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Carhartt participated in fashion The brand used an image taken during
shows in New York in 1991. the looting on a t-shirt with the intended
Revenue jumped to $120 million in message that Carhartt was so hot, it was
just three years. By that point, they well worth stealing.
had purchased an additional 80,000- Marketing efforts for the line focused on
square-foot sewing plant in the lifestyle of the wearer. Rappers,
Tennessee along with another BMXers, graffiti artists, and skaters are seen
70,000-square-foot sewing plant in their environment sending a message that
being built in Kentucky as they the clothes are rugged, street-worthy,
raced to keep up – so much so that it authentic, and fitting right in as a symbol of
had to turn down accounts from their culture.
department and specialty store “I’ve always said that Carhartt didn’t
chains because it did not have the choose the culture, the culture chose the
capacity to meet the demand. brand,” Michel Lebugle, co-editor of the
Another important trend was brand’s history, Carhartt WIP
occurring during the 1990s: rap and Archives, told Dazed in 2016.
hip-hop groups were embracing
Carhartt clothing. Suddenly the The 2000s
clothes were appearing on the pages A photo taken during the Carhartt continues its success
of Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. The London Riots in 2011 when across another century with no end
more popular Carhartt became the Carhartt store was robbed, in sight. And while the manufactur-
among the music and urban mar- and the resulting sold-out ing facilities continue to expand, the
kets—thanks to the boxy, oversized T-shirt by Carhartt basic aesthetic of the clothing tends
cut to their designs—the more they featuring the image. to stay true to its first mission to
grew exponentially. Carhartt’s desig- provide “honest value for an honest
nated licensee in the United Kingdom began its own promotion of dollar” for those who work hard and live hard.
Carhartt in England and Ireland, bringing in $8 million in sales in its Carhartt is still the leading American producer of workwear today.
first year. While the company has moved some manufacturing abroad and is
And finally, in 1998, Carhartt introduced a women’s line, rolling considered a worldwide business, the core product group— overalls,
out workwear for women at over 100 stores where orders exceeded jeans, coveralls, jackets, jeans, and cotton duck items—are made in the
expectations. U.S. This year the company unveiled its “Made in America” line that is
represented by these products. Buying these goods comes at a higher
1994: The Work in Progress price, but many feel the quality is worth it.
“Rather than follow trends, our goal is to always design and manu-
(WIP) Streetwear Line facture premium work-worthy apparel at a price that respects our
In 1989—Carhartt’s 100th Anniversary—Germans Edwin and consumer’s hard-earned dollar,” Carhartt Vice President of Marketing,
Salomée Faeh, designers specializing in denim, visited the U.S. and Tony Ambroza, told brandchannel when asked about the new line’s
wound up having a discus- timing. When asked any
sion with the company Carhartt chose now to
about representing stress its “Made in
Carhartt in Europe. They America” bona-fides,
were granted the license, Ambroza said, “Our
and then in 1994, given Made in the USA line of
permission to create their apparel was created in
own lines of clothing under response to consumer
the name Carhartt Work feedback; they told us
In Progress (WIP). WIP they wanted to know
became a streetwear version exactly which products
of the Carhartt brand. Carhartt Brown Duck product range from the WIP archives. we make and source
According to an article in the U.S. We were
at i-d.vice.com, “At a able to shift some prod-
certain point, I realized uct to other manufactur-
that the cutting-edge crowd ing facilities in order to
was wearing brown canvas, accommodate greater
said Edwin Faeh, Founder production of these
of Carhartt WIP, in the popular styles.”
opening text of the As Carhartt prod-
Rizzoli-published trans- ucts become more
atlantic stroll through collectible, results at
Carhartt’s rich and color- recent auctions have
ful history. “That point was the mid-80s, a time in which textiles rather been performing well.
than brands captured the imagination, and people longed for an alter- A circa 1905 Carhartt’s
native to denim.” After first catching sight of Carhartt’s brown duck Overalls single-sided
work coats at a flea market in Paris, Faeh watched with interest and porcelain corner sign
intrigue as the workwear garments rose to streetwear prominence. He (left), graded 9, 22
experimented with the idea of an “All America Concept” and supple- inches by 18 inches, gaveled for $20,300 at
mented his own brand, Big Star, with a few big C workwear staples. Miller and Miller in Ontario, Canada. A 1992
“It’s here where The Carhartt WIP Archives story starts.” Tommy Boy Carhartt jacket sold for $3,780 at
The WIP brand, based in London, exudes street style. So much so Sotheby’s. Values are on the
that during the London riots of August 2011, the Carhartt WIP Outlet climb and are looking to keep
store that was located just north of London in Hackney was broken moving in that same direction for
into, and thousands of dollars of clothing were stolen. What to do? the forseeable future.

36 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles