With Nigel Cabourn’s Pre/Spring ’22 collection, the legendary British designer draws inspiration from the China Beach Surf Club.
Nigel Cabourn is a designer with an unwavering appreciation for vintage military garb, serving somewhere in the middle ground of a collector, creator and historian through his commitment to spotlighting archival details and pieces.
With his latest collection for Pre/Spring ‘22, the legendary British designer continues to celebrate vintage utilitywear, merging elements of laidback, beach-inspired styling and heritage military garb.
The collection is inspired by the story behind the China Beach Surf Club: an unofficial U.S. Military association founded in 1967 in Da Nang, Vietnam, providing a therapeutic outlet for young G.I.s to surf during the Vietnam War. The collection leans in on that combination of laidback and utilitarian, with everything from relaxed, vintage-inspired sportswear to reworked military pieces like Bush jackets and CPO shirts used.