Kangol
Cleator, Cumbria (originally) / global· Est. 1938· $$
- Signature
- Iconic British headwear brand with the deepest newsboy and 504 catalog
- Best for
- A modern, casual newsboy or 504 in unusual colors
- Known for
- Newsboy, 504 ivy/driver, Flat cap
- Ships from
- United Kingdom / United States
Kangol started in a Cumbrian mill in 1938 making berets for the British Army; by the 1980s it was on the head of every hip-hop pioneer in New York. The kangaroo logo is one of the most recognized in headwear. They're not a heritage tweed maker — they're a design-led, color-driven, mass-market brand — and that's the point.
The 504 is their signature: a low-crown ivy/driver shape, originally produced in 1954 (hence the name), now made in dozens of cloths and colors including their famous boiled-wool Wool 504. The Spitfire and the Bermuda are the puffier newsboys.
Kangol is the right call when you want a flat cap that feels current rather than antique — a navy boiled-wool 504 with a black bomber, say, instead of a tweed cap with a tweed coat.
Cap styles Kangol is known for
- The Newsboy Cap →A fuller, eight-panel cap with a button at the crown and a stiffer snap-down brim — the cap of newsies, golfers and 1920s style icons.
- The Ivy Cap →A clean, low-profile two- or four-panel cap with a short snap-front brim — the polished American cousin of the flat cap.
- The Driver Cap →A snug, low-profile cap with a short curved brim, originally designed for early open-top motoring.