Tim Coppens x LNCC

When a Belgian born designer, such as Tim Coppens, goes straight to New York, the city of commercial fashion, you know menswear is changing and the industry should take note of them. 

Stocked at LN-CC, the hottest new, appointment only boutique in east London, Coppens draws on the technical aspect of menswear which he gained from his appoinement at RLX, where he was Design Director. Prior to this, he was senior designer at Adidas - no doubt an influence on the sports aspect, and a graduate of the Royal College of Art in Antwerp, where the more traditional techniques of tailoring are founded. So with an impeccable fusion of experience, Coppens can do no wrong. 

Stocked at other eponymous boutiques around the globe, Coppens has been on the thinking-mans radar for a year or so but has not really made the European mainstream of names. It is interesting to see that he went straight to the American market first, considering his less than highly commercial vision. Yes, his techniques, such as the quilting, nod to heritage - a huge trend that even the most avant garde designers are tapping into - but it is not really in the mainstream aesthetic. Never the less, it is a hugely exciting and forward thinking collection of what I would call the City Sportif look - exploring the city in your own time by running, cycling or jogging to find more enriching pastimes or haunts. 

With a price point of £219, for shorts, to £1629 for the padded gillet, below, the collection sits well in dressing progressive and achingly cool guys around the world. But for the most, his aesthetic is one to admire.