Nautical & Nice with Cross Classics
The future of fashion can be found in a luxury brand that has a long history in textile manufacturing. Carlie Wacker dives into the world of an iconic Italian men’s fashion label – Paul&Shark.
Gentlemen, step into style at the luxury fashion boutique on Hastings Street – Cross Classics. A gem of a store catering to locals and visitors that appreciate classic style, exquisite tailoring and brands that are coveted across the globe.
This hub of men’s fashion offers attire for every occasion and staff that make the job of wardrobe shopping effortless with their experience and passion for styling men of all ages.
The Cross Classics team have extensive knowledge of the brands they sell including a very popular and nautical-inspired brand, Paul&Shark.
Paul&Shark is a brand rich in fashion history. The story began in Italy in 1957 when Gian Ludovico Dini took over the mill Maglifico Daco which had been producing fabrics since 1921. The mill has famously partnered with luxury labels like Christian Dior and Balenciaga.
The next chapter in this family textile manufacturing business presented itself in the early 1970s when the eldest son of Gian Ludovico, Paulo (Paul) visited a sailmakers workshop in Maine, USA and stumbled across a sail from an 18th century clipper ship that was inscripted with ‘Paul&Shark’.
This one small moment in time birthed a brand that is now available all over the world and is the trailblazer for sustainable fashion and responsible textile manufacturing.
The Paul&Shark brand is a luxury men’s sports fashion label that continues to draw inspiration from the ocean in its nautical sports fashion that is both practical and effortlessly stylish.
The brand is responsible for the original crewneck sweater designed and produced in 1978 as a sailing pullover featuring a water-repellent knitwear patented by Paul&Shark.
Decades later, this iconic sweater remains an essential element in any stylish man’s wardrobe. In fact, this brand is responsible for developing many high performance technical materials that make the label not only one of the world’s favourite brands, but also one of the most innovative.
To this day you will find Paul&Shark in more than 140 countries and continually living up to its environmental and social pillars including Save The Sea.
They are leaders in improving the way the fashion industry works by reducing impact and preserving the environment and one way they achieve this is through developing green production techniques.
Most recently they have created a sustainable fabric named ECONYL® which is made from regenerated nylon from discarded material such as fishing nets. They also fight plastic pollution by teaming upcycling marine plastic to create SEAQUAL® YARN – a high quality 100% post-consumer recycled polyester yarn; their manufacturing processes are a benchmark for how the industry should be working with reuse of water through
a biofiltering system that allows continuous use of the same water and the reduction of water volumes used in the dying processes; and they use E.M.W. Protection technology – metal alloy fabric is used in their pockets to ensure a protective shield against the electromagnetic waves emitted by mobile devices – so clever!
In addition to trailblazing innovation in textile production they give back through Shark Trust, a non-governmental organisation that works to protect sharks through education and research.
This brand has also been awarded a plastic free certification which aligns with our Plastic Free Noosa mission.
Paul&Shark have a long history in fashion but are also the future of fashion leading the way for the industry to tread a little lighter on the planet. Shop the best of men’s fashion and the label that has mastered the art of coastal luxe style at Cross Classics, Hastings Street.
