N.Y. Fashion Week: Gents gets into the ring for spring

The inspiration: For spring 2015, Josh Reed, founder and chief executive of the L.A.-based menswear brand Gents, took inspiration from two traditionally manly pursuits -- boxing and Formula One racing.

The look: The 2-year-old brand, which started with high-end baseball caps (“the kind you could wear to dinner at the Chateau Marmont,” says Reed) made its first foray into apparel for fall and winter 2014, further expanding its minimalist-luxe offerings for spring. Grounded in a color palette of muted reds, blues, grays, black and white, the casual sportswear collection mines the sporting motif with geometric patterns and prints riffing on racing gear and a range of T-shirts, sweat pants, sweat shorts and hoodies that mine the aesthetic of what A.J. Leibling called “the sweet science.”

Key pieces: Given the brand’s roots, it’s no surprise that the collection served up a deep bench of high-end headwear (think caps in salmon-colored linen or mixed fabrications of leather and chambray hats), but there were also luxe takes on the muscle tank, the sweat pant (in black micro-suede), track pants (in nylon taffeta), sweat shorts (this is apparently becoming a real thing for spring -- Reed’s versions are in French terry) and a snappy white dress shirt with a racing-inspired black stripe up one arm, across the back of the yoke and down the other arm.

Although not the star of the presentation, there were some noteworthy denim pieces too -- especially the dark-as-night raw selvage straight-leg jeans.

The verdict: Given the ever-growing appetite for luxury menswear that doesn’t scream luxe (a.k.a. normcore), Reed’s spring 2015 collection puts Gents firmly in the driver’s seat. All he needs to put him firmly in the winner’s circle is equally over-the-top under-the-radar footwear.

We’re waving the green flag.