Design Eye: Peter Sums up the Succinct

[For this, the second installment of The Thought Kitchen's ongoing conversation about design, Josie sat down with Nau designer Peter Kallen to discuss the finer points of the Succinct Trench. For More of The Design Eye, check out last month's inaugural post, on the Lightbeam Jacket. —Ed]
Josie: So tell us about the Succinct?
Peter: Ok, well, just so you know, only the Succinct Trench for women is new this year—the Succint Trench for men is so genius that we didn’t change it. When we find something we like, we run with it! But they’re both inspired by this use of new technology: the lightweight 2.5-layer recycled polyester fabric. The reason why we chose 2.5 layer is the fact that it’s waterproof, it’s breathable, but it’s really light. You can compact it, compress it, take it with you: it packs down to the size of a small cantaloupe.
What we decided what we wanted to achieve with this was a trench with the silhouette of a longer length coat, something not unlike what you would see back in the Quadorphenia, mod scooter days.
Josie: ???
Oh, you know the old longer length jackets they used to wear on scooters? That whole ‘mod’ movement? These jackets take on that kind of role, but with new technology. They’re a very refined, modern approach to a trench that’s not trying to be so stuffy or uptight but a bit more spirited and on the move. And that’s why the 2.5 layer fabric was used—the fact that you can stuff it into your bag or your pack or whatever. And it’s kind of cool that while this fabric performs really well in any kind of condition, and it has this really cool style. It’s just an opportunity to make a silhouette that fits really interestingly into your wardrobe: the trench style allows you to be really professional in it, but you can use it for other things too.
We wanted to make something really precise and pointed in this versatile way. Use the cues that it’s a trench, and then keep it vague in the sense of how you would interpret its use in your wardrobe. It becomes really versatile in that way.












Working at Nau, I get to know the ins and outs of recycled fabrics. Recycled polyester? Deal with it every day. Recycled wool? Sure. But until last week I hadn’t even heard of recycling cotton—or how close I am to one of its stories every day.
Hungry? September is the time of year when an unlikely harvest hits its peak here in Portland. While tourists and foodies seek out the perfect peach or pear in agricultural meccas like Hood River’s
We have been happily riding together since the summer of 2002. She was created by 













