Benjamin Moore is getting into the streetwear market for Contractor Appreciation Month.
The paint manufacturer has teamed up with streetwear brand Market’s founder and creative director Mike Cherman to create a workwear-inspired capsule collection to celebrate the occasion.
“The design process for us was really just trying to honor the legacy and the history of the Benjamin Moore brand,” Cherman said. “As much as we wanted to go crazy and make a bunch of loud stuff, I just wanted [the collection] to reflect all the different types of people who are contractors out there in the space. It was a chance for the brand to shake that up and I think for us an exciting one all around from a product perspective.”
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The capsule collection offers 20 sets that include custom work jackets and pants as well as a long-sleeve shirt, T-shirt and beanie, with each set priced at $300. The collection will be available starting Wednesday on the video shopping platform Ntwrk.
Cherman designed the pieces with both Benjamin Moore and Market’s logos and included subtle design details like patches and stitching to make each set different. He explained that the collection reflects Market’s “DIY mentality and approach” when it comes to streetwear. The pieces were also designed at Market’s Random Workshop, which is the brand’s in-house atelier.
“[The sets] feature a bunch of different little customizations that are really small details — from little hand stitches and repairs,” he said. “It’s something that pays homage to someone who would wear the pants over a 20-year period — to repair it and keep it working.”
The collection falls in line with the proliferation of workwear-inspired pieces in the streetwear market. Cherman explained he thinks workwear has been increasing in popularity because the style is “tried and true.”
“Workwear is something that is truly rugged, but it’s something that the everyday blue-collar person around us wears in their everyday life, versus vanitywear or sportswear,” he said. “Workwear shows that you’re a hard-working person and that you’re probably out there building something. I think people like the idea of representing that with their outfit.”