Where can I buy Kangol Hats in NZ?

Kangol is an iconic British brand that has been creating its own unique style of flat caps, cheese cutters and beanies for over 50 years. Now, the brand is global with head offices in both London and New York.

And now, we're pleased to say Kangol Hats have a home in New Zealand as well.

That's right, Prohibition hats NZ has added Kangol to its Urban collection of designer hats to sit alongside our Goorin Brothers' Cheese Cutters and Fedoras and our Jaxon Hats range.

So, if you're asking yourself, "where can I buy Kangol Hats in New Zealand?"you now have the answer.

Kangol - Urban style from London

Great Britain has always been synonymous with flat caps and cheese cutters. And what greater place in Great Britain to create a trend setting style and Iconic brand than her capital, London?

Kangol started its days in a modest factory in Cleator in Cumbria, England in 1938.  Its founder, Jacques Spreiregen was a World War One veteran and, long before Kangol became the force of head wear that we all now know and love, he was the leading provider of berets to the British Army.

These berets became the must have head wear, throughout the 1960s, for the rich and famous including The Princess of Wales and The Beatles.

By using high quality designers who had a passion for hats (like your favourite Kiwi owned and operated online hat store), Kangol challenged the norm of the old fashioned flat caps and bonnets that were so prevalent in 1960s England.

They decided to do things a little bit differently. Rather than stick to the tried and tested tweeds and herringbones, they decided to incorporate some fresh new design touches into his patterns and shapes.

They began to introduce more 'ivy' shaped flat caps to supplement the traditional wide brim cheese cutter hat and began targeting a younger more urban crowd.

As the 60s drew to a close, Kangol cemented itself as a hip urban brand that was more mod than country. Who would have thought it? A flat cap perched on the head of a 1960s Londonite in Brixton.

Are Kangol hats good quality?

Kangol is now as famous for its designer flat caps and baseball caps as it is for its berets (and to a lesser extent, their range of fedoras and trilbies).

Many celebrities have endorsed Kangol hats with perhaps the highest profile being Samuel Jackson with his golf special. There's not doubt that this injection of celebrity has been instrumental in jettisoning Kangol into the big leagues.

One of the main reasons the brand has stood the test of time is down to the quality of the hat construction. Unlike many manufacturers, Kangol has not sacrificed quality for growth. They have maintained a cutting design edge whilst broadening their demographic. So much so that nowadays, Kangol cheese cutter hats could easily look good on a guy in his twenties or a hipster in his forties.

Largest range of Kangol Hats online in NZ

We reckon we have the largest range of Kangol hats and caps available online in New Zealand.  And the great news is, they're at a fantastic price too! Every single one of our Designer Kangol cheese cutter hats is less than $100 and our 25% discount when you buy two or more hats still applies. That means you could take home two Kangol Hats for only $142 - that's not bad for an authentic brand all the way from London, UK.

Our range of Kangol Hats includes the iconic Rain Tweed Peebles in black and grey, the Kangol 504 in black, dark flannel and flannel, the awesome Kangol Herringbone Newsboy and the Jacquard 507 - a style all of its own.

Kangol Rain Tweed Peebles

Kangol 504 Wool

Buy Kangol Hats NZ online today

At Prohibition Hats NZ we want to make it as easy as possible for you to find, buy and receive your funky new designer Kangol Hat.

That's why we still offer our 'no hassle returns' on hats that don't fit quite right and a super low delivery price of just $8.50 nationwide. All our hat sizes are easy to follow (see our website for all sizes) and we are only an email away for any help or assistance.

So, go online to www.prohibitionhats.co.nz/category/Kangol-hats for our full range of designer cheese cutters and flat caps from Kangol.

And remember, be kind to your head and make a statement with your choice of head wear.

Until next time.

Laurie Turnbull
Owner/Founder
Prohibition Hats NZ
www.prohibitionhats.co.nz
www.facebook.com/prohibitionhats

Prohibition Hats - a heap of new Cheese Cutters now in stock!

Loads of new cheese cutter hats now in stock!

Okay, I don't usually do these kind of obviously sales-promotional blogs but I just wanted to let everybody know that Prohibition Hats NZ just received an order of 200 new funky, urban cheese cutter hats.

Every kind of Cheese Cutter hat for the discerning Kiwi

So, we've been listening to our customers and they're telling us that they LOVE Jaxon Hats. Not so much the brand but the cool air of indifference they get from the understated nature of the cut. You know, subtly fashionable but not in your face.

That's why we have just taken in over 200 new Jaxon cheese cutter hats in time for the New year rush! 

A New Year Special Offer

It really wouldn't be New Year (wait, what about Xmas?!) without a special offer. So, for every order that comes in between now and January 10th, Prohibition Hats NZ will offer a 10% discount. That's right; we'll knock 10% off any order on a hat that isn't already discounted.

Just enter the promo code: NEWYEARPRO to get your discount.

Merry Christmas New Zealand!

