Kingpins Amsterdam Forecast Puts Human-Made Craft at Core of SS28 Denim

Denim buyers planning Spring/Summer 2028 should brace for a production brief built around hand-work, natural pigments and batch-controlled washes, not AI-polished uniformity. That's the commercial takeaway from "The Real Shift," a trend forecast presented last week at Kingpins Amsterdam by Ana Paula Alves, founder and strategy director of trend forecasting firm Be Disobedient, alongside forecaster Fedra Fumiatti.

The presentation framed a vocabulary Alves says is now shaping design decisions: slower, honest, softer, trustworthy and "far more human." The forecast positions human skill as a premium attribute — a direct counter to the threat artificial intelligence poses to creativity and craft-based careers.

"In a market flooded with synthetic perfection, people will pay a premium for what's human-made," Alves said.

What does the forecast demand from suppliers?

Alves and Fumiatti outlined three themes — Real Sport, Real Nature and Real Social — each carrying concrete fabric, trim and finishing implications for mills, laundries and garment makers.

Real Sport pushes performance-adjacent construction into denim. Ergonomic pattern-cutting, stripes, curved lines and lace-up closures draw from motorsports and rugby, while dance moves inspire denim-fringed skirts and laminated "sweat-inspired" finishes.

The fabric call is comfort stretch, knit denim and soft-touch constructions. Key items include:

• Denim hoodies
• Baggy Bermuda shorts in heavyweight rigid fabric
• Oversized jeans with double-knee builds, carpenter panels, heavy topstitching and bar tacks (the reinforced stitch rows at stress points)

Color work leans on warp stripes and yarn-dyed fabrics, contrast stitching and piping against dark indigo or clean light washes. Alves flagged "athletic red" and metallic foils for bolder statements — and one process note that matters at the laundry: coordinates should run through the same wash batch to guarantee shade uniformity.

Where does 'imperfection' hit the production line?

Real Nature is where the forecast gets hardest to spec. Alves described the direction as organic, artisanal, unique, imperfect and natural — luxury reconnected to the natural world.

"In real nature, when something seems to be a mistake, it's like appreciated and valued," she said.

Translating that to production: crinkled surfaces, negative contrasts, sun-effect finishes and ocean-inspired gradients, plus loose silhouettes built for fluidity. Leather-look surfaces sit alongside floral and botanical prints, embellishments and embroidery. Alves specified that printed effects should use natural pigments — a compliance-relevant detail, since natural dye uptake and consistency behave differently from synthetics and will need testing protocols.

Further detailing includes lace trim, organic stains, flocking and camouflage — "but not in a military way, but as a way of blending in with the environment," she said.

Why uniforms — and checks — matter for SS28 orders

Real Social pulls from archetypes and stereotypes, with art, music and film weighting the styling. Uniforms anchor the theme: white denim coordinates described as "pure, clean and polished," utilitarian apron silhouettes, and two-piece twill and denim sets in green, gray and brown.

Alves said coordinates get pajama-like updates — square pockets, comfortable silhouettes — with detailing in double waistbands, striped denim, knotted waist constructions and raw hems.

The uniform reference turns pointed with Dior designer Jonathan Anderson's signature checked-shirt-and-jeans combination, which Alves cast as an easily replicated aesthetic. Her production warning is specific: checks must be yarn-dyed woven constructions, because prints read flat next to woven checks.

Rounding out the theme: cropped vests, tailored shorts, high-waisted jeans, brown twill separates in oversized proportions, light-reflective finishes, double and triple waistbands and graffiti-inspired graphics.

Alves pointed to recent campaigns by Paul Smith, Bottega Veneta and Polaroid as evidence the human-forward message already resonates at brand level — and consumers increasingly expect brands to reveal their processes, develop signature designs and spotlight the artisans and experts in their supply chains.

For denim suppliers, that last point is the operational headline: SS28 development conversations will likely ask factories and laundries to make their people and methods visible, not just their capacity. Mills that can evidence natural pigments, yarn-dyed checks and batch-consistent washing now have a spec sheet to build against.