and surf apparel.
The California-born brand has become a famous signature for its innovative and stunning designs. Today, Stussy is a popular streetwear brand with a strong following for its skater style line and urban fashion pieces.
Supreme
Who wouldn’t recognize this massively popular OG streetwear label donned by celebrities like Justin Bieber, Michael Jordan, and Lady Gaga? Basically, no one.
Founded by James Jebbia, Supreme saw its very first store in downtown Manhattan in 1994. Supreme swiftly made a name for itself when it built its first store in New York.
Its unique store layout is consistent with its purpose to cater products to the skating community. Thus, it features an open space to allow skaters to skate around the store while shopping.
As the business grew, the company arranged a huge, frequent collaboration with premium brands like Levi’s, Rolex, and Louis Vuitton. This strategy has cleared the path for the Supreme logo to become a status symbol itself.
The company’s logo known as the Supreme Box is not only seen in the streets of NYC but around the globe with its multiple store outlets. Hailed as one of the world’s iconic streetwear brands of all time, Supreme became a billion-dollar brand in 2017.
Palace
If there’s Supreme in the US, there’s Palace in the UK. And Palace is known to be the twin brand of Supreme that almost enjoys the same high status in England.
Established in 2010, this young English streetwear brand saw its humble beginning as an underground imprint for tees and skateboard decks. Just after a decade, it’s now in the roster of esteemed labels in men’s fashion.
Palace’s aesthetic follows the lead of sportswear behemoths, Adidas and Reebok. As a matter of fact, the company often collaborates with these two.
You can find a mix of five-panel caps, tracksuits, velvet smoking crop jackets, and some occasional snakeskin loafers on their web store on drop day.
Off-White
Off-white is another go-to streetwear brand out there, owned and ran by Louis Vuitton’s artistic director, Virgil Abloh. After gaining his experience at Fendi along with reality TIV star Kanye West, Abloh founded his very own streetwear company in 2013.
Only eight years after its launch, Off-White is now a prominent signature label mostly responsible for the streetwear invasion of the luxury world. It graces haute-couture runways of Paris Fashion Week.
Off-White is highly coveted by hypebeasts for Abloh’s bold, unique prints and innovative fashion-forward creations. It takes pride in successfully blending haute-couture with culture.
Despite that it’s a newcomer relative to the others, Off-White secures its rightful place on the list of iconic brand names in the streetwear industry.
Nike
And then, there’s Nike, whose name comes from the Greek goddess of victory. Founded in 1964, it originated in Oregon and rose to fame with its iconic swoosh logo. Since then, Nike has made it huge in casual wear for men.
Dubbed as sportswear king, this world-famous brand first became synonymous with sneakers. Nike receives credit for the rise of the sneaker culture. It’s the name that comes to mind when you think of sneakers.
Over the years, however, it has evolved from just being a workout gear brand to simply a royalty of streetwear fashion too. The company’s collaboration with the likes of Supreme, Patta, and Virgil Abloh’s Off-White attributes to its success in this niche, creating some of the finest skater style pieces.
Nike has been around for more than half a century and from the looks of it, this giant streetwear label is here to stay and slay for another 50 years.
Adidas
Adidas is an old-timer OG sports brand that originated in Germany in 1936. Adidas, which is written as “Adidas” by the company, is short for the name of its founder Adolf “Adi” Dassler.
This sensational sportswear brand may come least expected as a streetwear brand but it is anyway. As an OG sports label, Adidas has also made a name in streetwear’s top brands to shop.
Adidas is popularly known as a sportswear label. But the brand has expanded to the streetwear market with strategic collaboration with many celebrities.
For one is the creation of Kanye West’s Yeezy line of sneakers. Ye’s Yeezy Boost range saw tremendous success, adding Adidas to the top choices of streetwear brands in the world today.
Carhartt WIP
Not all of the world’s best brands in the streetwear fashion industry originally started as one. Take Carhatt, for example. The company has been making workwear in the US for ages since 1889. It is widely known for its high-quality overalls and clothing for manual laborers.
Carhartt, however, tapped into its potential of making other fine pieces outside its forte. It built the Carhartt WIP (which stands for Work In Progress), a name that quickly made waves in the world of streetwear.
This OG label already has available streetwear staples such as its classic work pants and Carhartt logo beanies. Its WIP brand apparently is practically designed for non-construction workers. It adds hints of skater style to its workwear to create ultra-cool streetwear designs for its work jackets or baseball caps.
Patta
Dutch streetwear and sneaker brand Patta is the brainchild of two friends, Edson Sabajo and Guillaume Schmidt in 2004. Sabajo and Schmidt are two veterans in Amsterdam’s hip-hop music scene who both share a love for beats, sneakers, and streetwear.
Patta saw the same humble beginnings of other OG streetwear labels, starting as a platform that sells exclusive collectible items. At the outset, Patta debuted its logo onto a few batches of t-shirts for family and friends.
Soon, the Dutch streetwear label became an in-house brand focusing on bold logos, loose cuts, and animated colors. Patta also drops seasonal collections that sell out instantaneously.
