Dive Brief:

• In a move that expands the company deeper into luxury apparel and further beyond the resale market, streetwear and sneaker marketplace Stadium Goods announced on Tuesday the debut of its capsule apparel brand, Stadium, according to information emailed to Retail Dive. 
• The collection includes 11 pieces ranging from $85 to $400 and is available at the Stadium Goods website, its stores in New York and Chicago, parent company Farfetch's website and at "select boutique retail partners."  
• The new brand is led by Greig Bennett, vice president of brand creative and head designer. 

Dive Insight:

Platform Stadium Goods wants to make its own mark in luxury streetwear with its new stand-alone apparel line. 

Bennett describes the products as "clothing for the ambitious that embodies the culture and hustle of sneakers and streetwear in every stitch." The primarily cut and sew collection features relaxed pieces influenced by streetwear culture and includes a varsity jacket / hoodie combo, a fleece tracksuit, a tie-dye hoodie and a rugby sweater, among other pieces. 

As the pandemic has changed trends around how people dress, casual clothing including athleisure has come to the forefront as people dress down for daily life. Those trends can be seen in the recent acquisition of Supreme by VF Corp for $2.1 billion even as its sister brand, The North Face, which leans more toward "gorpcore," proves that its popularity is increasingly on the rise. 

"Streetwear remains authentic for the segments who live in urban environments and, I believe, will survive — not as a category that can be merchandised (for example by VF) but rather as a way of dressing that can be authentically styled by those who rule the streets," Thomai Serdari, professor of luxury marketing and branding at New York University's Stern School of Business, said in an interview earlier this year with Retail Dive. 

Stadium Goods was founded in 2015, and then acquired by Farfetch for $250 million in 2018. In its fourth quarter earnings, Farfetch reported that full year revenue was up 64% to $1.7 billion.

Last fall, parent company Farfetch joined with Alibaba Group and Richemont to form an international partnership to give luxury brands "enhanced access" to China. The joint venture allowed Farfetch to launch shopping channels on Alibaba's platforms, thereby expanding its reach. Alibaba and Richemont also invested a combined $500 million in Farfetch China.