If you’re a Gen-Xer or a millennial—or even the oldest of Gen-Z—then preppy equals varsity jackets, khakis, navy cricket sweaters, collegiate jerseys… you get the gist. “Preppy” conjures up images of frat boys in tailored shorts, boat shoes, and Lacoste polo shirts. There are Tommy Hilfiger, Abercrombie & Fitch, Ralph Lauren, J. Crew.
If you’re Gen Alpha, however, at least according to TikTok, then “preppy” means something completely different: Stanley tumbler cups, pastel colored athleisure, cutesy smiley face graphics. But in designer Yoon Ahn’s imaginary high school, the one in which she’s been contextualizing her latest Ambush collections revolving around the school uniform, it’s the OG prep that counts.
This generational split in fashion vernacular is the true indicator of who Ahn is speaking to with these clothes. There is a sense of nostalgia attached to the idea of a school uniform, whether you wore one or not, that only comes with hindsight—few teenagers actually enjoy having to wear the same thing every day. Add to that the overarching idea of collegiate Americana that became a prominent American aesthetic indicator by way of high school movies from the aughts. “We used to look up to America as the cultural leader,” said Ahn, “something aspirational through this aesthetic that became ingrained in people that is now something they want to revisit.”
Prep was exported from the U.S. into the world to become a globalized aesthetic, one that is often more compelling—and cool—out of context. That was the case with this lineup, which Ahn said she created by researching imagery of preppiness in American literature and by vintage hunting in Japan, (“Japan has an obsession with Americana,” she noted). There was a coolness to her varsity knits and the treatment of “Ambush” as a team or school logo, and the subtraction of the argyle sweater motif as cutouts on a poplin shirt and patchworks of flannels and rugby shirts showcased her playful ingenuity as a designer.
Ahn said that what attracted her to this preppy Americana uniform was not just the nostalgia, but that there is “a steadiness to the aesthetic.” This same stability is what Ahn has been chasing after with her thematic examination of the uniform in her collections. “Although the theme might change every season, I always make sure that whatever I made last season can carry on to the next,” she said, adding, “we all now shop without disregarding what we wore in the winter just because we’re about to go into spring.” Regardless of what we call it, there is a consistency to the idea of “preppy.” Four seasons deep in the world of uniforms, there is now one to Ambush, too.
