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The army/navy retailer can always depend on the market viability of military (genuine and stylized) outerwear to lead the profit parade, especially when cold weather is in season.

“The M65 is the king right now,” according to Rothco’s John Ottaviano.

This venerable jacket is indeed the mainstay both of the U.S. military and the army/navy store customer looking for both fashion and function.

Building on the M65’s role as the franchise player in the military outerwear line, companies such as Rothco and Alpha Industries and others outside the industry have given the M65 some tweaks to extend its appeal to all genders and ages.

“Interpretations of the M65 were the hit of the winter MAGIC Show in Las Vegas,” said Ottaviano.

Rothco’s vintage washed M65s are their current sales leaders, according to Ottaviano.

At Alpha, Hy Slavin also vouches for warm and fuzzy sales of M65s.

“The M65 is a steady business for us,” said Slavin.

With the M65 holding up the center, Alpha is experiencing strong growth of B15 and 45T sales - growing by leaps and bounds, according to Slavin.

“The B15 and 45T have come on strong for us in the past two years. They both have collars that make a bold fashion statement and they appeal to men, women and childrens’ markets,” Slavin enthused.

MA-1-DERFUL?

Perhaps as appealing as the M65 and marketable as a more year-round seller is the MA-1 jacket. It is also an excellent platform for re-invention as a fashion item to broaden its appeal and extend its price points.

“The MA-1 is great. It’s the blue jean of military outerwear,” noted John Ottaviano.

Alpha too knows the viability of the MA-1.

“The MA-1 and the N3B are still the core of our business. Army/navy retailers can also make much of the novelty of updated military looks that can be applied to the MA-1,” said Hy Slavin.

Major Surplus & Survival offers military style outerwear with GORE-Tex® and a “smattering” of genuine surplus, according to Steve Adkisson.

“We can’t depend on U.S. government surplus or Government Liquidation.com anymore. The bulk of our outerwear are manufactured for us with our own brand name,” said Adkisson.

The N3B and the MA-1 jackets are the mainstays of Major’s line.