The Maha Tailor Shop – Maharishi Explores Customized Navy Uniforms

s/s 2021 / sustainability

Maharishi's peace army marches on and revisits 1960's Vietnam for its new collection, The Maha Tailor Shop. The arrival of over 400,000 U.S. soldiers in Vietnam resulted in a great demand for tailors to modify and customize standard army uniforms, which were not designed for the local tropical climate. As the war went on many U.S. soldiers started showing solidarity to local allied forces by incorporating their mythological camouflage patterns, known as ‘bullet-proofs’ or ‘purples’ into their uniforms. Every GI followed its own personal sense, beliefs and superstitions in order to endure the circumstances, and dressed accordingly.

For Spring/Summer 2021 Maharishi has reproduced the original 1960’s cotton sateen with organic yarns in order to create faithful reproductions and modified versions of utility suits, as well as creating Eastern-inspired silhouettes using excess military cloths and trims. Badged versions of utility and jungle uniforms are offered in the original OG-107 olive color, as well as in black – in reference to the Special Forces overdyed uniforms, which allowed them to move like ninjas during night time operations. Patches and branch tapes for this season focus on the U.S. Navy River Patrol Section 513 unit, celebrated in Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘Apocalypse Now’, itself based on Joseph Conrad’s book ‘Heart of Darkness’.

Since its inception, Maharishi has focused on using the latest technologies in order to produce sustainable utilitarian clothing. The collections feature natural fibres, up-cycled military clothing, organic cottons, recycled plastics, and vegetable-dyed fabrics.

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