American brand GANT is synonymous with preppy style. Born in New Haven and influenced by neighboring Yale, Gant played a crucial role in shaping Ivy League style starting with the prep essential, the oxford shirt.
Under the creative direction of Christopher Bastin, who joined the brand in 2005 and took the creative reigns in August this year, GANT has undergone a renewal, turning its efforts towards progressing preppy style and defining what it means today. Think, less Ivy League elite, more modern-day dapper.
GANT's efforts this year have culminated in its Fall/Winter 2021 campaign “The Future of American Sportswear.” While the collection itself is still clearly heavily influenced by signature Ivy styles — collared shirts, knitted vests, and clean-cut chinos are present in abundance — the setting, tone, and cast point to GANT’s desire to challenge the preconceived notions of what prep clothing should look like and who it is for.
“We want to show who the real GANT is — that the brand is equal parts heritage and progressive,” says GANT’s EVP, Eleonore Säll.
The campaign features a cast of creatives and thought leaders including Sonny Hall, a poet and the co-founder of the independent publishing house and poetry club Blue Beggar Books, who wrote the poem “Never Conforming To Second Hand Air” specifically for the campaign. In the film, he features alongside actors Mathilde Warnier and Eliot Sumner, singer Joseph Talbot, cellist Kelsey Lu, and musician Kelvin Bueno who, together, recite fragments of Hall’s poem.
Watch the campaign video above and head to gant.com to shop the collection.
