From the 1930s to the 1960s, the 19th-century American workwear brand Lee produced all of the uniforms for Coca-Cola’s factory workers. For bottlers on the production line, stains and splash marks were inevitable, so to save time, new hires would dunk their crisp, gleaming white work attire in nearby vats of Coke, hoping that the discoloration would reduce the contrast and hide their future mistakes. (As a result, most of the surviving examples have a distinctive, orange-brown hue.)
Peter Middleton, who founded the label Wythe after leaving Ralph Lauren, doesn’t just collect charming American stories like these—he works them into his designs. Wythe’s Workshirt, for example, has four pleats at the shoulders, a detail directly lifted from one of Lee’s Coca-Cola shirts. The difference, however, is that it also comes in three precisely formulated custom fabrics (a madras, a flannel, a chambray), 18 distinct, eye-catching washes, and a relaxed fit that’s considerably more comfortable than its midcentury ancestor.
