The Adventure Life with Steve Casimiro Nau: We’re Not Dead Yet

Tobias seems to be very happy wearing a Nau jacket and holding a pitcher of fresh juice.

Text and photo by West Coast Editor Steve Casimiro

Call it Nau Two Point D’oh: The uber-hip, ultra-eco brand that closed its doors six weeks ago with much lamenting, wailing, and gnashing of teeth (including some by yours truly) is back on its feet—well, knees—thanks to a defibrillator called Horny Toad. The Santa Barbara clothing company and a handful of post-Nauers bought the brand name and are relaunching August 1.

Expect the same Boulder Gothic design sensibility and commitment to sustainability that marked the first Nau. Don’t expect the same business practices, though—Nau’s stores are gone and the clothes now will be sold through independent retailers, as well as its website.

Will it last? Heck if I know. Getting Nau into wider distribution will help, as will eliminating the well-intended but counterintuitive policy that encouraged customers to buy in the store but receive the clothes in the mail. As with Nau, Horny Toad has done an amazing job of creating its identity (in this case, all-American treehouses and swimmin’ holes); the difference is that the Toad’s stuff sells well. As a fan of both Nau’s designs and its eco-idealism, I hope that the Toadsters can provide the right amount of support—and grounding.