For sale here is a shirt from Gangsterville, part of a pretty underrated family of brands from the Glad Hand label, including Glad Hand, Old Crow and Weirdo among others. Glad Hand aren’t exactly well known in Japan, and Gangsterville and Weirdo are probably even more obscure, but they’re all a part of the “American casual” movement that’s been going on for quite a while. That is, Glad Hand and its associated labels are strongly influenced by vintage American workwear. Where some other labels are maybe more inclined toward basic vintage reproduction, the Glad Hand family definitely incorporate their own aesthetic. Gangsterville goes for a 1940s vibe, Weirdo seems to mine 1950s era rock-n-roll, and Glad Hand has more of a vintage look. Although they produce very limited quantities and can be hard to come by even in Japan, the quality is really excellent. They’re one of those cult labels people talk about in hushed tones, willfully obscure but making some of the more interesting things out there.
In this case we have a woven cotton striped shirt from Gangsterville. The fabric is really excellent, coming in a highly textured knit with red and blue stripes. You can see the level of texture on the detailed shots, where this is in no way a standard shirt fabric. This is a three quarter sleeve silhouette with a curved hem. Details include henley neck with vintage style cat’s eye buttons, “gangsterville” embroidery on the front, chest pocket, and silk screened print on the back. The details of the silk screen can be a bit difficult to make it, but the top says “gangsterville” in cursive, and it features a graphic of a skull on a top hat.
As noted, these pieces are rare even in Japan, and Glad Hand and its family of labels currently have very limited international distribution. Quality is uniformly excellent, and this is reflecting in the pricing. Retail on these shirts in Japan is about $150, and would certainly cost you more abroad if you could find it. Get a very rare, totally unique piece here at a very reasonable price.
Size is labeled a medium and fits true. I measure the chest at 22”, shoulders at 18.5”, length at 25” and sleeves at 18” from the shoulder. The shirt comes in lightly used, very good shape with no holes, tears, stains or obvious signs of wear. Made in Japan.
Shipping from Japan to anywhere will be $24.