Snapback Hats

A LOOK AT THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE OF SNAPBACK HATS

Snapback hats have developed a cult following in the world of sportswear apparel. A fitted cap is great, but there’s just something special about a classic hat like this. Gotta love the snapback hats of the previous decades. You can’t deny the freshness of these. Ol’ school team logos and colors, contrast color brim and eyelets, green under-brim. One size fits all. Structured crown. What’s not to love about snapback hats?

         One of the most notable features of snapback hats is they can be commonly found in either wool blend or cotton twill. The cotton twill snapback hat is most common, but the wool snapback hat can be more closely compared to a typical fitted cap, which is most popular nowadays. Another remarkable characteristic of snapback hats is the green underbrim. I see a green underbrim on a cap and I can immediately identify it as a classic snapback hat without even confirming the plastic adjustable snap. That lush green canvas represents the grassy fields on which baseball is played, as the style of cap we’ve grown to know and love has its roots in America’s sport.

        The snapback hat was a phenomenon in the 80s and 90s, and now we can only reminisce on those days in which it reigned supreme. As the popularity of the fitted cap grew, less of the sportwear audience bought into snapback hats and instead leaned towards fitted headwear. Recently though, the snapback hat has made a return to the sportswear scene, and I’m forecasting longevity as more and more streetwear brands are begining to feed the consumers demand for these classic hats.

What the future holds for snapback hats can only be determined by the rate at which the snapback hat consumer base grows. I don’t think the fitted cap will ever fall from the throne, but there’s definitely a good chance that many will begin to appreciate the snapback hat again. As sportswear and streetwear apparel brands continue to add their own twists to the classic template, the possibilities become endless, and snapback hats will never fade.

—AJ CAMARA

(Photo Credit)

What’s your favorite classic snapback hat? Any dope streetwear brand snapback hats we should check out?
Let us know!