I remember well my first contact with the ABCL Garments brand, about a year ago.
The website was very… minimalist. Impossible to know more about this brand which seems to cultivate opacity. Or rather, because it is a very small team, they certainly did not have the internal resources to develop the image and branding.
And yet, his pitch was very catchy: clothes made in Japan and Italy, with Japanese fabrics, but with an Italian taste !
A typical silhouette of the brand: basic colors, but carried by Japanese materials.
That doesn't help me much in understanding the brand... It's taken from their website .
So I had no idea what to expect when I flew to Venice to meet Mattia, one of the two co-founders, and his world.
Mattia picks me up from the airport and we arrive in a port area near Venice, where I see a huge boat under construction.
Mattia explains to me that cruise ships are built but that there are also a few fashion brands present in this curious area which is almost reminiscent of Brooklyn, with its buildings with industrial architecture. For example, there is the headquarters of Golden Goose, or modelers of major luxury brands.
The imposing shipyard of Fincantieri, a huge Italian shipbuilding company. The ABCL offices are located a few hundred meters from this industrial atmosphere.
Mattia tells me that he likes this place with its very "raw" and authentic atmosphere , and that's exactly the impression I have of his brand.
We arrived at his offices and it was exactly as I imagined it: simple offices, with a vintage/workwear touch, beautiful sturdy furniture and… a Harley Davidson proudly sitting there!
Some images of the ABCL offices, spotted on the brand's Instagram .
The entire ABCL collection finally on display, with some archive pieces that Mattia likes to hunt for.
I finally understand the brand a little better.
But first let's start by introducing Mattia, one of the two designers behind ABCL Garments (the official name!).
Mattia: the former cabin model turned designer
Mattia was a cabin model for 12 years , for many Italian brands. That is to say, we did prototype fittings on him, and we determined what adjustments needed to be made. That’s how he learned the trade, he told me.
He was curious and he asked a lot of questions to the modelers and stylists: why do these pants fall like that? What are you going to fix? What happens if we add or remove volume here?
Imagine doing this for 12 years, every day. In the end, you have a truly unique experience, enhanced by the variety of brands you encountered.
And that's how Mattia, without studying fashion (he has a degree in economics), was able to have a very "product" oriented experience over the years.
A remnant photo of Mattia's career as a model...
Funny thing: Mattia is a very discreet person, he told me that he had told very few people the nature of his job as a model, because he did not want to be attached to the image that we have. made of this profession.
So I asked him what his style of clothing was at the time.
For a long time, he dressed in major Italian labels: Dolce & Gabbana, Armani, Diesel jeans, etc.
And then thanks to his brother-in-law, Antonio, he discovered Japanese materials.
He fell in love with the grains and textures of Japanese fabrics . Normally, if you have been following BonneGueule for a while, you must have known the same thing!
The selvedge edging and the tiny ecru grosgrain ribbon are the ABCL signature on the shirts
In the meantime, Mattia settles down and starts a family.
When he tells me about this event, I feel that it is important to him.
His years of going out a lot and wearing flashy clothes are over for good. And he aspires to a much simpler and more refined life, focused on what is essential in his eyes: his family and his friends.
Her wardrobe completely changes : it becomes simpler, timeless, simple and easy to wear. The colors narrow around gray, blue, khaki, white. He tells me that he likes to stay in these colors because in the morning, putting together outfits in these shades becomes child's play.
Hey, well, stick to simple, beautiful and natural colors when dressing, doesn't that remind you of any advice?
When I ask Mattia to send me a photo of his style, this is what I receive... The rolled-up chinos, the canvas sneakers, the sweatshirt worn with a shirt, the colors, and above all the beach and the sun: the ABCL's secret DNA is perfectly respected!
His Oxford and Japanese cotton voile shirts are gradually replacing his patterned shirts by Italian designers. Chinos and selvedge jeans do the same with his old artificially faded and holey jeans.
In short, Mattia wants authenticity in his wardrobe , I can attest to this directly, because I saw it with my own eyes:
An excerpt from our Instagram story where I show his closet, full of white and blue shirts.
