Calvin Nguyen layers Barbour at Goodfight, Los Angeles

Calvin Nguyen, co founder of the Los Angeles menswear space Goodfight, understands that layering is not a Los Angeles convention—it is a practical necessity. In an image released by Barbour, he wears a charcoal Barbour Northumbrian jacket open over a red and navy striped knit, demonstrating how heritage outerwear functions across the city’s variable mornings and afternoons. The proportions tell the story: nothing tight, nothing constricting, each piece responsive to the body and to what sits beneath it.

Goodfight, which Nguyen founded, sits at the intersection of heritage brands and contemporary menswear. The gallery space treats classics as functional anchors rather than nostalgic gestures, a philosophy that mirrors Barbour’s own approach to utility and durability. By pairing the waxed cotton jacket—made using Barbour’s original construction methods—with visible knitwear at the neck and cuff, Nguyen reveals how layering works in practice: the pieces closest to the skin and between body and outerwear determine comfort across temperature shifts. The white cap and trousers with reflective piping suggest function without decoration, marking how contemporary Los Angeles dressing has evolved.

The Northumbrian jacket emerged from workwear worn across the North East of England and evolved through decades into a silhouette that moves between professional necessity and casual ease. Its weight and responsiveness, the way it sits on the shoulders, develop character through wear rather than staying static. The striped knit visible at cuff and collar is where layering reveals its true function. In Los Angeles, where mornings can be cool and afternoons warm, this practical logic becomes essential rather than decorative. Nguyen’s choice of red and navy stripes, paired with neutral trousers, demonstrates how colour and proportion work together without artifice.

What distinguishes Nguyen’s approach at Goodfight is treating each piece as a tool rather than a statement. The gallery environment gives clothes room to prove themselves without marketing language. Other pieces sit on the rails behind him in the image, suggesting the depth of what Barbour offers when approached as a starting point. The brand’s way, as it has always been, is to assume intelligence in the wearer: you choose the piece because it serves you, because it lasts, because it responds to how you actually move through your days.

The Goodfight space itself, visible in the frame, offers its own context: clean lines, considered display, the kind of gallery environment where clothes are given room to speak. Other pieces sit on the rails behind Nguyen, suggesting the depth of what Barbour offers when treated as a starting point rather than a statement. The brand’s way, as it has always been, is to assume intelligence in the wearer. You choose the piece because it serves you, because it lasts, because it responds to how you actually move through your days.

Calvin Nguyen co founded Goodfight in Los Angeles, a space dedicated to considered menswear and the pieces that outlast seasons. His work centres on the relationship between heritage brands and contemporary dressing, treating classics as functional anchors rather than nostalgic gestures. Goodfight’s approach mirrors Barbour’s own: utility first, aesthetics as consequence. The gallery environment where he works reflects this philosophy, giving each piece room to prove itself without marketing language or forced narrative.

Barbour’s Northumbrian jacket, the piece at the heart of this layering exercise, emerged from workwear worn across the North East of England and evolved through decades of refinement into a silhouette that moves between professional necessity and casual ease. The jacket’s waxed cotton construction, still made using the brand’s original methods, develops character through wear and patina rather than staying static. Its weight and responsiveness, the way it sits on the shoulders and moves with the body, are qualities that photographs can suggest but that matter most in the act of dressing and moving through a day.

The striped knit visible at cuff and collar is where layering reveals its true function: the pieces that sit closest to the skin and between body and outerwear determine comfort across temperature shifts. In Los Angeles, where mornings can be cool and afternoons warm, this practical logic becomes essential. Nguyen’s choice of a red and navy striped knit, paired with neutral trousers and a white cap, demonstrates how colour and proportion work together without decoration. The styling acknowledges that dressing in layers is not about adding pieces; it is about understanding how each one answers a specific need.

Imagery courtesy of Barbour (@barbour).