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Out of a small factory on Howard Street, Golden Bear Sportswear began in 1922, crafting dockworker coats for the longshoremen who hauled cargo up and out of San Francisco Bay, their sturdy leather collars upturned against the fog and the cold. Twenty-five years down the line, you could find our fringed jackets on the backs of young adults on Haight Street and sported by icons of the counterculture—the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane.
By the 1960's, Golden Bear had moved to Valencia Street, with a stop at 1st Street on the way, producing our timeless classic coats and some new styles, too. Varsity and motorcycle jackets joined the classic bombers and dockworker coats on the racks in our showroom, which you’d find next to the factory floor, up three flights of stairs from the street below. Golden Bear jackets have become part of personal histories. The jackets get better with age. Each crease tells a story, every rough patch a memory. The people who wear them put in so much mileage that parting with one of our coats seems like losing a friend.
This collaboration with Chicago native Leaders 1354 looks to the city flag as the center of inspiration for this launch. Details referencing the light blue and red stars are executed throughout the jacket.
