Beyond fashion
After more than 50 years in the fashion industry, Nigel Cabourn remains one of the great British cult menswear designers.
Not governed by trends, each Nigel Cabourn collection draws inspiration from true stories rooted in history. Working with specialist factories across the UK, Japan and Hong Kong, each piece has been designed to last, getting better with age and wear.
The Story So Far
Dropping out of fashion school in the 70’s to establish his first label Cricket Clothing Ltd, a chance encounter with a young Paul Smith and a WW2 era pilot jacket changed the course of Nigel’s career and instigated a lifelong interest in vintage reproduction. Nigel rose through the ranks of British fashion in the 1980’s alongside contemporaries Margaret Howell and Vivienne Westwood, when his eponymous label went international, beginning his close affinity with Japan.
Renowned for his expertise in specialist fabrics and military-inspired designs, Nigel Cabourn has collaborated with iconic brands like Red Wing, Henri Lloyd, Eddie Bauer, and Viberg. His career has taken him around the globe in search of rare 20th-century vintage pieces that continue to inspire his work.
With a personal archive of over 4,000 vintage pieces and nearly 3,000 books—covering topics from mountaineering legends to football icons—Nigel draws deeply on this history as his primary source of inspiration. Each collection pays homage to remarkable moments, whether the daring Everest expeditions of George Mallory and Edmund Hillary or the cultural revolution of the Vietnam War. Real people and their extraordinary stories are intricately woven into every Cabourn piece.
The Everest Parka
A true classic Cabourn design and now legendary in the world of high performance outerwear.
It was first introduced in the 2003 'The Ascent of Cabourn' Limited Edition 1 collection, inspired by Sir Edmund Hillary's expedition to the summit of Everest and the clothes he and his team wore on their journey.
Collaborations
SS18
Timex
AW19
Liam Gallagher
AW16
Converse
SS20
Henri Lloyd
AW21
UMBRO
AW23