Northwestern Knitting Co.’s new hooded zip sweatshirt
Courtesy Northwestern Knitting Co.
Following a sold-out launch last holiday season, Minneapolis-based brand Northwestern Knitting Co. is returning with a full run of its original collection and several new styles.
Founded by Wilson & Willy’s owner John Mooty last year, the brand is based on the brand’s namesake, a Minnesota underwear manufacturer founded in 1888 that utilized an innovative method of knitting. (The company became best known for a later incarnation, when it was renamed Munsingwear and introduced the world’s first knit golf shirt and its iconic penguin logo.) Mooty’s revived version was reimagined as a unisex line of athleisure basics made from a signature Merino Dual Cloth, a cotton-wool fabric blend.
The new run includes all the original styles—a heavy t-shirt, a long-sleeve crewneck, a hooded pullover, and a jogger-style trouser in four neutral colors—as well as a varsity jacket, a hooded zip sweatshirt, a drawstring short, and ribbed knit socks. Prices range from $95 for the t-shirt and $172 for the zipped hoodie.
While the brand is mid-production, Mooty wanted to make pre-orders available now because quantities will be limited, and he expects demand to be strong after last year’s sell-out run. “To see it sell through in a month was really awesome,” says Mooty. “We put two years into developing the fabric alone, so to see that response come back felt like it was more than worth the effort.”
The brand makes its line of luxury basics affordable by selling its product directly to consumers, cutting out the middleman. “As much as I would like to spread the distribution beyond ourselves, the combination of a high fabric cost and relatively low quantity domestic production costs would demand a retail cost twice the amount we currently show,” says Mooty.
Online orders can be placed through the NWKC site (www.nwkc.us) and in-store at Wilson & Willy’s, where a size run of each style is now available to view and try on, and all orders are expected to ship before November 1.
The Varsity Jacket in Navy, $164 @ nwkc.us
The Short in Feather Gray, $112 @ nwkc.us
The Hooded Zip in Charcoal, $172 @ nwkc.us
The Sock in Feather Gray, $18 @ nwkc.us