It was strange to me, because for the first time in BonneGueule, I was finally able to open the dressing room of a clothing designer.
More than designer clothes, it is the brand of a young father that you are discovering . A father for whom his wife, his little daughter and his friends are the most precious things he has.
And when you understand that, you understand ABCL and its orientation towards a simple and authentic aesthetic.
ABCL also works on some patterns, but always with sober colors.
For the record, Mattia tells me that he really likes watches, I ask him to see one of his favorites, and he brings out a G-Shock in collaboration with... Maharishi! He asks me if I know this London brand, and I answer him with a big smile.
ABCL and Mattia's friends and family
With such a minimalist brand in its communication, it is difficult to perceive the “family and friends” dimension involved in ABCL. But it is very present.
Mattia loves calling on them. And look at this photo:
It's a carpenter friend who plays the model while Mattia takes the photo. The shoot was done on an island, and they went there with a friend's boat.
We then go to one of his favorite bars to join his friends. This is the Venetian lifestyle as Mattia tells me: we are in a bar, eating antipasti and sharing excellent Italian wine in huge stemmed glasses, at the counter, in a very friendly atmosphere.
This is the excerpt that you can see in the video, and you can see that Mattia is exuding cool!
Mattia tells me that it is these moments that inspire him a lot. I suddenly understand why the ABCL collection is so oriented towards relaxation and comfortable cuts.
Even blazer-type tailored clothing remains very fluid, without padding on the shoulders, in the greatest Italian tradition.
The tailored pieces are flexible, but maintain an impeccable cut.
He introduces us to his two childhood friends, who supported him from the start in the creation of the brand, who tested the prototypes, who gave him the first feedback on the cuts, helped him on their eshop, etc. Mattia loves getting his friends involved.
I am starting to perceive better and better a dimension that I did not see coming, ABCL is a brand entirely focused on friendly, simple and authentic moments with the people we love.
Well yes, it seems very conventional as a speech, but it's the first time that I feel it so strongly from a brand. And I'm not saying that because I drank excellent Italian wine from huge stemmed glasses!
Floral polo shirt and rolled-up chambray chinos, with a drawstring: it could hardly be cooler!
Of course, there is an undeniable (and usual) "official" discourse on quality and finishes - we'll come to that later - but it's not just that.
Mattia designs clothes for experiencing these moments, for those who love beautiful materials, with grain and relief. These are clothes for walking by the seaside with your other half, for meeting your friends in the local bar and ending up at a big dinner at a friend's house.
Maybe I shouldn't say this, but when I see this, I imagine an afternoon with good friends and a good barbecue...
ABCL Garments: the perfect mix of Japanese and Italian?
To resume: ABCL Garments is a brand that mixes Italian influences with Japanese materials.
If you look at certain Japanese brands, you will see that there is always a workwear tone very present in the buttons and seams, despite beautiful Japanese materials. Indeed, the Japanese are big fans of replicas and American vintage, which is why workwear codes are so present.
ABCL does things differently: we keep Japanese materials, but with a much more Italian taste, a “flair” . So no more metal buttons and very visible white stitching on Japanese chambray shirts, but instead a much more European collar or buttons sewn in zampa di gallina.
It's a Japanese fabric, but it's a shirt with European influences in the size of its collar, the color of its buttons, etc.
This mix between Italian sartorial and Japanese materials is reflected very well in their costumes (not yet available at the moment) or very beautiful unstructured jackets, in the pure Italian tradition, which are made from Japanese fabrics.
It's a friend of Mattia, a professor at the university, who plays the models, for their brand new costumes, with a rather vintage tone.
Tailored pieces with an Italian influence made with Japanese materials: the result is super cool!
As for the name of the brand, it simply comes from… the alphabet: ABC, these are the first letters which designate the start of a project. Or also, the start of a quality wardrobe. The "L" refers to a nickname of Antonio, Mattia's brother-in-law, with whom he founded the brand.
