It's crazy to think that even after UNDERCOVER has collaborated with brands as disparate as car company Toyota, fashion house Givenchy, and sportswear giant Nike, it still hasn't partnered with The North Face. I mean, two titans of youth culture that ought to taste great together — what's goin' on?!
Well, better late than never! The wrong is finally righted as UNDERCOVER and The North Face come together to drop a capsule of collaborative outdoor gear elevated to UC founder Jun Takahashi's inimitable design standards.
What do I mean by that? Well, as you can see from the campaign imagery revealed on October 19, UC x The North Face encompasses all manner of classic TNF staples in wacky colors — Orange! Green! — with materials that mix texture and tone.
It's UC but for hikes. Which is also kinda normal UC. But now it has TNF logos.
First teased by Undercover on October 18, the Japanese brand's TNF collaboration comprises, at the very least, some gloves printed with the kind of two-part slogan branding you expect of UC. Here, it's "Peace" and "Love" (no Ringo Starr) but sometimes it's "Chaos" and "Balance" or similar.
Two other things of note: the UNDERCOVER x The North Face collab is called "SOUKUU" and though the capsule was revealed with The North Face City's Instagram account, it's just a UC x TNF line.
Leakers offered presumed first-look product imagery of the UC collaboration, revealing piecemeal Nuptse puffer jackets, loose-knit hoodies, fleece vests, and padded pants worthy of a deep freeze.
It smacks of Gyakusou, the ahead-of-its-time Nike line that UNDERCOVER created for the better part of a decade or so, though UC's latest is decidedly TNF-flavored, what with the emphasis on trekky bits.
Just another feather in UNDERCOVER's ample collaborative hat.
