As you may recall, I had mentioned that Rapha, the men's cycling clothing line, was gearing up to release a new line of women's clothing later this spring and I was curious to see if they would stick with their same classic and suave designs and colors that they make for men.... or would they throw in a lot of pastels and butterflies in an attempt appeal to women in the same ways that it seems most other companies do? Well, apparently Slate Olson, General Manager of Rapha (USA), happened upon the post and in response, was kind enough to share with me some photos straight from their recent shoot in italy of the new women's line. And what from what I see.... I'm very very pleased.
(thanks... Slate for the first look!)
As you can happily see, Rapha went with their same classic approach to cycling apparel: a form fitting feminine cut with strong bold classic colors and touches of pink here and there. And... while you may think I initially cringed at the pink inclusion after my last tirade...the cool thing about their usage of pink is that its actually a fairly prominent accent color for them (not only in their menswear, but their website design and graphic elements that they use overall). Much like Bianchi's celeste blue bikes, it's a signature flair aimed at the initial target market (men) and not as something to make women like the item more (I love it!). Rapha also plans on introducing a mens Stowaway Jacket later this year... totally in pink. Granted, while they hope a few women might be interested as well.... their main focus is the dudes.
Thank you for sharing Slate and thank you Rapha for recognizing the athletic women out there who want the same cool stuff as the dudes... but we want it to fit us. Thanks!
Now... i just need to save my money to get some cool stuff. :)
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