Brand: Bstroy
Season: Fall/Winter 2021
Buy: Online at Bstroy's website
Release Date: September 30 at 1:30 p.m. EDT
Editor's Notes: Bstroy, the streetwear brand that's courted its fair share of controversy, is turning its attention to more lighthearted subject matter: the early 2000s.
Founder Brick Owens and Dieter Grams are releasing their own take on the trucker hat. Transforming the Y2k staple into the "(b).Rucker Hat," the design duo manage to strip the accessory of its distinctly nostalgic feel, rendering it totally contemporary.
The hat features Bstroy's signature logo patch front and center. A series of silver pins — all representing Bstroy branding in some form or fashion — give the five-panel cap a customized feel.
Interestingly, the trucker hat originated as a promotional tool for farming supply companies. Cheaper to produce than baseball caps, these branded hats were given away to farmers, truck drivers, and other blue collar workers, who would bring companies a bit of free advertising by wearing the merchandise.
Eventually, the no-frills accessory became a fashionable must-have in the early 2000s. With the help of marketing whiz Christian Audigier, the Von Dutch trucker hat was spotted on every major celebrity of the decade: Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Paris Hilton, Ashton Kutcher — the list goes on and on.
(As an aside, it's also worth noting the racist beliefs that Von Dutch founder Kenny Howard frequently spouted.)
Instead of riffing on Von Dutch's trucker hat, Bstroy transforms the accessory into something fresh. The (b).Rucker might not be free, but it'll certainly turn more than a few customers into walking billboards this fall.
