Finally! After nearly a half-decade apart, HYKE & The North Face are reviving their sublime, sought-after collaboration as part of the Japanese brand's Spring/Summer 2024 collection.
Debuted on August 31 during Rakuten Tokyo Fashion Week, HYKE SS24 offered everything that the label's customer base expects: vintage military-inspired outerwear, technical Pertex layering pieces, flowing skirts, and exclusive accessories co-created by similarly elegant imprints like Beautiful Shoes and bagmaker Chacoli.
But the main event, at least for the majority of folks reading this, is the return of HYKE x The North Face, which ended in Fall/Winter 2019 after tantalizing much of the streetwear-obsessed world with exquisitely minimalist technical jackets, longline coats, and co-branded pullovers.
The appeal of HYKE's The North Face collab was in how the Japanese brand applied its inimitable elegant design ethos to TNF's functional garments. Mountain Parkas and windproof coats were refined with tonal color palettes of army green, grey, and black and cut loose, but not too loose.
There was even a HKE x TNF tent.
What resulted was beautifully utilitarian apparel that looked like it'd been designed by Céline or The Row.
It was a shame to see HYKE's TNF line end, as the pair had only just begun issuing clothing in men's and genderless sizes, making for unusually expansive collaborative collections.
The size expansion was a rarity for HYKE as it's ostensibly a womenswear label, though it does produce some genderless clothing and its signature ankle-length coats are big enough for anyone to wear.
HYKE and TNF's SS24 reunion is more of that good stuff, delivering bolero-style vests, weather-resistant layering pieces, co-branded caps, and even some chunky trail runners, by far the duo's biggest (and best) shoes..
Note that the line is formally renamed "TNFH" and the full name, according to a press release, is "TNFH THE NORTH FACE HYKE."
Full details for the TNFH line will be revealed in January 2024.
If you aren't hip, HYKE is a longstanding clothing label founded in Japan's Gunma prefecture in 1998 by married designers Yukiko Ode and Hideaki Yoshihara, who previously operated a vintage store and in-house clothing line called "green."
At risk of reiterating buzzwords for the sake of buzzwords, HYKE was quiet luxury before the term was ever codified.
However, HYKE distinguished itself with a heavily militaristic slant in homage to Ode and Yoshihara's vintage store, where they stocked vintage US Navy WEP jackets and sailor pants.
HYKE has continued issuing heavy-hitting joint efforts in recent years, partnering with MONCLER several times — most recently this very year — and dishing adidas sneakers that fit its pared-back outdoorsy attitude.
But it was The North Face collaborations that brought HYKE deserved international attention. I hope that not only does the team-up achieve similar fame across the globe but that it also receives a wider release this time.
Certainly, that's complicated by TNF Japan's tricky licensing issues but, for the good of the collaboration, make it happen!
