Khakis FW26: The Obsession of Recreating "the Beauty of Old Clothes"
Seoul brand Khakis continues its research into military and workwear archives, and for FW26, it's not chasing new silhouettes — instead, it's obsessing over fit, fabric, and the exact right level of wear, recreating the kind of vintage texture that makes people want to spend hours treasure-hunting.
Some brands want to show you what's new. Khakis wants to show you what's "worth aging." Coming out of Seoul's JKND Co. Ltd., with a creative team background shared with thisisneverthat, the brand has spent the past few seasons rolling out collaborations with Merrell, New Balance, Reebok, and nonnative. Its Seoul flagship has quietly become a place worth making a special trip for, and it's even hosted a pop-up with Japanese brand everyone.
FW26 isn't switching things up. Khakis keeps digging through decades-old military, workwear, and outdoor gear references, making clothes that "look like they were pulled straight out of another era." Instead of reinventing patterns, the brand stays fixated on three things: fit, fabric, and — arguably the most important — getting the wear-and-tear just right.
Last fall in Seoul, creative director Junhyung Seo described Khakis in an interview as "the adult version of thisisneverthat." That makes sense — Seo himself came up as a designer at thisisneverthat. If thisisneverthat leans young, streetwear, punk-meets-skate, Khakis caters to people who obsess over a specific decade's limited release — maybe a fleece jacket in a colorway you always wanted but was never actually made, or a red quilted down jacket that looks like it was pulled straight out of a classic outdoor brand's catalog.
That's exactly what sets Khakis apart: it's not just about nailing the reference — it's about getting the fit, fabric, and natural wear that made people want to collect the original piece in the first place, all done right. This logic is baked into the brand's "Made to Last" and "Dead Gear" philosophy (Dead here refers to deadstock) — if you want something that looks like it took years of digging through vintage shops to find, but can't be bothered dealing with sizing issues or the hassle of upkeep and cleaning, that's the problem Khakis is trying to solve.
The FW26 collection is expected to roll out over the coming weeks on the brand's online store and at its Seoul flagship. Specific items and pricing details have yet to be announced.
