Khakis are to Dockers what jeans are to Levi’s. (It was actually Levi’s that introduced the Dockers brand back in 1986.) They’re the foundation for the entire brand, but they also set the standard for the category at large. Even if you’ve moved on to more elevated iterations, they’re probably based off the originals — which, albeit basic, are iconic, because they pulled the pants from their military roots and introduced them to the masses.
To celebrate this achievement, the brand taps designers from time to time to tap into the lore and reinterpret them through their lens. The ideal collaborator? Maurizio Donadi, the archivist and designer in charge of Transnomadica, a curated catalog of vintage denim and workwear.
“It wasn’t supposed to be street wear, or a fashion pant,” Donadi says of Dockers’s original khaki. “It was just a comfortable
casual pant for every day. Affordable, well made, built to last. Just a democratic pair of pants, no distinction.”
The style’s simplicity made it something people bought in bulk, but held onto, too. This relationship inspired Donadi’s rendition: the Dockers x TRANSNOMADICA Collection, which dropped on March 15th. “My approach to design is never on the present, but on what stuff could be once it’s lived in and used, hopefully for a very long time,” he says.
The collection includes pleated khakis in two colors, plus a two-toned version that combines both hues. There is also a plethora of other stuff: a parka, a fleece jacket, two blazers, a T-shirt and two button-up shirts. Donadi did the collection his way, and it’s the best Dockers has looked in a long while.
Dockers
