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Right: Masahiko Sakata (Representative of Archive & Style)
Born in 1970 . Born in Wakayama Prefecture. After graduating from a vocational school, he started his career as a designer and established "Archive & Style" in 2001. While working as a creative director for a number of famous brands, he is also known as a great vintage clothing enthusiast. . In the past, he even ran a vintage store in Aoyama.

Left: Masami Fujiki (Warehouse Press)
Born in 1973 . Born in Kyoto. He is in charge of the press for "Warehouse," a pioneering American casual brand that faithfully reissues vintage clothing. . He is known in the industry as one of the foremost experts on vintage clothing. For this interview, he brought along some of his personal belongings, including an AG Spalding & Bross catalog from the 1920s.

The Search for the Ultimate Vintage Sweatshirt Leads to AG Spalding & Bross

-When you hear the words "vintage AG Spalding & Bross," what is the first thing that comes to mind?

hill countryI have the impression that the company made a variety of high-quality, interesting products from the 20s to the 40s. Also, the founder was a professional baseball player, so I have a strong image of baseball.

wisteria tree. I have the exact same image as Mr. Sakata. We at Warehouse have been making sweatshirts as well as denim for a long time, but when we look for vintage sweatshirts with a good base design, we end up at AG Spalding & Bross.

hill country: I can see that . There are many unique details and they are well crafted down to the smallest detail. Especially, parkas with double-faced boxing glove pockets have always been very popular in the vintage market, haven't they?

-This parka, however, was described in the catalog as a sideline parka.

wisteria tree. It is positioned like a bench warmer nowadays. They are double-faced, so they keep you warmer, and they are larger in size than crew necks. The abdominal pockets were originally added to protect the hands of waiting players from the cold. You see so-called kangaroo pockets and separate pockets at other companies, but these boxing glove-shaped pockets are the exclusive property of "AG Spalding & Bross.

hill country. I am sure that this deformed pocket was devised by narrowing the opening for the hand to plunge into to prevent outside air from entering the pocket as much as possible. American products at this time were not yet designed for mass production, so you can often see complex construction and details. This is especially true of AG Spalding & Bross' clothing.

wisteria tree. The more you look at it, the more you will be amazed at the truly intricate workmanship. The neck part in particular is superbly made, with double-stitch lockstitching from the front and back for durability and elasticity.

hill country. and the jersey with ribbed shoulders also has an "AG Spalding & Bross" look to it. This coloring must be school colors, right?

wisteria tree: I think they probably did. I am sure there were many different color variations. It was from the 20's and 30's when woolen spool wear was at its height.

hill country. Wool products evolved in this area, and later cotton sweatshirts and football jerseys were born, weren't they? AG: Spalding & Bross was one of the first to switch from wool to cotton, wasn't it?

Overwhelmed by materials and technology, the company has been a leader in the athletic wear industry.

-How long have sweatshirts been around in the first place?

wisteria tree. already since the '20s, AG Spalding & Bross has been making cotton sweatshirts. You can see it in the 24-25 catalog that I brought with me today.

hill country: This is great. The catalog also clearly states that it is cotton.

wisteria treeAG Spalding & Bross was definitely at the forefront of the athletic wear industry in the 20s and 30s, when the transition from wool to cotton took place.

hill country.: It is quintessential that you paid attention to cotton. Considering its elasticity and water absorbency, cotton is definitely a better match for sportswear. Moreover, it is resistant to washing. Also, being in the U.S., cotton would have been easier to obtain and cheaper than wool. As a company, there must have been a cost advantage.

wisteria tree. In sportswear, the only advantage that wool has over cotton is warmth, but this has been covered by raising the back of the fabric made by hang-knitting, hasn't it? The AG Spalding & Bross sweatshirts in this catalog are lined. This is the very origin of the sweatshirt.

hill country: You're right, these double-V sweatshirts are awesome. And the front is cotton, but the back is wool.

wisteria tree. I think this was probably made during the transition of sweatshirts from wool to cotton. Sweatshirts are usually composed of an outer yarn, a middle yarn, and a reverse yarn, and I am sure that wool was used for the middle or reverse yarn. This would explain why cotton sweatshirts around this time period always had a raised back yarn.

hill country. Speaking of the "AG Spalding & Bross" sweatshirts of this period, the ribs are not to be missed. The triangular shape of the ribs is one of the icons of the brand. This type of ribbing is one of the brand's icons, and it would not be made this way nowadays for production efficiency.

wisteria tree. Even if the tag is removed, it is a detail that makes it easily recognizable as "AG Spalding & Bross" at a glance. . I think it is a great detail that improves the fitting as well as the design. . Looking at the materials and details, it is clearly better made than the products of other companies. Looking at the catalog, the price at the time for this sweatshirt was $1.75, which is quite expensive.

-I looked at the catalogs of other companies of the same age, and they were less than $1.00 for underwear. And most of them are made of wool.

hill countryI am sure that the students who wore "AG Spalding & Bross" at that time were the elite of the East Coast, like the Ivy Leaguers. The company was deeply involved with baseball, the national sport in the U.S., and supported Olympic athletes, and I think it was the number one athletic wear manufacturer in the U.S. at the time.

wisteria tree. Yes, that's right. In the photo collection I brought today, there is a picture of the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, and the swimmers of the U.S. team are wearing AG Spalding & Bross sweatshirts as warm-up wear. As far as I can see, the swimmers from other countries are wearing wool, but only the U.S. swimmers are wearing cotton sweatshirts. As is still the case today, the most advanced clothing is used to support the prestige of a country in the Olympics, isn't it? This fact shows what a great brand AG Spalding & Bross was in the past, doesn't it?

-It is true that the Olympics are still a great opportunity for sports manufacturers to showcase the technology behind their products, isn't that right?

wisteria tree. The only athletes on the podium in the following year, 1936, were American athletes wearing cotton sweatshirts, right? That must have been why AG Spalding & Bross' products were a step or two ahead of the competition technologically.

Expectations for AG Spalding & Bros. to make a comeback

-. Finally, I would like to ask you about the reissue of "AG Spalding & Bross" that will be revived this fall/winter. What kind of items would you like to see reissued?

hill country. Personally, I would like the vintage greeting to remain the same, rather than tweaking the silhouette and details to make it look more modern. . I think that even if it's a little bit untidy, just wearing it bigger now would give it a good vibe. . Personally, I'd like to wear a vintage-like sweatshirt with a shirt as an inner layer.

wisteria tree. It is true that the number of people who wear oversized sweatshirts with a large body width has been increasing again recently. For my part, I would like to see them made in the same way as they were back then, using the round-body method. It is a bit difficult to make them nowadays, though.

hill country. In terms of larger sizing, a parka with boxing glove pockets might be just right. However, if you make it double-faced, it would be hard to dry and the season for wearing it would be short (laughs).

wisteria tree. Certainly, considering the needs of a large number of people, a single face would definitely sell better, but there are core fans who respond to a double face.

hill country. I don't know what kind of items will be made since we don't have the full picture yet, but I'm interested in the fact that "AG Spalding & Bross," which is extremely popular in the vintage market, will be reissuing the real name of the product. I think it's wonderful to be able to get a brand-new pair of that fantastic item, and to be able to choose the size. It is one of the best parts of enjoying the particular details and matching old-fashioned unfashioned heritage items as a fashion item.