A design technique that is currently trending in collaborative apparel collections is to hide meaningful text and graphics in linings, pockets, and collars where they are not visible, except to the owner of the piece. A few examples from the world of sports and sportswear this past summer illustrate:
- Sportscraft, the long-time creator of the opening and closing ceremony outfits for the Australian Olympic Committee, included the names of all 301 Australian Olympic gold medalists from 1896 forward on the linings of the blazers that were part of its Paris 2024 collection. It also printed the country’s Olympic Oath inside the pockets of those blazers. Other design elements included indigenous artist- and athlete-created images on scarves and pocket squares; the Oath acknowledges the Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal people’s history as well.
- Adidas’ latest drop with streetwear label Ljubav focused on a jersey co-created by the two brands, which worked together previously to produce a limited-edition shoe. As is typical of collaborative streetwear pieces, the shirt prominently featured the two brands’ logos as well as text highlighting the brand names; it also integrated a custom-created badge and the number 24 (to signify the year). More to the point for this discussion, the phrase “Ljubav Your Body”—Ljubav is the Croatian word for “love”—appeared inside the collar.
- Emporio Armani and its EA7 brand’s collaboration with the Italian National Olympic Team for Paris 2024 highlighted the beginning of the country’s national anthem inside the collars of the polo shirts and t-shirts, and printed the full first verse of the anthem inside the jackets. The pieces primarily featured Armani blue, with green and red highlights inspired by the Italian flag.
Details hidden inside pockets and collars do not do anything to spread awareness of the partners’ brands—branded imagery is typically still plentiful on the outside for that purpose—but they do serve as Easter eggs for those in the know. In essence, these design elements are a way to “surprise and delight” consumers of the two brands, adding meaning for the wearers and subtly promoting fan engagement.
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