How have Hawaiian shirts come into existence?

In the 20th century, more specifically in the 1920s, tourism on the famous Hawaiian islands increased, welcoming American businessmen and high-profile people. This helped Chinese and Japanese people, who had come to work in the fields, to see a business opportunity connected to tourism. Henceforth began the first sales of Hawaiian shirts in-store and on commission alike, costing around 95 cents which combined with the garish qualities, made the Hawaiian shirt the perfect souvenir.

The first model of Hawaiian shirt was produced by a Hawaiian student’s mother, Gordon Young, who made a first “pre-Aloha” shirt that became very popular among college students using Yukata cotton, which is also used for Japanese kimonos.

Later on, other stylists produced similar shirts, seizing the large and untapped business opportunity. Ellery Chun produced the first Aloha Ahirts through his father’s company; King-Smith Clothiers, drawing inspiration from Filipino boys wearing colourful shirts

After the success of Hawaiian Shirts, Ellery was the first to register the first two shirt brands “Aloha Sportswear” and “Aloha Shirts” in 1936 and 1937.

The peak of success and failure

In 1942, after the U.S. entry into War World II, the fame of hawaiian shirts experienced a setback., Only after the economic recovery of the post-war period did hawaiian shirts reach their maximum sucess. From the 50’s to the 70’s the people in the city, soldiers, politicians, and movie stars all started wearing Aloha Shirts very often.

U.S. President Harry Truman was one of the first high-calibre people to end up on Life magazine wearing a hawaiian shirt. Many other celebrities such as Elvis Presley and actors Leonardo di Caprio and Jhonny Depp followed.

After the rise to success of these shirts, as many dark years came. After the arrival of hawaiian shirts in department stores like Wallmart, that lowering the prices shattered the competition, Aloha Shirts lost people’s interest and stepped out of the limelight.

But as we know, everything comes back in fashion. Around the oughties, thanks to the reassessment of big brands, hawaiian shirts had a revival.

Prada, Louis Vuitton and Valentino brought large hawaiian shirts with tropical patterns on the catwalk, astounding the crowds and relaunching the Aloha Shirts on the market.

The Design

Hawaiian shirts were born from a mix of traditions and styles from different countries, blended in only one model. The first ones were “reverse” shirts, in that the most colourful part was on the inside, making it look inside out.

Hawaiian shirts stand out for being large and comfortable, and were worn rigorously oversized. The collar is low and wide without the part that stiffens it, making this shirt a symbol of an informal lifestyle.

The main characteristic that makes it a casual shirt are the lively prints often depicting tropical elements like flowers, palm trees, beaches and fruit In addition to wide sleeves, which are an important detail for total comfort, we often find chest pockets and side slits.