Antonio has a key role, since he is married to a Japanese woman, he lives in Japan and he has enormous expertise in shirts , since he manages the manufacturing in Asia of many brands.
Which two pieces are appreciated in Italy and totally underestimated in France? The polo shirt and striped pants!
That's how they started the brand: with Japanese fabric shirts made in Japan. As for the pants, the choice fell on Italy for manufacturing, because it is a piece that Mattia masters well and, after all, he lives near Venice!
Regarding the small crown logo, it is a nod to the world of tailor-made shirts. Generally, the initials are embroidered, but to avoid having two shirts with the same initials, some added a small crown to differentiate the two customers.
Selvedge even on a tailored vest!
Our BonneGueule x ABCL Garments pants
Our pants in action! Boras makes a strong nod to Japanese influences with these pants and this noragi.
Because we have a well-stocked line of Japanese shirts, we wanted to work on the pants with Mattia, because it's the type of piece where he has his own vision , at the crossroads of his past as a cabin model, his taste for vintage and the importance it places on a relaxed cut.
Our pants, with this intriguing selvedge edging…
A comfortable fit
ABCL pants have a cut with a fairly strong, relatively wide bias. But I find that apart from a fairly sharp outfit, it is complicated to handle.
Mattia likes to wear his pants relatively loose and rolled up very short (don't forget he's Italian!) but this kind of fit makes these pants complicated to use in a more classic wardrobe.
This is why we reworked the cut of our pants for this collaboration .
We kept this comfort in the thighs, but we refined the calf and ankle . We are therefore on a carrot cut, close to the spirit of our flannel joggers.
Our ankle fit modification is clearly visible in this photo.
It's a real mix between a relaxed silhouette and a contemporary look: we're far from the "first degree" loose Japanese cuts of workwear pants.
The other element that gives comfort to these pants: the drawstring. Mattia says he got the idea when he saw one of his Japanese friends who didn't like wearing a belt and who always took a cord instead.
The famous drawstring which brings comfort to these pants!
Note that the pants also have loops. So you can tuck the drawstrings inside and wear a belt as if nothing had happened.
A Japanese dobby
The material has its own texture: it is a 100% cotton fabric with a dobby type relief.
Rather unusual thing about this type of airy fabric: it is a selvedge material , which comes from Okayama (and which is woven on old shuttle looms, as usual with selvedge).
Our pants are indigo in color, so extremely easy to wear . Whether with a t-shirt or a shirt, you will have no difficulty wearing it.
Since it is indigo, the material will patina very nicely over time.
In shoes, sneakers will be the preferred choice, and obviously all summer shoes: light sneakers, but also espadrilles, moccasins or even... a beautiful pair of leather flip-flops!
Mattia sums it up like this, with his Italian accent: “really open, light and summer vibe” . And for once, his description is very accurate!
Again, this is a piece where I have to say a few words about price. As I remind you, these are pants made in Italy , in a workshop specializing in high-end , in a Japanese selvedge material , with a reduced width (= width of the roll), therefore no more use of material and with the use of more selvedge piping compared to classic jeans.
This is why the price will be between €200 and €230, because it is a piece that has little in common with a basic cotton chino made in Portugal.
These are horn buttons on this collaboration, a very high-end finish on pants.
The finishes: selvedge everywhere!
A beautiful selvedge border adorns the back pockets!
We find the selvedge along the leg, but also on the back pockets.
As for the pockets and interior braids, they are covered in 100% cotton chambray.
Chambray in your pockets, you couldn't be more respectful of Japanese materials!
A rather rare thing on chinos: there are beautiful horn buttons on the fly rather than a plastic zip.
Finally, the last detail specific to ABCL: this diverted belt loop with selvedge piping is the signature detail of the brand's pants.
You see two things in this photo: the selvedge edging and the grain of the material.
On this note, I am super happy to offer you THE pants to accompany you on your walks in the sun!
How to get our BonneGueule x ABCL Garments pants and the other new products for April?
Our clothes are available on our e-shop and in our stores in Paris , Lyon and Bordeaux . The choice is yours !
