Another major figure in the sportswear industry has passed away. British menswear designer Nigel Cabourn has died at the age of 77 from cancer. This longtime insider and expert, one of the most influential figures in British heritage fashion, had spent almost six decades designing menswear inspired by military, workwear, sportswear, and streetwear.
Untiring and always participating the major international trade shows, this iconic and visionary designer was born near Scunthorpe in 1949 and later based in the northeast of England. He launched his first label, Cricket, while studying at Newcastle College of Art and Industrial Design in 1969. He then established the Nigel Cabourn label, which was strongly appreciated worldwide and particularly in Japan.
His creations drew inspiration from vintage military uniforms, mountaineering apparel, and workwear, with many designs based on pieces from his archive of more than 4,000 historic garments.
Over the course of his career, he collaborated with brands including Belstaff, Fred Perry, Umbro, Converse, Eddie Bauer, Filson, Gloverall, Karrimor, Mammut and Peak Performance, to name a few.
In recent years, the Nigel Cabourn brand generated annual global sales of around £10m and operated 11 stores in Japan through licensing partner Marubeni, alongside a network of premium wholesale accounts worldwide.
On 11 March 2026, the British trade magazine Drapers recognized Cabourn’s contribution to the industry with the inaugural Outstanding Contribution Award at the Drapers Cosncious Fashion Awards 2026, in London.
“I’m a very functional designer,” he told Drapers for the occasion. “I’ve been lucky to do what I wanted to do, what I believed in,” he said expressing his 60-year very prolific career in a few highly effective and impressive words.