When was members only jackets in style

At the time, outerwear had a muted color palette; the idea of offering a jacket in green or a blinding white was contrarian. Blending the fabric and design while adding touches of his own—like a strap around the collar—Goldsmith needed a brand identity.

While at a country club in Long Island, he noticed a large sign outside of the entrance: Members Only. Later, he took note that Diners Club cards had a key on their logo; for Members Only, he added a keyhole. It hinted at access and exclusivity, provided you had the good taste to purchase one. It was a modest success. Members Only selections were displayed in a cascading, tiered rack, so buyers could get a complete look at the design.

Taking note of the free gifts common in cosmetics purchases, Goldsmith also introduced ancillary Members Only items like tote bags and watches to act as a sales incentive. Before long, Members Only jackets were showing up—unsolicited—on movie and television personalities.

Goldsmith still needed to mount a purposeful ad campaign. Members Only signed Geary in During personal appearances, Geary was mobbed by up to shoppers and protected by police barricades. An estimated 15 million men sported the jackets. Everything was such a smashing success that Goldsmith could take chances. And for his ad campaign, he would take one of the biggest. Musicians and athletes—like Nets star Buck Williams—were ranting about the evils of drug addiction.

One spot depicted a police shield riddled with bullets, collateral damage in the drug war. Ron Malhotra , current owner of Members Only: The jacket was designed in Europe in when the brand was created. It was brought to the U. Then they had seen, in Berlin somewhere, someone wearing the kind of military-ish jacket with those shoulder epaulettes.

A weird way to think about it, too, is that it was a part of this kind of globalization that was starting to happen. So, in a weird way, it was kind of like an international product. Jack Catton , vice president of sales and marketing at iApparel Brands, LLC current licenser of the Members Only jacket : The features and the design of the jacket have never changed: It has the throat latch and the epaulettes on the shoulders.

I believe that has to be a fashion design, but the epaulettes on the shoulders stemmed from the military jackets, usually bomber jackets — they have epaulettes on the shoulders for the soldiers to hang their hats on. Kelshaw: The big features were the fabric itself; the waistband, which was a knitted kind of trim at the bottom; the shoulder epaulettes; the collar strap thing; the zipper; and the very sleek, white-lettered Members Only logo above the breast pocket.

The idea was that it was supposed to kind of move with your body and be comfortable. There was nothing particularly ostentatious about it other than the shoulder epaulettes. Kelshaw: In , which is when it was introduced in the U. It was the year of the Reagan election, and there was this kind of pivotal ideological turning. With what was going on in technology and society, this jacket became kind of a symbol of this ideological shift.

Glassock: In the s, the Members Only jacket was the epitome of aspirational prep chic for the masses. It was the only jacket to wear to Morning in America. Kelshaw: The jacket came to really signify this inward social turning, this kind of privatization. It was a white, suburban response to the anxiety of globalization manifested by the Reagan administration. I mean, it was a cheap jacket — it was 55 bucks. Nancy Reagan even sent a letter of appreciation. Crack cocaine was the epidemic drug of the moment circa , and it was essentially an urban, African-American affliction.

The United States military used them for decades, but in the US officially replaced epaulettes with shoulder straps, which you see on classic Members Only jackets and Marine dress uniforms. The brand was actually around before the '80s The jackets hit their sartorial stride in the '80s, but Members Only was founded in , making it as old as Saturday Night Live which the jackets are currently funnier than and Angelina Jolie who the jackets will never be as hot as.

The brand aired bizarre PSA-style commercials about drug addicted babies and dictators As part of a strange marketing scheme in the late '80s, Members Only put up a couple "commercials" Harry Connick, Jr. Eric went on to Hollywood, so… obviously. He sniffed out a trend; the rest is history.

Oh, and spoiler alert.