After gaining a strong online presence, Patta started collaborating with high-profile streetwear and sports brands like ASICS, Adidas, Converse, Nike, and Reebok. This move seals Patta a spot among famous global streetwear brands to date.
BAPE (A Bathing Ape)
A Bathing Ape, or simply BAPE, is the brand that pops into one’s head when asked about Japanese streetwear. Tomoaki Nagao popularly known as DJ and fashion designer Nigo established his funky, colorful streetwear creations in Tokyo in 1993.
What sets BAPE apart from other streetwear brands is it is specially designed for teens who are newbies to streetwear fashion. Nigo’s use of unconventional approach to his design motifs and camo prints has placed BAPE among the recognized and coveted labels in the alternative fashion industry.
BAPE is best known for its camo shark hoodies that zip right up over the wearer’s face. It’s no surprise this becomes the brand of choice for teenage hypebeasts in many parts of the world.
WTAPS
WTAPS is another Japanese streetwear heavyweight juxtaposed Undercover, BAPE, and Neighborhood. WTAPs (pronounced Double Taps) came a little later, however. The trio Jap brands were born in the time of The Hidden Harajaku movement in the mid-90s.
Founded by Tetsu Nishiyama in 1997, WTAPS evolved into a full-fledged in-house brand developed out of a molecular concept of guerrilla military-influenced streetwear. The brand name WTAPS is a military term that means “kill shot”.
WTAPS features a military as well workwear-inspired line, loads of army green, cargo pants, and loose-fit hoodies. Collaborative releases with Undercover and BAPE cemented its rank among the top Japanese streetwear labels.
Undercover
Undercover joins the ranks of Japanese in-house brands stamped on the global streetwear map. This renegade streetwear brand’s roots stretch all the way back to the 1990s during the Ura-Harajuku movement in Tokyo.
Takahashi takes inspiration from the British punk scene. The label’s signature pieces represent some hints of the founder’s best-loved sub-culture until now.
Some of Undercover’s staples include off-kilter t-shirts boasting exorbitant printed graphics and fashion-forward luxurious sportswear. From its humble beginnings in the streets of 90s fashion in Tokyo, Undercover conquers the vogue world.
Today, Undercover belongs to the most prestigious names in the streetwear industry. It is also popularly known for its major collaboration with its sneakers line with Nike and joint sportswear line with Gyakusou.
The Hundreds
Based in Los Angeles, California, The Hundreds saw its launch in 2003 by founders Bobby Kim (Bobby Hundreds) and Ben Shenassafar (Ben Hundreds), hence the brand name.
The Hundreds reminds us of the time when streetwear and high fashion were the same things. This LA OG brand debuted in 2003, which could indicate that it’s a second or third-gen streetwear label.
Perhaps what makes The Hundreds stand out is it keeps its originality as an old-timer streetwear fashion name. Apart from having its own streetwear collection, Its official website also serves as a media platform devoted to street culture from all over the world.
The Hundreds offers a line of streetwear staples that include tees, denim, wovens, headwear, fleece, outerwear among others
KITH
KITH makes another popular choice for streetwear labels for men or the hypebeasts. Founded in 2010, Kith is the brainchild of prominent footwear creator Ronnie Fieg who hails from Queens, New York.
Fieg started KITH as a retail space that houses many of the most coveted sneaker and streetwear brands the world over. Kith, however, has its in-house label too, well-known for its urban fashion pieces with bold logos.
KITH has become a phenomenon in skater style and alternative fashion. It also created limited but surprisingly high-profile collaborations with the luxury pram manufacturer Bugaboo, Disney, and even Coca-Cola. Its more recent collaboration was with Tommy Hilfiger for the capsule collection for Autumn 18.
On top of its footwear line, KITH also has a fine selection of box-logo hoodies, crews, and other streetwear favorites.
Noah
Noah also reaps success in the world of alternative fashion with flying colors since its birth in 1995 in Soho, New York City. This OG streetwear label is a brainchild of former creative director of Supreme, Brendon Babenzien.
Babenzien made his bold decision to leave the fashion behemoth and take a shot at stamping his own label on the streetwear map. Noah has then become a coveted and recognized brand by streetwear aficionados.
Babenzien started Noah with an end goal in mind: to design streetwear for the young but a more mature segment. It’s like a fusion between Supreme and Polo by Ralph Lauren.
Noah’s collection ranges from shorts, corduroy caps, collegiate sweaters, and Oxford shirts. But it also offers an array of sports jackets, rugby shirts, loafers, and other great finds.
CDG Play
Japanese designer Rei Kawakubo established and spearheaded Comme des Garccons or CDG. In French, it translates to “like boys”. Its label came out in 1969 in Tokyo and became a company four years later.
CDG launched the brand’s more playful PLAY line in 2002. Kawakubo’s CDG Play takes pride in its unique cutting edge and avant-garde collections often unveiled on runway shows.
To many, CDG Play is the famous maker behind those bug-eyed heart logos stamped on Converse all-stars and crew-neck T-shirts. Kawakubo’s streetwear-leaning, revered Japanese brand elevates stripped-back wardrobe basics using bold logos and offbeat design motifs.
