There are some shirts that we feel confident will be popular year in and year out. For those shirts, it's not a question of whether it will make it into the top 10 but rather what the final ranking will be. And then there are other shirts that go seem to capture the attention of enough shoppers to work their way onto the list. As we look back at 2021, here are the 10 most popular shirts, most of which we expected and few that we didn't.
#10 - Banana Leaf
This shirt has been around for a while and does go through some stretches where it is quite popular. Black shirts often do. We love the subtle banana leaf tone-on-tone design and the fact that this shirt is a lighter shade of black which gives it a more casual look and feel. We love this shirt but we were surprised that it finished the year in the top 10.
This print went into production in late 2020 and really started to pick up in 2021. This shirt also comes in black and yellow versions. But it is this teal version that really stood out due to its vibrant happy colors. If you're looking for a bold shirt that screams "vacation!" this shirt may be for you. We were pleasantly surprise to see this shirt make it onto the list.
#8 - Tiare Red
This classically simple Tiare print was available in 2021 in blue, green, and red. There is a new black version that we just debuted a few days ago. But this red one proved to be popular during the summer and winter, probably as people bought them for Christmas looks. The simplicity of this print in both colors and details made this shirt popular as company or team shirts or just as an everyday aloha shirt.
#7 - Orchid Ginger Royal
This Orchid Ginger print in royal also made it onto the Women's Top 5 list for 2021. This shirt also comes in black and red. This royal version of the men's shirt was so popular that we actually ran out of shirts and fabric for a little while during the summer. If wasn't for that, this shirt might have finished higher on this list. We love the base color of this shirt and the flowers are just the right size making this shirt easy to wear in a wide range of situations.
#6 - Bamboo Paradise Navy
This is one of our classic shirts that has been around since before the turn of the century. It comes in black, navy, and cream and every year, they all seem almost equally well. We struggled to keep all 3 colors in stock due to fabric delays and production bottlenecks. The navy version is the Goldilocks color for this shirt...not too dark (black), not too light (cream), but just right!
#5 - Bamboo Navy
This understated Bamboo navy shirt is also available in an elegant black and classy white versions. Like the Bamboo Paradise shirt above, the navy version of this shirt strikes a nice balance between the black and white versions. This shirt was popular with companies looking to order shirts for their employees that were tropical yet professional.
As we mentioned before, this Bamboo Paradise print sells well in all 3 colors, black, navy, and cream. For those who like the navy version but wants something a little more dressy, we have this black one. This black shirt has more contrast and the colors pop more on the dark background compared to the navy one. We were confident that at least 1 of the colors of this shirt would make it onto the top 10 list and aren't surprised that 2 colors made it. We love both! (and the cream one too)
#3 - Star Orchid Black
This super popular Star Orchid shirt first appeared back in the 1980s. At that time, the flowers on this print were closer together. Tom Selleck wore that version of the shirt on Magnum PI which drew attention to this print. During the 80s run of Magnum PI, we modified the design by spacing out the flowers a little bit more and we sold both versions side by side. The newer version (pictured above) greatly outsold the more densely packed version so we dropped that on in favor of this one. Amazingly, we made this shirt in 14 different colors including green, red, pink, and various shades of blue. But it was this black one that was always the most popular. Jay Hernandez wore this shirt on the new Magnum PI which once again brought attention to this shirt. Just for fun, we decided to bring back the navy version of this shirt just to see how it does and are looking forward to seeing how other colors fare in 2022.
#2 - Jungle Bird Black
We knew this shirt would easily crack the top 10 men's shirts for 2021. This is the black version of the "Magnum PI" shirt that both Tom Selleck wore on the 80s Magnum PI and Jay Hernandez wore on the rebooted Magnum PI. While the red version gets all the fame, we think this black one is easier to wear with more things in more situations. We love how the purple leaves and red parrots pop on the black background. This shirt looks great with either shorts or jeans and is a great party or vacation shirt.
This shirt in this color has been our best seller forever going all the way back to the 80s when Tom Selleck wore it on Magnum PI. You can see him wearing this print in the closing moments of the show's intro. This shirt has become a part of American culture in many ways and has been worn on several TV shows (and at least one movie) including the new Magnum PI reboot with Jay Hernandez.
Did you know that we made this shirt in both 100% rayon and 100% cotton? For much of the 80s, we made this shirt in both cotton and rayon. And from 1992 to 2007, we made it only in cotton. Since then, we've made it only in rayon. Until now. Due to popular demand, we decided to bring back the 100% cotton Magnum PI shirt. So whether you prefer the cool familiar touch of cotton or the elegant flow of rayon, you can have your Magnum PI shirt whichever way suits your style!