Goorin Bros. - Hats Off to Classic Style Made Anew

Over a century old, Goorin Bros. is dedicated to bringing back the once personal and special experience of buying a hat. Cassel Goorin founded the company in 1895 when he sold custom hats sold off of his horse cart. His sons, Alfred and Ted took over the company in 1921, and it became known as the Goorin Brothers. Now Ben Goorin, Cassel Goorin's great-grandson, is infusing old and new school ideas into the company.

A Neighborhood Hat Shop
An old school idea in the industry involves community storefronts dedicated to selling strictly hats. Once neighborhood hat shops existed in many American communities. They were places for customers to gather and hang out much like the environments in taverns and barber shops. A bit of Goorin folklore includes the now-closed Pittsburgh located, which shut down after Ted Goorin spent too much time fishing. In the 1940s fishing and tackle gear was as a huge part of the Goorin business, as well as canoes and snowshoes. There's a canoe hat that hangs in the San Francisco office in memory of that portion of the business.

Currently there are 28 Goorin Bros. shops like this in the United States, from California to New York to Minnesota and Oregon. That number will soon increase when Goorin adds a 29th US location in Philadelphia's Rittenhouse Square, expected to open this month. There are also two locations in Canada: Toronto and Vancouver. The shops bring back the personal and bespoke experience of buying hats as it was originally done when Cassel Goorin sold hats from his horse cart.

Aside from the custom shopping experience at the signature Goorin Brothers Hat Shops, the products can be found at other popular retailers including Nordstrom and e-commerce flash sale pioneer Gilt.com.

Talking Trends

While talking with Ben Goorin on upcoming trends, he said, "I love when things [move] more in opposite directions. When something is 'trending' there is usually an opposite 'anti-trend' response. When short brim fedoras were popular, wide brim fedoras became the thing. Currently short crown fedoras are on trend, but there is a movement towards tall crowns."

Goorin Bros. like to maintain a heritage look while pushing styles many people are not wearing. "Wearing hats now is not about special occasions or formal 'dress up,' but taking classic shapes and wearing them to the beach or park," says Goorin. "Sitting on them, breaking them in, and looking and feeling natural." Being comfortable while stylish is trending for Goorin.

While effortlessly pushing headwear trends, Ben Goorin shares fall highlights that include loose knits, "exciting colors in felt," leather trimmings and open crowns. In case you aren't familiar, open crowns are fedoras without a pinch. The wearer is supposed to shape them, pinching the crown to the wearers liking or wearing sans pinch. This is the traditional way people bought fedoras pre-1940s. When asked how to describe the Goorin Man and Woman, Ben Goorin said the Goorin Man is "Understated. Genuine. Creative," and the Goorin Woman is "Strong. Unique. Stylish."

The Galaxy Explorer is a new style for this season that has a medium size crown. This style is a simple option suitable for both men and women. The Ramom style is a teardrop-crown trilby with a satin band; this style has a larger crown fitting to Goorin's mentioned movement towards tall crowns. This style however already has the "pinch" so no need to add your own.

On Inspiration

Ben Goorin said, "It's easy to be inspired if you know where to look. Anything old usually has the most character. Old labels and signage, linings in vintage sport coats, tools of the trade and clothing or the trade."

Historically the family business has utilized classic elements and things for inspiration. Ben Goorin continues his family's style traditions by looking at related objects for inspiration. Growing up around the industry makes knowing where to look for inspiration easy. He looks to retro sporting events such as car racing and leisure sports for inspiration. Travel? Not so much. As of late he utilizes the search power of Pinterest to generate more images stemming from his creative process.

Conglomerated under the Goorin Bros. brand are offshoot hat lines including Goorin Everyday that uses the slogan, "For work or play. For every day. A hat for every head." There's also The Heritage Line, Ted Goorin's Cut & Sew, Grenadier and 1333 Minna, which showcases a collection of collaborative hats made between Goorin Bros and various artists.

Planning a look around a Goorin Bros. hat? Tweet a photo to @EdgeOnTheNet and show us your #GoorinStyle!