DENVER – Fashion. Football. Flair. It was all on display Monday night when Colorado-based clothing brand Jiberish launched a special apparel collection for the Colorado Rapids at its clothing boutique in Denver’s RiNo art district.
“We wanted to reimagine the Colorado Rapids franchise and brand through a vintage sports lens with a nod to the history of the State of Colorado and our natural surroundings,” Jiberish co-founder and managing director Pete Drago said of the collection. “We used fabrics that address the unique weather we experience here.”
The brand’s name, Jiberish is derived from “jib," the act of jumping and riding on terrain park features. It's also an homage to the brand’s ski and snowboard roots, and, of course, the word “gibberish," an eclectic mixture of seemingly non-connected things.
The brand's connection to soccer might at first seem to fall into the latter category. But the Rapids have previously paid homage to the link between fashion and Colorado’s skiing heritage in the past, showcasing their kits at Breckenridge Ski Resort as part of an unveil prior to the 2013 season. And, naturally, the link between fashion and the sport has been long established, from Pelé's public appearances with Parisian fashion model Brigitte Bardot in the 1970s to David Beckham’s underwear campaigns of today.
“I think it’s a very good idea, because [Jiberish] has a very nice collection,” Rapids midfielder Shkëlzen Gashi said. “Soccer has always been involved with fashion and this partnership is amazing.”
The Jiberish collection features a variety of items from hats to tees to sweatshirts and pullovers.
Which items were must-haves for Rapids players’ closets? Style guru Gashi, along with teammates Marlon Hairston and Dillon Serna, all gave their takes.
“I’m a guy who likes black, so the black caps and black shirts with Rapids logos are great,” said Gashi.
Hairston, a fashion connoisseur in his own right, noted the quality of the materials involved in making the collection.
“It’s great to see some of the pieces that [Jiberish] has,” said Hairston. “I like the T-shirts and the sweatshirts. I like the materials in the terry tees.”
According to information provided by Jiberish, the tees use a 260gsm baby French terry cloth which provides “more warmth and comfort on cool days."
The comfort factor was a key feature for Serna.
“I really like the gear. I think it’s really comfortable and really stylish,” he said. “I like the short sleeved shirts and the crew neck sweatshirt. I like the rugby style pullover as well; I think that’s going to be popular.”
The Rapids trio can be seen sporting various items from the line in Jiberish’s promo launch video:
All in all, it’s a line that the brand was proud to work on, and one which they believe fans will be excited to wear, whether it be at the game or out on the town.
“It was such a cool opportunity for us to work with MLS and our hometown team that we really went in on the design and production of the pieces,” said Drago. “It would have been a lot easier to just make a few tees and sweatshirts on blanks but we decided to go completely cut-and-sew with the range, either custom milling or sourcing all of our own materials at our favorite markets. We could not be happier with how it all came together.”
Looking to get your hands on the new Rapids gear by Jiberish? It’ll all be available for purchase at the Rapids Team Store when Colorado takes on Vancouver this Friday, May 5 (10 pm ET, TSN in Canada, MLS LIVE in US).
You can also drop by the Jiberish Boutique at 2650 Walnut Street in Denver (M-F 11am-7pm, Sun 12-6pm).
