BB Dakota: Rolling the Dice on Menswear
For Adrian Nyman, classic American fashion can be sliced and diced as an art project, or it can be reimagined as a new California look.
On Sept. 8, it was Levi’s jeans that got a new look. As a design consultant for Levi’s, Nyman helped usher in an avant-garde view of the iconic jeans with a line called Warhol Factory X Levi’s X Damien Hirst. The project mixed Levi’s iconic clothes and the celebrated art work of English art star Damien Hirst.
At the MAGIC Marketplace in August, Nyman debuted Dakota, a menswear line inspired by preppy looks but seen through a California lens.
Nyman designed Dakota for Irvine, Calif.–based juniors and young-women’s brand BB Dakota. It is BB Dakota’s first menswear line.
After 21 years producing juniors fashions, BB Dakota President Gloria Brandes gambled on manufacturing a menswear line. She believed there was a void in this market.
From reports of retailers and business analysts, she judged that the menswear market was saturated with polo shirts and T-shirts. However, she believes that field is wide open for woven shirts.
Brandes tapped Nyman to design the line, having been familiar with Nyman’s reacute;sumeacute;. In addition to design, Nyman also shot fashion photography. He had produced look books for BB Dakota, which is sold at streetwear e-commerce site Karmaloop (www.karmaloop.com) and mall-based boutiques such as Up Against The Wall and Planet Funk.
Nyman’s first season with Dakota has a lot of depth. The label’s Spring 2008 season presents a 50-piece collection that includes shorts, pants, blazers and woven shirts.
Nyman gave the woven shirt a different look by taking some staples of the classic American style, including Glen plaid prints and seersucker fabric, and giving them a sun-kissed California look with overdyeing and stone washing.
Some pieces of the debut collection have been available at Nordstrom’s stylish youngmen’s section, Brass Rail. Wholesale prices range from $22 to $26 for shirts, $22 to $28 for shorts and $26 to $30 for pants.
For Fall 2008, Nyman will continue blending new sensibilities with a preppy foundation. One of the pieces will be an Ivy League–style wool jacket. Nyman’s added touch will be to give the blazer a worn, crumpled look that perhaps could be favored by a venerable literature professor or a student on his way to a cafeacute;.
For more information, call (949) 852-3180 or e-mail natasha.ryan@bbdakota.com or greg_gdk@hotmail.com.—Andrew Asch
