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The pioneers of the preppy look introduce an innovative new fabric
If you guys have ever worn a shirt with a button-down collar, a pleat and a hanging loop on the back, it’s Bernard Gantmacher, founder of GANT, you need to thank for that smart casual, dress-down not doss-down look. GANT is a company driven by a simple idea – Never Stop Learning. And one of its latest is a new fabric, TechPrep™, which they are using for their shirts, chinos and outerwear.
So given the chance to put GANT’s pants through their paces, to see what great strides they’ve made in trouser technology, how could a chap refuse? (Especially if he can make some awful trouser-related puns at the same time…)
GANT Tech Prep ™ Slim Chinos come in four colours – Putty, Moss Green, Marine and Warm Khaki. Putty appealed to me, partly as it’s a colour which pretty much goes with everything (but mainly because movie icon Steve McQueen wore something similar in the Great Escape).
First impressions are good. The cloth is high quality and feels soft and smooth to the touch. Tech Prep™ is made with high performance, breathable fibres and weaves, which wick moisture away from the skin, leaving you feeling dry. There’s also stretch in the fabric for comfort and ease of movement. Wearing these chinos is a delight – yes, they’re slim fit but they’re not a tight fit, and you don’t need Trump-like hands to find the pockets roomy.
Under the GANT brand the preppy style of dressing well, without necessarily dressing up, swept through American East Coast campuses in the Fifties and early Sixties and quickly became established as a men’s fashion classic. One reason was that the company realised the importance of attention to detail, and this is strongly reflected in these trousers.
The fabric is a cotton blend (Cotton 71%, Polyester 26%, Elastane 3%) with six belt loops, a zip fly and a single button at the trouser top. The four main pockets (two front, two back) are made from strong jacquard fabric in classy navy, with a small interior pocket for storing the spare button. Inside the waistband, the fabric is a snazzy denim colour offset by an embroidered strip to keep shirts smartly tucked in and there’s one of GANT’s signature hanging loops.
Although Bernard started off with shirts, the GANT brand now encompasses pretty much the whole spectrum of men’s and women’s fashion divided into different collections, but all sharing the same heritage and quality values.
Quality and style don’t come at bargain-basement prices – GANT is very much a premium brand – but they are great clothes to wear and knowing that you’re giving someone (or yourself!) something fine and stylish means that GANT’s elegant clothes make great presents for Christmas, birthdays or indeed any time.
To order online or check the full range see the GANT website
Model: Nick from London-Unattached
Photo credits: Jenny McGee
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