Carhartt WIP Guide
Carhartt WIP is a separate European business. Work In Progress was established in 1994 as the exclusive European distributor of Carhartt and acquired the licence to manufacture outside the United States in 1996. This guide covers the history, the differences and what to check.
In this guide
Carhartt and Carhartt WIP are two companies that share one name. Carhartt WIP is a separate European business, and its history explains how the two lines relate.
Where Carhartt WIP came from
The chronology below follows the company's own history.
| Year | What happened |
|---|---|
| 1989 | Edwin Faeh begins bringing American products, Carhartt among them, to the European market under the name All American Concept. |
| 1994 | Work In Progress is established by Edwin Faeh as the exclusive European distributor of Carhartt. |
| 1996 | Work In Progress acquires the licence to manufacture Carhartt products outside the United States. |
| 1997 | The first collection is released, and the first Carhartt WIP store opens on Neal Street in London. |
Two dates matter when dating an item. Work In Progress was established in 1994 and the licence to manufacture followed in 1996, with the first collection in 1997. A Carhartt WIP item presented as older than that does not fit the company history.
Work In Progress was established in 1994, and a Carhartt WIP label on an older garment does not fit that history.
Leverene
How Carhartt WIP differs
Carhartt WIP clothing generally differs from the American line in four ways.
- Cut. The cut is generally slimmer and shorter than the American equivalents, designed for wearing over a T-shirt rather than over several work layers.
- Colour. Seasonal palettes are used instead of the fixed workwear range, which centres on brown, black and navy.
- Fabric. Lighter weights are used alongside the heavy duck.
- Collaborations. Carhartt WIP releases collaborations as a continuous programme.
Telling them apart
The label settles it. A Carhartt WIP item has Carhartt WIP written out on the tag, while American production has Carhartt, frequently with Made in USA.
Beyond the label, three secondary signals can support it: the cut through the body, the colour and the weight of the cloth. A slim, seasonally coloured, lighter jacket points towards the European line, but the tag decides.
The fuller breakdown is in the article Carhartt or Carhartt WIP: what is the difference.
What to check when buying
Carhartt WIP items are younger than most American Carhartt items, which changes what tends to fail on them.
- The print or embroidery. Graphic items are common in the range, and lifting at the edges of a print is the fault to look for.
- The zip. The zip is the first thing to test, as on any jacket.
- Colour consistency. Colour can fade unevenly, so sleeves and body should be compared under good light.
- The measurements. As with American Carhartt, the measurements are a more reliable guide than the letter.
Every item is authenticated through LegitApp before it reaches the store. Each item is then professionally cleaned, steamed, measured and photographed individually, and wear is shown in the photos and detailed in the description.
Choosing between the two
| What is needed | Look at |
|---|---|
| Workwear cut and heavier cloth | American Carhartt |
| A slimmer cut | Carhartt WIP |
| Seasonal colour rather than workwear brown and black | Carhartt WIP |
Current items are collected under Carhartt WIP, with separate pages for men and women, and in the wider streetwear and workwear collections.
Related articles
Reading Carhartt Tags explains how to date an American Carhartt item, Carhartt Jackets Compared covers the jacket models, and the Carhartt Sizing Guide covers sizing by measurement. The wider picture is in the Carhartt guide.
Sources
- Carhartt WIP company history: 1989, Edwin Faeh begins introducing American products including Carhartt to Europe under the name All American Concept; 1994, Work In Progress established by Edwin Faeh as exclusive European distributor; 1996, Work In Progress acquires the licence to manufacture Carhartt products outside the United States; 1997, first collection released and first Carhartt WIP store opens on Neal Street, London.
