Heritage Hoodies

If you had walked into a shop 50 years ago and asked where the “heritage clothing” could be found, you would have been met with a mix of confusion and amusement. At best, a bemused shop assistant might have redirected you to the nearest charity shop.

Today, walk into any major retailer, and the assistant would be spoiled for choice as to where best to direct you. They might for instance point you toward logogrammed Heritage Hoodies, Men’s Heritage Quarter-Zip Sweats, Contour Heritage Tweed Trousers, or—who knew—Heritage Fleece Zip-Throughs. They might send you off to peruse products made with (a mix of) “heritage Scottish wool,” or heritage shirts made from Viscose, heritage tights (suggestions on a postcard, please), heritage trainers, heritage nylon tote bags, heritage “cotton-rich” underwear, or, wait for it, heritage Crocs.

In a linguistic travesty “Heritage” has been transformed into a cheap shield, signifying everything but. Unimaginative marketers would have us believe that “heritage” is a physical thing, an inherent quality baked into a garment’s seams, when—in the case of mass production and cheap materials—it is nothing more than a misleading veneer. Those materials and garments labelled “heritage” will linger in landfill for hundreds of years, far longer than they will ever live in anyone’s wardrobe.

Redundant Nonsense

Then there is the sheer tautology of it all. Much like those “heritage heirloom” tomatoes we find peppering pretentious menus, we now see heritage Argyle, heritage Houndstooth, and heritage Tartan patterns. We even see heritage kilts.

Illusions of Longevity

And then where there is some, there is widespread misuse of brand history. A company that produces fabric or clothing that has been in business doing so for 100 years or more undoubtedly has a long history and, if you like, a rich heritage. In and of itself that does not, however, make the products it produces today “heritage” products.

Some of its products might legitimately hold that title. But others—if they are made in overseas factories, out of different materials and through different methods — will not be. A century-old corporate registry does not miraculously transform a brand-new nylon puffer jacket into an ancestral relic. Nor does it mean it will last as long as whichever famous ‘originals’ the “heritage brand” might be trying to leverage.

In short, the presence of the word “heritage” on a label is almost always inversely proportional to the actual heritage of the item and or organisation using it. If you see “heritage” slapped onto a collection, a brand or a piece of clothing, turn away. At best it’s a nonsense—mostly, it’s an intentional, outright lie.