A name synonymous with hard-wearing and long-lasting denim and the culture surrounding it, Iron Heart made their name (and continue to make it year after year) by producing garments that go the distance and then some.

Their hard-wearing pairs are perfect companions for the long and winding road, and they boast an unmatched winning track record in this competition, both in terms of competitor preference and performance.

The world’s best faders choose Iron Heart for the same reason fans of rugged apparel do: Iron Heart pairs are nail-tough and razor-sharp, and they just get better with every roll of the odometer.

With their ongoing support of the Invitational, Iron Heart has more than lived up to their reputation as strong supporters of denim culture. No brand has done more for this competition and our fade-loving community than Iron Heart.

We’re proud to welcome Iron Heart back for Year Five as a competition partner, and we welcome all our returning soldiers of the Iron Heart Army.

The only American-made brand to make it to the top of the podium, Brave Star are returning as competition partners in Year Four. A magnet for faders who see selvedge denim as a lifestyle, they boast an impressive stable of world-class faders who regularly challenge for podium spots.

With a nearly unmatched combination of value and performance, their heavy pairs remain one of the best choices for those who want to push their pairs to the absolute limit without maxing their credit.

Based on early registrations, their Mojave cut is going to be an extremely popular choice this year. Available in a wide range of weights, this cowboy cut will be an excellent choice for faders who want to look great all year and finish strong.

We’re proud to welcome Brave Star back into this community, and we give a hearty welcome to the Brave Star fans who’ve come here to test their mettle against the world’s best.

Founded in 1998 in Osaka, Samurai Jeans wasted no time, pushing the world of selvedge denim in new directions from the very moment of their inception. Every design decision Samurai makes has fades front of mind, and this has made them the brand of choice for those who puts fades first.

Samurai’s fade-forward focus means that nobody in the denim world can lay as much claim to fade supremacy as they can. Put simply, nothing fades like Samurai denim because nothing can fade like Samurai pairs.

Samurai were one of the first brands to experiment with heavyweight denim with the aim of producing a fabric that would produce stunning contrast fades, and in 2006, they initiated the world’s first denim fading competition. For these innovations (and for countless others), we owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude.

We’re proud to welcome Samurai Jeans back as one of our Year Five competition partners. If you’re looking for stunning high-contrast fades, put Samurai Jeans at the very top of your list.

One of Thailand’s best-known makers of heavy-duty denim for fade enthusiasts, Piger Works has been making hardcore garments for hardcore faders since 2010. Each year, the Thai faders show us why Piger Works is so adored in Southeast Asia, and, in Year Four, we saw more faders in the West putting Piger’s pairs to the test.

For the first time, Indigo Invitational will be collaborating with a brand to produce a very special OFFICIAL pair that we’re endorsing for Y5 faders. The pair promises to be something very special, and we hope that we’ll see an army of Piger Works x II faders standing on the starting line when Y5 starts.

We’re very pleased to welcome Piger Works as a returning partner for Year Five. If you haven’t done so already, we encourage you to add either our collaboration pair or one of their incredible other pairs to your collection.