Russell Simmons: American Classics for Walmart

Article written by: SoJones
Posted on: March 30, 2009

In the midst of hard times in 2009, Russell Simmons has responded by the debut his new clothing line, American Classics for Wal-Mart. Everyone likes to look nice whether they’re ‘ballin’ or not and Russell Simmons has hopefully created a recessionproof clothing line for men to do so. The clothing line is said to reflect that of his higher end brand ‘Argyle Culture,’ which is sold at Macy’s, but with a greater difference in price. While Argyle Culture prices at $65.00 for a polo shirt, the American Classics polo’s are priced at $12.00 a pop. Russell Simmons describes this clothing line as, “preppy…like a less expensive Tommy Hilfiger.”

American Classics has a wide variety of choices consisting of sweater vests, button-up woven shirts, shorts, cargo pants, five-pocket jeans, and golf-inspired plaid shorts and polo’s. They are also reasonably priced ranging from $9.99 to $29.00. The new line is not bland and definitely fits in well with other competing clothing lines. Russell states that this clothing line is a reflection of the ‘urban graduate.’ It may not be the typical Phat Farm look, but it’s not too far fetched. Simmons describes the urban graduate look as, “25-to-50-year-old men such as Will Smith, Adam Sandler and Barack Obama, who grew up with hip-hop clothes, but as professionals can no longer don baggy pants and shirts sporting oversize logos.” It is definitely a good look and follows in our trend of ‘change’ and progression.

The first season of American Classics is said to concentrate on the mutual and complimentary colors of purple, navy, and white that will for sure reflect the more mature and prosperous male. The fact that the clothing line will also be available online reflects the changing times of increasing technology usage and Hip-Hop representation. A lot of celebrities have created clothing lines and shoe brands for the makes of chain stores such as Wal-Mart and Target and they are not always reflective of urban wear. However, from the looks of things, Russell has stayed true to his roots and used his creative greatness to reach out to all aspects of the community to ensure quality and stylish gear. If people disregard the fact that it is sold at ‘Wal-Mart’ and realize that we are deep into financial problems, then a clothing line that is rich style that has been establish by a Hip-Hop mogul for under $20.00 is indeed a good look.