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"There Are New Active Ideas Out There" DNR 09/18/1989

Writer:  William Kissel

There were new ideas at the Action Sports Retail show in Long Beach, Calif. last week but it was hard finding them amid the overabundance of uninspired looks.

After wading through the overexposed screenprinted T-shirts and neon shorts these important active directions for spring 1990 emerged:

  • Cleaned up T-shirts
  • Long-and short-sleeved
  • Mock turtles sporting jac-quard-tipped or contrast-col-ored collars
  • Other collar treatments, including stretched out, wider crews resembling modified
  • Boatnecks
  • Lightweight shell outerwear shown in Taslan and Supplex nylons and updated with sig-nature-stamped collars, multiple color-blocking and fabric piecing. Some shells even incorporated prints and reversible fabrics in their designs.
  • Volley shorts in both cotton and nylon offered in bright and neutral colors as well as neons.
  • Many firms are also introducing prints such as polka dots, stripes, batiks and other primitive ideas.
  • Baggy knit shorts - often striped or subtly printed - are complemented for spring with coordinating floppy vests.

Colors are turning more sophisticated - carryovers from the fall sportswear market —in palettes of mustard, purple, burgundy, olive drab, emerald and burnt orange. Interest in neons is also slowly eroding. With few apparent ways to update basic pull-on shorts or screenprinted T-shirts, many manufacturers presented collections that seemed more interested in volleying for available dollars than beating out the competition with new fashion ideas. There was plenty of routine activewear down the crowded aisles. The usual assortment of volley and cycling shorts, T-shirts, tanks and sweat tops, many continuing with last year's neon color trend —were available from nearly every manufacturer.

Still, several new design treatments did manage to invigorate the market and keep the aisles jumping throughout the three-day event. 

One of the most visible trends at the show was the evolution of the T-shirt, which has gone from simple screenprints to allover printing to today's cleaner silhouettes. For the most part, active T-shirts (unlike sportswear T's that feature fancy primitive patterns this season) have little or no graphic elements for spring: But collar and cuffs are often shown with fancy Jacquard stitching or in contrast colors. And nearly every resource, from large vendors such as Gotcha, Quiksilver, Vision and Town & Country, to smaller companies such as Syko and Hot Buttered, offered variations on the theme.

Likewise, lightweight shell outerwear - an activewear staple for the past several seasons - has become a basic in lines as diverse as Newport Blue, Instinct, Sundek, Sideout Sport, Team Gear, Surfer's Alliance, PCH, White Sierra, Sierra Designs and Hot Sports. The two-and three-color-blocking technique used on many of these nylon and cotton canvas cover-ups continues to be the most widely interpreted. But some manu-facturers, such as Nike, with its reversible print shells, and Sierra Designs, offering shells in multicolored nylon with squiggle prints pieced with solids, showed just how far these jackets have come.

While this show offered its share of duplication, several manufacturers did manage to stand out with clever new designs consistently original in his design presentation and this season is no exception. For spring, the Irvine, Calif. based Stussy put together such items as oversized cotton floral shirts, wild print T-shirts with contrast collars, fleur-de-lis-patterned knit tops, ribbed knit turtlenecks with embroidered chests, heathered long-sleeved polos with embroidered collars and baggy cotton trousers, all topped off with a melton varsity jacket with chenille back patch.

Southampton, Pa. based Leggoons, a sleeper company in the active market, also took a witty approach to activewear, spotlighting polka dot volley shorts in shades of peach and lime green with coordinating polka dot knit tops, horizontal striped knit jersey Bermuda shorts, Ben Hogan-inspired, pull-on plaid pants, "Lost in Space" long-sleeved knit T-shirts with V-inserts at the neck, and seersucker and nylon oxford volley shorts.

At Locals Only, a Honolulu, Hawaii based sportswear resource, the company showcased a new line of tiger-printed shorts, T-shirts and jackets under the Bad Locals label. Although the garments feature basic styling, all have been "primal" washed or "pohaku" dyed for a softer hand and unusual color palette.

And Fatigues, a knit resource based in Chicago, showed an entire collection of waffle knit thermal cut-off shorts, crewneck T-shirts with 3/4-length sleeves, oversized mock turtles and long-sleeved shimmels.

Although these resources offered the most variety at this show, lines such as Sideout Sport, Edgewear, and Mossimo Sport were the busiest. And for good reason. All three resources continue to show consistently strong volleyball inspired activewear collections that appeal to a broad market share. Pasadena, Calif. based Sideout Sport offered its largest collection to date. The company is branching off from its usual assortment of printed and solid volley shorts and screenprinted T-shirts into more of the sportswear realm. For spring, the collection included such ideas as striped and heathered knit shorts and cardigans, chambray and denim shirts and shorts, varsity-inspired cotton sweaters and supplex nylon and French terry jackets and popovers.

Culver City, Calif. based Edgewear and Costa Mesa, Calif. based Mossimo Sport seem to be on opposite, but equally interesting ends of the design spectrum. Edgewear took a playful approach to spring, focusing on polka dot shorts and mock T-shirts with jacquard collars. Mossimo, on the other hand, went more sophisticated with its line of embroidered mock knit shirts, American Flag printed volley shorts and lightweight shell outerwear with logo-printed collars.