You can grab classic streetwear staples by CDG Play which include polo shirts, hoodies, t-shirts, Breton tops, footwear, and the like.
Cav Empt
Cav Empt can simply be defined as streetwear from the future with its ultra-modern concepts and creations. This OG in-house brand came to be in 2012.
Cav Empt, short for Latin expression Cav Emptor, means “Let the buyer beware.”This premier skater-style brand was built by SK8THING and music industry veteran Toby Feltwell. SK8THING is the genius behind the iconic graphics of Japanese fashion designer Nigo’s Billionaire Boys Club, Ice Cream, and Human Made.
In the changing world of streetwear fashion, Cav Empt stays ahead of the game with its aesthetic boasting one-of-a-kind prints and futuristic designs. Less than 10 years later, it’s now a heavyweight in the music and street fashion scene in Japan and many parts of the globe.
Cav Empt’s sophistically designed apparel makes itself your next go-to streetwear brand.
The North Face
It’s a huge question why is it that an activewear/outdoor sports brand makes it to our list of best go-to streetwear brands for men.
Apparently, The North Face makes outdoor clothing, footwear, and related gear since 1968. Its logo, which took its inspiration from Half Dome in Yosemite National Park, speaks for the brand.
On the other side of things, The North Face has made brilliant collaborations with several giant streetwear brands that produced what is called “grail pieces”. In fact, TNF has regularly created collaborations with streetwear behemoth, Supreme, which earned its name in the streetwear scene.
In addition, The North Face has tapped unconventional talents to help innovate its Japanese line, Purple Label. TNF also partnered with veteran designer Kazuki Kuraishi and be part of its “Black Series”.
Needles
Founded in 1995, Needles is the brainchild of experienced Japanese designer Keizu Shimizu. The Needles founder is known to take his inspiration from his love and admiration of American-made creations.
After its launch, Needles has since made waves and continues to appeal to fans of streetwear fashion. The brand is well known for elevating Japan’s deep liking for western culture.
Needles’ collection boasts a fusion of American military and old western mode. It reinvents classic trends in Japanese fabric, mixed with elaborate sportswear style.
Needles is particularly famous for its velour tracksuits that are massively popular to A-list rappers and fashion insiders. This respected label is a subsidiary of Japanese fashion house Nepenthes that birthed to Engineered Garments.
Pop Trading Company
Pop Trading Company is one of the youngest names on our best go-to streetwear brands for men. Founded by Peter Kolks and Ric van Rest, Amsterdam’s best skate brand inspired by Benelux skate culture arrived in 2013.
It shares the same humble story with other OG skater-style labels. It started as a small skate shop that sells an array of sought-after brands and other cool stuff.
It was only three years later, in 2016 when its founders brought to the fore their very own clothing line. The Dutch label is younger than the other players in the same streetwear niche. However, Pop Trading Company has become a frontrunner vis-à-vis long-established brands within the skateboarding scene.
The skate brand for men is your top destination for anything streetwear, from jackets, sneakers, tees, polo, orb caps, and other great finds.
Undefeated
Undefeated traces back its roots to Los Angeles, California in 2002 when sneaker culture was still a niche before it became a global phenomenon it is today. At the time, Eddie Cruz and James Bond opened a high-end sneaker and streetwear boutique that targets collectors of rare pairs of sneakers.
The duo worked with creative minds to design customized footwear and create collaborative editions. Their brilliant work in the early days has heavily influenced the sneaker culture.
On the onset of Dunk hype, Undefeated made some collaborative Nike SB Dunk silhouettes. On several occasions, it also collaborated with Adidas’ top-tier Consortium project. Its other notable collaborations with big brands like A Bathing Ape, Champion, Neighborhood, Wtaps, ASICS, Converse, and Vans.
Undefeated is one of the best go-to destinations for skater-style staples and gear. It earns its spot among the most prestigious streetwear brands in the world.
HUF
Following his stint with Stussy, New Yorker Keith Hufnagel launched HUF, a nickname he picked up during his skateboarding and tagging days around NYC in the 80s.
In 2002, he went back to San Francisco and opened a retails shop that would house skateboarding, sneakers, and streetwear under the same roof. It was only a matter of time that his store soon became a hotspot for rare sneakers and streetwear drops in the Golden City.
As its popularity grew, HUF soon became a full-fledged brand, producing streetwear clothing, hats, shoes, socks, and skateboarding gear. By end of 2019, however, Hufnagel announced that HUF will cease making shoes.
Aimé Leon Dore
Aimé Leon Dore is another fashion and lifestyle brand established in 2014 and is based in Queens, New York. Founded by Teddy Santis, this OG in-house label has set sights on designing for grown-up streetwear aficionados.
Notably, Aimé Leon Dore’s pieces boast minimalist and modern designs. The brand’s collection draws its source of inspiration from sportswear to vintage prep or 90s hip-hop. In the aspect of materials and quality, Aimé Leon Dore does an excellent job.
