From the maker

Our THE REAL McCOY'S LOGO TEE L/S is a standard fitting long sleeve tee made from 8oz cotton. The binder neck is designed to maintain the shape of the neckline over time and through repeated washes. The Real McCoy’s Wing Mark logo is rubber-printed as a single-color outline at our Kobe-based factory. This garment is exclusive to therealmccoys.com.

The concept of a clothing manufacturer featuring their own logo as a self-referential design is a product of the ‘logomania’ era of the 1990s. This era created a standalone product category, particularly in streetwear fashion, where the logo tee is an iconic statement and a sort of contradiction-in-terms, as the design's purpose serves only to promote itself. The use of t-shirts as a promotional tool for brands has its origins in the 1970s, when they became a platform for corporate merchandise, political statements, and campaigning.

Before the logo became the product, the appeal of external branding came from an association with something aspirational. Early examples can be seen in the early 1900s, where wearers of garments made using Stifel brand fabric would often wear them inside out, making the screened Stifel ‘Boot Logo’ visible. Most famously, denim overall makers added graphic, external leather patches in the 1880s to distinguish their products from competitors.