CASUAL RELATIONSHIP

HUGO BOSS X RUSSELL ATHLETIC

Luxury German fashion house and suit-maker Hugo Boss is teaming up with the iconic American brand Russell Athletic to produce a capsule collection for both men and women. The unusual pairing – or perhaps not, after COVID-19 and a year of working from home – will produce 30 pieces, including sweatshirts, hoodies, relaxed pants and jackets. Russell Athletic was founded in 1902 after an American football player got sick of playing in woollen uniforms and collaborated with his father, who owned a clothing factory, to come up with the first cotton sweatshirt. The company went on to produce uniforms for professional sports teams for decades and also created a line for those of us who are not athletes. “When I first travelled to the US, a Russell Athletic sweatshirt was among my first purchases,” says Hugo Boss chief brand officer Ingo Wilts. “I have always wanted to do something with this brand so this collaboration is a very special project for me personally.” Wilts also says that casualisation is key in all of the BOSS collections. “It is the perfect time to partner with a pioneer in this field,” he explains. “Russell Athletic invented the sweatshirt almost 100 years ago so it has been a great experience to work with a brand that has so much heritage and expertise in sportswear.”