Category: Brands

The tag is one of your best allies in the vintage t-shirt authentication arena. It’s a stronger authenticity signal than single-stitching and a copyright combined, but authentication via the tag should always be done in conjunction with an analysis of the print. We’ll explain why below. Sewn-in Tags We have seen counterfeiters attempting to pass of t-shirts with genuine vintage tags installed from other shirts. It is, however, not very common – because it’s tough to do, seamlessly, pun intended. In most of the instances, I’ve seen it was super obvious – the seams are off – the tag is ... Read more

@tiltedmoons is the online moniker of t-shirt collector Brian Lugo. Self-described, “Chicago has-been with Floridian funk.” visit his page on Instagram to see more of his vintage Space Ghost shirt collection along with other gems from the 90s-00s. Our story starts with Space Ghost. The classic Hanna-Barbera property that was given a new life by being reimagined from his 60s intergalactic superhero persona into an overly confident, yet very out of place, 90s late-night talk show host. “Space Ghost Coast to Coast” was one of Cartoon Network’s first original productions. The weirdness of the show eventually gave way to the ... Read more

1983-1995 Tennessee River Inc. was founded in the early 1980s in Florence, Alabama. Florence at the time was considered the ‘T-shirt Capital of the World” (5,000 textile workers in a two-block radius). Just a quick geography lesson for anyone outside the US or (like me) terrible at geography: The Tennessee River forms in Knoxville, TN before traveling through Alabama, Mississippi and finally ending at the Ohio River in Kentucky. In 1983 we see the 1st Tennessee River tag, these are rare and are found mostly on athletic wear. Vintage Brands Insider Sign-up Email*: Subscribe 1989 is when the brand introduces ... Read more

1981-1989 Ocean Atlantic Textile Screen-Printing Inc., RN 73995, known as OATS or Wild OATS, Was founded in 1981 by Jerry Klause in Ocean City, New Jersey. Klause got his start on the Atlantic City Boardwalk creating t-shirts mostly for local casinos. During this time it was rare to see an OATS tag on an OATS t-shirt but when present they were 50/50 poly-cotton. More often, Oats would use other blanks like Spring Ford, Ched, and Signal – but their shirts could be identified by their logo and date printed below the design. 1990-1999 Vintage Brands Insider Sign-up Email*: Subscribe 1990 ... Read more

1974-1987 Brockum (originally Krimson Corp.) was started in 1974 in England, later moving to New Jersey. In 1984 it was purchased by Toronto-based Concert Productions International (CPI). During this period there was no Brockum tag, usually just a generic ‘Made in Canada’ tag with RN#69761. Not only did Brockum’s roster include British titans like The Rolling Stones, Def Leppard, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, and Yes, but they also had licensing deals with Michael Jackson, Guns N’Roses, and Metallica. 1988-1997 In 1988 Brockum was sold to Labatt Brewing Company, this is when we start seeing the OG silver tags. It seems ... Read more