It's unfair to equate any master of their field with the master of another unrelated field. Basketball and surfing have little in common, and yet it's widely said that Kelly Slater is the Michael Jordan of the sport. He's racked up enough trophies, established a reputation for sportsmanship, driven the technique of the sport forward, and made his mark on the industry itself. Mike has Jumpman, a subsidiary of the Swoosh, and for 20-odd years Kelly had a subsidiary brand of his own, too. Though just this past year Kelly decided to take a different route altogether—he split with his bluechip sponsor and struck out on his own.
Well, almost. He brought designer John Moore along with him.
Together the two run Outerknown, a new, laid-back but decidedly grownup apparel and outerwear line. An industry vet and surfer in his own right, Moore most recently penned designs for the retro surf-inspired label M.Nii, where in 2014 he was honored as one of the best new menswear designers in America by GQ.
At Outerknown, you won't find graphic tees or the type of brash mallrat prints that have become synonymous with kook-fueled surf-inspired brands. Moore and Slater are set on making clothes that you'll keep from season-to-season and year-to-year. But that's just part of their mission on sustainability. In addition to making items that last and will stand the sartorial test of time, Outerknown is examining the sustainability of its entire supply chain — from using recycled and organic materials to opting for equitable manufacturing.
We recently caught up with Moore to talk sustainable design, working with one of his heroes and designing for the future.