The Black Bear Brand Rough-Out Chore Coat: Horween Leather, His and Hers
The chore coat has been reinvented a thousand ways, but rarely like this: in soft, hand-picked Horween rough-out horsehide, and — for the first time in Black Bear Brand history — cut for both him and her.
The leather: a legend with a story
The hide comes from Horween, the storied Chicago tannery that has been crafting leather since 1905. Black Bear Brand works with Horween directly — Josh Sirlin inspects the hides himself, alongside the Horween family — so every jacket starts with leather chosen by hand.
This particular leather has a life of its own. It's a special Black Bear Brand horsehide that began as a hide made for a one-off motorcycle seat, went on to become the leather behind the Black Bear Brand jacket Kevin Costner wore on Yellowstone, and has now become, in Josh's words, the best of the best chore coats. "Rough-out" means the flesh side of the hide faces outward — a soft, matte, suede-like surface alive with the natural markings of a real animal, so no two coats are ever identical. It's hand-picked and hand-dyed in a warm IVORY, in a light 1.5-ounce-plus weight that's remarkably soft.
The design: Josh's chore coat, in leather
It's the classic chore-coat silhouette — roomy, honest, pocketed — rebuilt in leather and finished with vintage gold-and-brass Black Bear Brand YKK buttons. It's made in the USA, and like all great leather it's built to age: to darken, soften, and take on a patina that maps your life. This is a jacket meant to outlive trends, and very likely to outlive you.
A first: his and hers
This is the first his-and-her coat collection in Black Bear Brand history — and the women's version is the first-ever women's Black Bear Brand leather jacket, a special design cut for her in the same legendary hide and the same made-in-USA build. It's a milestone for Black Bear Brand WOMAN: the same rugged-refined soul, now designed for everyone who lives it. (The men's coat runs X-Small through XXX-Large; the women's, X-Small through X-Large.)
Why it matters
The rough-out chore coat is the whole Black Bear Brand idea in a single garment — the honesty of a work jacket, the soul of rough-out leather, and the refinement of century-old tannery craft and hand construction. Rugged and refined, his and hers, made to be lived in.
Shop the Aged IVORY Rough-Out Chore Coat (his) and the WOMAN IVORY Rough-Out Chore Coat (hers). For the leather lover who wants indigo, meet its cousin, the Indigo Leather Rough-Out Chore Coat, dyed in Himeji and built by hand in Japan — and dive deeper into our leather-jacket story. These coats are released in limited preorder windows, so watch the dates.