Jack Flynn soft entry

During the trade shows, outerwear company Jack Flynn presented its SS12 collection, which effortlessly fuses tailoring with casual sportswear. With the new collection, Jack Flynn showed at SEEK in Berlin and CPH in Copenhagen.

On the selling season co-founder Matt Francis commented: "Very positive, although SS12 is a tough season for outerwear based on SS11 results. The buyers across Europe have been very positive at the introduction of a new outerwear brand in the 150-350 Euro retail price band. Buyers have found the blend of performance and tailoring refreshing and the attention to detail through fit, pocketing and accessories something different. Pieces like the blazers in cracked wax backed cotton have been very well received as they allow the customer to dress up chinos or down with jeans. Or the pop of “understandable” colours in the performance rain macs."

Set up in 2010, Jack Flynn is based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The design philosophy revolves around simple and fundamental designs for men, and the pieces are made with a great eye for detail. Featuring jackets, coats and shirts, the collections are inspired by the outdoor world and based on what one sees on city streets mixed with vintage pieces. Each season these elements are blend together to create new designs combining outdoor style and wearable pieces with a contemporary fit.

When looking closely at Jack Flynn it is clear these designs didn’t come about overnight. Each jacket is based on a paper pattern and is traditionally cut according to fitted tailoring traditions. The pieces are reviewed individually, and functionality is added through the use of fabrics, trims, seaming, and detailing. All the Jack Flynn designs are finished by hand.

Since January 2011, Jack Flynn made a soft entry on the UK market and is presented by South and Scotland's David Jackson. Besides the UK, for SS12 the brand is selling in Canada, Japan, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Benelux and the Netherlands. For the future, Jack Flynn is in talks with distributors in France, Spain and the US with plans to show the AW12 at Pitti Uomo (IT), SEEK (GR), Modefabriek (NL) and CPH (DK).

As part of its soft entry, the outerwear brand is partnering with key retailers and department store per market and city-by-city. This way Jack Flynn wants to develop its markets, and further build the brand. The company is also looking at collaborations with popup stores coinciding with the selling season in key cities. Long term, Jack Flynn wants to have concept stores combined with showrooms to present the whole brand experience to buyers and consumers. When all of this is accomplished, Jack Flynn will introduce ‘true’ performance tailoring ranges as well as limited addition re-cut items.

Image: Jack Flynn