Hailing from faraway Auckland, New Zealand, Checks Downtown is designer Jordan Gibson’s way of exporting his way of dressing to the world. Like Japanese brands in the ’80s through early 2000s, he told Index Magazine, New Zealand streetwear can strut its way to the international stage by “reinventing casual American style in a way which wasn’t being appreciated in the US.” And although we see his brand’s clothes as far more unique, this tactic has worked well for them. Checks interpolates classically American items for an audience that’s increasingly as international as it is Auckland-based. “We can put our spin on references we’ve grown up with and, perhaps, this take that you couldn’t have if you grew up living right there,” Gibson says.
Beyond their flagship and a few other New Zealand shops, Checks boasts stockists in both Japan (SO NKM and Journal Standard) and the US (Rowing Blazers). Surely there’s global interest, but Gibson admits the brand’s initial focus was far more local (with hopes of expansion on the horizon). “The inspiration behind Checks was to do something that I felt was missing in New Zealand,” he says in short film produced by the brand. “It’s personal and pretty central to what I like. It’s rooted in streetwear, that’s what I grew up being interested in, but it’s more than that.”
Checks DowntownDenim Chore Coat
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$229.00 (60% off)
Checks DowntownPaisley Mohair Cardigan
Checks DowntownM51 Cargo Pants
Checks DowntownSolid Mohair Cardigan
Checks Downtown
