J. crew’s Comeback
By Eli Fuller
I know it might sound crazy, but I have to ask: Has J.Crew become cool again? The company’s development has been fascinating for various reasons, but no reason is more obvious than the fact that J.Crew went bankrupt just two years ago, during the pandemic. At its peak, J.Crew was one of the most influential brands in menswear — and for good reason. J.Crew, a brick-and-mortar goliath for most of its existence, spent decades turning out a mix of American prep and timeless work attire — they did it all. However, in the last decade, an ever-increasing gap formed between what J.Crew was producing and what its consumers actually wanted. This divide, combined with a revolving door of management, a lack of creativity, and the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, was the nail in the coffin of this menswear staple brand — or so it seemed. In May 2020, J.Crew filed for bankruptcy and was only able to stay afloat by converting $1.65 billion of its debt to $400 million in equity. Seemingly destitute, they lacked a clear path forward and the leadership to pull out of the mess they found themselves in. But it all changed with one hire: New York based fashion designer Brendon Babenzien.
An incredibly influential figure in streetwear, Babenzien seemed simultaneously out of place and well-suited for his new appointment. After spending more than a decade as Supreme’s creative director, he left and started the menswear brand Noah which focused on combining the best of prep, punk and streetwear stylistically. J.Crew had fallen behind the times, and rightfully deemed Brendon Babenzien the man to get them back on track; but how did he do it so quickly? For one, he leaned into J.Crew’s inherent strengths as a company — strong brand recognition and a distinct American prep legacy — and he recognized how to align that with the tides of fashion today. Luckily, J.Crew’s comeback has perfectly coincided with a revival of the American street style of the ‘80s and ‘90s they were famed for. That being said, a tangible difference from the J.Crew of the past can be seen with their newest lookbooks ever since Babenzien took the reins as head of menswear. He’s aimed to bridge the gap between the old and the new, preppy and contemporary — something he has excelled at historically. Banenzien has returned to J.Crew’s beginnings as a company, emphasizing quality and timelessness, and in doing so, helped them rediscover its menswear identity in today’s ever-changing fashion environment. Rather than always playing catch up to what’s current, he’s reestablished the J.Crew formula — timeless and authentic — and bet that the masses would eventually return to what never gets old.
Looking at the most recent men’s Fall/Winter 2022 lookbook, that quality and newfound vision is overwhelmingly apparent. Babenzein's first attempt illustrates an impressive breadth, providing consumers with a modern take on J.Crew’s heritage looks. The catalog covers a range and depth that has eluded the company these past few years; it’s an incredibly diverse collection that is able to fuse the best of J.Crew’s American prep and Babenzien’s streetwear roots. Being a fall collection and a J.Crew lookbook, it is filled with an assortment of the signature sweaters, chinos, polos, suiting, and heavier garments you’d expect to find — but it feels both classic and contemporary. Nothing reinvents the wheel, but everything is just different enough to stand apart from the monotonous J.Crew of past. It utilizes a wide variety of fabric, texture and color, illustrating Babenzien’s creative vision at work while delivering it in familiar forms. From the giant-fit chinos, to the patterned camp-collars or colorful sweaters, everything looks and feels like a fresh take on a familiar classic. An eclectic but polished mix of accessories such as bucket hats, derby boots and paisley ties helps impart a self-confidence and vision that make J.Crew — once again — uniquely itself. The hiring of Brendon Babenzien was undoubtedly a step in the right direction after so many rough years, and it will be fascinating to see how this new J.Crew builds on its rediscovered success from here.
An incredibly influential figure in streetwear, Babenzien seemed simultaneously out of place and well-suited for his new appointment. After spending more than a decade as Supreme’s creative director, he left and started the menswear brand Noah which focused on combining the best of prep, punk and streetwear stylistically. J.Crew had fallen behind the times, and rightfully deemed Brendon Babenzien the man to get them back on track; but how did he do it so quickly? For one, he leaned into J.Crew’s inherent strengths as a company — strong brand recognition and a distinct American prep legacy — and he recognized how to align that with the tides of fashion today. Luckily, J.Crew’s comeback has perfectly coincided with a revival of the American street style of the ‘80s and ‘90s they were famed for. That being said, a tangible difference from the J.Crew of the past can be seen with their newest lookbooks ever since Babenzien took the reins as head of menswear. He’s aimed to bridge the gap between the old and the new, preppy and contemporary — something he has excelled at historically. Banenzien has returned to J.Crew’s beginnings as a company, emphasizing quality and timelessness, and in doing so, helped them rediscover its menswear identity in today’s ever-changing fashion environment. Rather than always playing catch up to what’s current, he’s reestablished the J.Crew formula — timeless and authentic — and bet that the masses would eventually return to what never gets old.
Looking at the most recent men’s Fall/Winter 2022 lookbook, that quality and newfound vision is overwhelmingly apparent. Babenzein's first attempt illustrates an impressive breadth, providing consumers with a modern take on J.Crew’s heritage looks. The catalog covers a range and depth that has eluded the company these past few years; it’s an incredibly diverse collection that is able to fuse the best of J.Crew’s American prep and Babenzien’s streetwear roots. Being a fall collection and a J.Crew lookbook, it is filled with an assortment of the signature sweaters, chinos, polos, suiting, and heavier garments you’d expect to find — but it feels both classic and contemporary. Nothing reinvents the wheel, but everything is just different enough to stand apart from the monotonous J.Crew of past. It utilizes a wide variety of fabric, texture and color, illustrating Babenzien’s creative vision at work while delivering it in familiar forms. From the giant-fit chinos, to the patterned camp-collars or colorful sweaters, everything looks and feels like a fresh take on a familiar classic. An eclectic but polished mix of accessories such as bucket hats, derby boots and paisley ties helps impart a self-confidence and vision that make J.Crew — once again — uniquely itself. The hiring of Brendon Babenzien was undoubtedly a step in the right direction after so many rough years, and it will be fascinating to see how this new J.Crew builds on its rediscovered success from here.