Casablanca: The Brand's History, Codes and Cult Pieces
An arch, a tennis court, a printed silk shirt: three images are enough to recognise Casablanca from afar. But behind the sun-drenched aesthetic lies a real brand story, precise codes and a way of making things that explains the prices. Here is what you need to know before buying your first piece.
Charaf Tajer, Paris, 2018
Casablanca was founded in 2018 by Charaf Tajer, a Parisian of Moroccan descent who came up through the French streetwear scene (he co-founded Pigalle) and Paris nightlife. The name is that of his parents' city; the idea is a luxury 'après-sport' wardrobe: what you wear after tennis, after the pool, after golf, in a fantasised version of the 70s on the Côte d'Azur, in Marrakech or in Palm Springs. The brand is based in Paris, shows at Men's Fashion Week and makes most of its pieces in Italy.
The five codes that make a Casablanca piece
L'Arche. The round arch, inherited from Mediterranean and Moroccan architecture, is the brand's de facto logo: screen-printed on T-shirts, embroidered on knitwear, reworked in colour gradients. The L'Arche T-shirt is the simplest way into the brand.
Tennis. Courts seen from above, rackets, nets, sketches of players: tennis is the founding motif. The 'Courticon' (the court stylised as an icon) and the Tennis Landscape scenes are its most worn variations.
The printed silk shirt. It is the signature runway piece: Italian silk, a very dense placement print, an open collar. It costs several hundred euros new and is turning up more and more often pre-owned.
Sporty knitwear. Striped or monogrammed cotton jumpers, sketch-print sweatshirts: the spirit of a 70s tennis club, in thick materials.
Flowers and smileys. Orchids, stylised flowers, airbrushed smiles: the most playful part of the wardrobe, often on oversized T-shirts.
How the brand builds its collections
Casablanca works in themed seasons (a city, an era, a sport), but the codes return every time: L'Arche, the court, the silk. What changes are the palettes and the prints. In practice, an L'Arche T-shirt from the 2026 collection sits perfectly well with a Croquis de Tennis sweatshirt from an earlier season. That is what makes the brand worthwhile pre-owned: nothing goes out of fashion from one season to the next.
Why these prices
A Casablanca T-shirt costs the price of a shirt elsewhere. The explanation comes down to three points: heavy cotton jersey made in Italy, multi-layer prints (the gradients of L'Arche require several screen-printing passes) and deliberately limited distribution. Authenticated pre-owned, the markdown on T-shirts is real, while the piece is identical — that is where pre-owned really makes sense.
Where to start
If you are new to the brand, three pieces cover the essentials: an L'Arche T-shirt in white or black (the easiest to wear), a tennis-motif T-shirt for the spirit of the house, and a sweatshirt or jumper for the in-between seasons. The silk shirt comes later, once you know you like the style.
The 2026 collection T-shirts (L'Arche, Tennis Landscape, Flower Courticon, Dance Joy, Airbrush Smiley), the Croquis de Tennis sweatshirt and the jumper are in our Casablanca collection, new with tags. Before buying pre-owned elsewhere, read our guide to recognising genuine Casablanca: the brand is copied, especially its printed T-shirts.
