provided by: 
Military outerwear is one of those merchandise categories that defines an army/navy store. As the weather turns colder, military outerwear assumes an even more prominent place for merchants, as customers seek high quality, value-priced garments that offer warmth, durability and fashion.
Although military personnel today wear the new digital ACU (army combat uniform), traditional black and woodland camo BDUs remain the strongest sellers with the general public.
Military Outdoor Clothing enjoys successful sales of used, original G.I. digital ACUs, which it buys at auctions, but MOC does not manufacture ACUs.
"We made a decision to stay away from the competitive market of the new uniforms. The demand is just as high for the used ones and this seems to be the way to go," said spokesman Kenneth Kinnard.
Customers prefer the used look in camo, said Kinnard.
"The used look has been in for awhile and is now in just about every fashion retail outlet in the country. I don't see it going away for anytime soon," he said.
"Military as fashion is still hotter than a pistol," said Rothco's John Ottaviano.
Rothco offers both mil-spec Army digital ACU and the traditional BDU in digital patterns, Ottaviano said.
"This combination has been very beneficial to our dealers. Those selling to soldiers and reservists have done very well with ACUs. The mainstream customer is already familiar with the BDUs and likes them. He just wants something in the new color."
Rothco's fastest growing item, however, is the hooded jacket.
"Anything with a hood is big, especially sweatshirts," said Ottaviano.
Camouflage patterns are hot, as are prints such as peace signs and the word, "ARMY".
Military hooded jackets, including the N3B, N2B are top sellers, and the ECWCS parka is Rothco's hottest military item. Rothco sells styles in Woodland camouflage and polar fleece, the latter popular with members of the military.
The M-65 field jacket has been a staple item, year in and out.
"They have shown remarkable consistency," said Ottaviano, who notes that Rothco has added sales with its vintage washed M-65 field jacket, some with skull prints on the back.
"They were a monster at the ASD show," said Ottaviano.
MA-1s have been on an upsurge this year, he said, in part because many mainstream retailers and distributors are backing off them.
"The army/navy store is once again the best place to get this item," Ottaviano said.
Rothco's bright color BDUs are still going strong, but less as a fashion than a promotional item.
"They do well in conjunction with high school, college and professional sport team colors," said Ottaviano, noting that purple is a strong in the Baltimore region where the Ravens play, and orange camo is hot near the University of Tennessee.
"This works on the high school level as well," he said, noting that Rothco sells women' tees in bright colors for cheerleaders.
Schreck Wholesale enjoys strong sales of ACU patterns in helmet covers, boonie hats, and backpacks. Spokesman Harold Hirsch notes that that the coming winter will be Schreck's first season selling ACU outerwear.
Traditional black BDUs remain popular, said Hirsch. Woodland camo also continues to sell well, even though the military no longer wears it.
The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have little effect on sales of military products today, said Hirsch.
"When the war first began everybody was very patriotic and they wanted to support the troops somehow by wearing what the troops were wearing," said Hirsch.
"The war has been going on for awhile now so there is not as much interest in wearing military styles to show patriotism."
The peacoat remains Schreck's number one seller with the N3B parka a close second. Hirsch notes that sales of M-65 flight jackets have declined over the past two years, but he sees signs of a pick up.
Peacoats are also a top seller for Rothco. Last winter, Ottaviano said, was the strongest year for peacoats in the company's history.
Old Navy and similar stores no longer sell peacoats, he noted.
"This means that the army/navy store is now the first choice for these items. The peacoat is a classic that sells well to men, women and children."
The M-65 flight jacket is another classic. Lee Aaron, executive VP for Alpha Industries, noted that Alpha was the originator of the M-65.
Although Aaron maintains strong sales of this core product, in the past 18 months Alpha has introduced the M-65 in a variety of fashion colors and styles.
"The army/navy retailer can't continue just to sell basic BDUs," said Aaron.
"Their stores are changing. They have to offer quality and value but they also have to offer something that is fashionable. The customer doesn't want to buy a military jacket. He wants to buy something cool," he added.
Alpha offers the classic M-65 flight jacket in specialty fabrics and styles including models with patches and a model with a distressed look in washed nylon.
"We have been working with our international distributors and licensee over the past 18 months so that our fabrics are all cutting a edge," said Aaron.
author: BY HOWARD PROSNITZ