Laurie & Gina

Prohibition Hats NZ

www.prohibitionhats.co.nz
https://plus.google.com/+LaurieTurnbullSEOGuy

The Newsboy: Creating the Gatsby look

Baz Luhrmann’s “The Great Gatsby,” premiered in New Zealand on the 6th June and you’re probably  thinking to yourself, “That Gatsby was a stylish fellow! I wish people still dressed like that.”

Well, the good news is the style is having a renaissance in the northern hemisphere - so why not here as well?

<Read the movie's reviews here>

The Prohibition era style

The roaring 1920s was a decadent era for Society's elite. They held opulent parties for their peers; where indulgence reigned supreme and people wanted for nothing. Basking in the rays of a pre-Depression America: the Land of the Free where the streets where paved with gold.

On the working side of the class divide, people  lived a different existence. One of varying degrees of hardship (to become decidedly harder when the Depression hit).

What brought the classes together was society's shared sense of style; of dressing for the occasion.

Dress like Jay Gatsby

The long reach of the British Empire had withered and with it, the extent of her influence. From her new found freedom, the USA found a personality that would forever more be synonymous with the Prohibition era.

1920s America borrowed much of its style of dress from Britain (due in part to the mass immigration of the time) but that's where the similarities ended.

A gentlemen always wore a suit - befitting the occasion for which it was to be worn. Tailoring was impeccable; the concept of 'off-the-rack' was yet to be invented. Colour, layering and flamboyance was in.

The hat maketh the man

Whether working class or social elite, a man would not be seen outdoors without a hat.

Every outdoor pursuit was an occasion to Don a different outfit and with it, the appropriate head wear.

It was during this period that classic hats  like the cheese cutter and modern versions of the fedora really came into their own. (The short brim trilby wouldn't appear for another four decades.)

During this time, the golf ivy came into vogue, along with the boater and of course, the Newsboy (or Gatsby).

You need Gatsby's millions to dress like him!

Finding the full set up may be a bit tricky for your average Kiwi man but there are a few places in the US of A that do specialise. But the prices are not for the faint hearted!

Throw on one $698 jacket, a pair of $598 shoes, some $298 trousers and a single $98.50 tie and you, too, can be Jay Gatsby – for just under $1,700 US old sport! (That's closer to $2100 to us Kiwis.)

1920s era options this side of the world

For most of us, the odd 1920s flourish is sufficient. Just enough to accentuate the outfit and a little bit of that 'head turning' interest I'm always talking about.

Pop online to www.indochino.com for a quality tie ($60), and a decent shirt ($200) and pick up your shoes from Scarpa ($200) and you're already on your way.

And, of course, the hat. Well, now you can satisfy your 1920s urges with a Newsboy hat for under $100.

Rather ol' sport!

Laurie Turnbull
Owner/Founder
Prohibition Hats NZ
www.prohibitionhats.co.nz
www.facebook.com/prohibitionhats

How is a cheese cutter different from a duck bill flat cap?

How is a cheese cutter different from a duck bill flat cap?

The cheese cutter classic shape

The cheese cutter hat has a wide brow and a peak which starts right at the top of the hat and protrudes out significantly. If you look at its profile, you'll see it has a 'wedge' appearance which is possibly linked to the origin of the name 'cheese cutter' (history is a little vague on that one).

The origin of the cheese cutter

The cheese cutter shape is synonymous with flat cap hats and can be traced back to the 14th century in Northern England and parts of Southern Italy. There it  was more likely to be called a "bonnet", which term was replaced by "cap" sometime before about 1700.

 

Flat caps were almost universally worn in the 19th century by working class men throughout Britain and Ireland. However, versions in finer cloth were considered to be suitable casual countryside wear for upper-class English men (hence the contemporary alternative name golf cap). 

The Duckbill flat cap

The duckbill (called an 'Ivy' in the USA) has quite a different shape to a cheese cutter.

Its origins are from when Irish and English immigrants arrived in the United States, bringing the flat cap with them. 

However, the origins of the duck bill shape is less clear. It is certainly a derivative of the original flat cap (with the same long peak) but it has been influenced heavily by the more modern hat shapes that came out of the States from the 1990s onwards.

Which fits better - a cheese cutter or duckbill flat cap?

Well, this really comes down to the shape of your head (or, to be more exact, your face).

Cheese cutters have a wide brow so have the effect of shortening your face. Whereas duckbills are ideal for people with a square face as their shallower peak and less roomy brow hugs your head more giving the hat a rounder appearance, softening your chin line. 

The best thing to do is try a few on a see what you prefer! Check out my blog '3 tips for choosing the right hat' as well as our 'hat size chart' for help on how to find the right hat for you.

Shop online for the best deals

Prohibition Hats NZ has the best range of cheese cutters and duck bill flat caps at the lowest prices in New Zealand.

We have a huge range of duck bill hats, traditional cheese cutter hats and loads more. Whatever your style, you'll find it here.

So, for the most stylish flat caps in NZ, shop online at www.prohibitionhats.co.nz/category/cheese-cutter-hats

Make a statement with your hat NZ!

Laurie Turnbull
Owner / Founder
Prohibition Hats NZ
www.prohibitionhats.co.nz
www.facebook.com/prohibitionhats
www.twitter.com/prohibitionhats