Walking around Dickinson’s campus, I see a lot of impeccably put together outfits. Whether I’m studying in Rector or going from the Library back to my dorm, there isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t see at least one article of clothing I like.
One of the most common items I’ve seen since I’ve arrived on campus are the oversized, pastel colored mockneck crewneck from the brand Parke. Emblazoned with a large, embroidered logo simply reading “PARKE,” it feels like these sweatshirts have exploded throughout the last year.
The Dickinson field hockey team has made their own version of the crewnecks, with “PARKE” written in red letters and a small bubble with “DCFH” below it, and I’ve seen videos of sororities across the country using the logo and brand as a bid day theme.
This is surprising, seeing as these crewnecks cost, on average, $130, a rather eye-popping price for a sweatshirt that’s 100% cotton. Don’t get me wrong, I think they’re cute and perfectly suited for a fall outfit (I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have my eyes on the version of the crewneck in Dickinson red) but I can’t shake how expensive they are. And so, I wanted to look into the brand and catch up with the brand’s story and mission.
Parke was founded in 2022 by Chelsea Parke, who started with a love of timeless, elegant styles of clothing and a project with upcycled vintage denim in years prior. Her fixation on finding the perfect pair of jeans and white tee shirt was the catalyst in starting the brand PARKE. Her goal was to create a product that was beautiful, well-made, and designed to be transition pieces that could be worn every day for different circumstances. The now viral loungewear and matching sets launched in 2023.
Worn by college-aged girls around the country, there are debates about whether or not the sweatshirts are worth the hype they’ve accumulated in the last few months. Some argue that walking around with a person’s last name plastered across your chest is a sign you need to touch some grass, while others defend its merits and praise it as a cute basic and covert status symbol.
People warmed up to the sweatshirts more as dupes became more readily available, as a way to beat the price gouging that the Parke sweatshirts have fallen vistim to on secondhand marketplaces like Poshmark and Depop.
All in all, I think the sweatshirts are one of this year’s “it items,” but will likely have a longevity in a way other microtrends may not have.
