Cadet Spring 2016

When a brand titles itself Cadet, immediately the mind shifts to a collection with an oversupply of military jackets and dress trousers with stripes down the side. That might work for a couple seasons, put after a few outings the design team might run out of ideas. Not in Cadet’s case.

With only a few seasons under their belt, the Cadet design team of Raul Arevalo and Brad Schmidt military-themed menswear looks seem to be gathering steam. This design duo appears to have a plethora of ideas based on the military and for this collection, The Filthy 13," they reached back to World War II’s paratroopers in the United Stages Army demolition section’s invasion at Normandy.

For a couple of seasons several menswear brands have dabbled in variations on camouflage print. From carnation, orange, and blue camo to traditional brown and olive, there has been a lot of mix and matching of a variety of camouflage color palettes. Cadet stayed with the traditional brown, olive, and a sprinkling of blue steel grey in this collection, and perhaps, of all the collections over the past few seasons, their take on camouflage print and marrying that to a very masculine silhouette was done better than almost any other menswear brand. They were also successful in employing black, brown, and steel grey utility belts and detachable manbags with paratrooper jackets, elevating this collection above just another homage to military uniforms, adding a utilitarian touch.

Though this collection harkened back to 1940s paratroopers uniforms and there was no breakout design aesthetics or silhouettes employed, Arevalo and Schmidt still managed to keep the collection fresh, current and ruggedly sexy. In essence for this outing, it was mostly about the styling, which was superb.

A lot of male consumers from a wide range of demographics will find something in this collection that they can add to their spring/summer wardrobes. From the separates to the silver grey and olive jackets, this collection is a surefire hit!!

—William S. Gooch