Orthodox Clothing
Menswear line Orthodox Clothing takes the tension between classic and new looks and wrangles a style that mixes new and old.
Remember twill pants with wide stripes? Orthodox designer Eric Niccole turned the mod look into walking shorts.
Remember the Nehru collar? Just flip up the collar on the label’s “Cassidy” blazer for a look that a Beatles fan might have favored in the mid-1960s.
Los Angeles–based Orthodox was launched last May by Niccole and co-founder Mike Townsend. Niccole, a first-time designer, said he hoped the label would offer a look that a father and son could both wear, provided they prefer tailored looks.
“It’s not going out on a limb,” said Niccole of Orthodox’s style. “We’re trying to balance a timeless and an edgy quality.”
The Orthodox collection ranges from T-shirts with punk-looking graphics to work pants featuring loops for both wide and narrow belts. For those planning to brave an occasionally brisk California night, there are pea coats in a lightweight tweed.
Orthodox’s founders believe that juggling classic and new looks could be second nature for them. Growing up in Orange County, Calif., they observed how hometown labels such as Santa Ana–based Howe mix California styles with international and contemporary looks.
Before establishing Orthodox, Townsend worked as a sales associate in 1998 at The Closet, an Orange County contemporary boutique chain, and spent part of last year working as a marketing consultant to the chain. Niccole worked as a musician and is a co-owner of the Scorpion Steakhouse restaurant in Huntington Beach, Calif.
Niccole said that he financed the label and has no outside investors. Orthodox’s Holiday 2005 and Spring 2006 collections have been sold in such boutiques as Habit in Costa Mesa, Calif.; Blackbird in Seattle; Nina Messiah in Beverly Hills, Calif.; and Fred Segal in Santa Monica, Calif. Wholesale price points range from $40 for polos to $255 for pea coats.
Niccole said he hopes to eventually add better department stores to his retail mix. —Andrew Asch
