The first thing you'll notice about Knowledge Cotton Apparel is that its clothes look great. Think blow-you-away chinos and shorts in preppy brights, look-closer knitwear in neutrals and confident solids, soft Oxford shirts in multi-coloured patchwork and easy-to-wear, shrug-on blazers in the lightest of constructions for a soft shouldered and relaxed feel. It's all about wardrobe enhancing styles made in the brand's signature straddling of smart and casual.

The designs take the standout elements of preppy Americana and Europhile separates and updates them with that Scandinavian flair for simple sophistication. Not that there's anything shy about the designs. Those chinos are highlights – deeply over-dyed and in vivid hues, they come with subtle silhouette tweaks making them feel great on, as a gentle taper or slightly dropped crotch modernise the American classics without ever looking too cool for school. That alone would be enough for us to fall in love with it. But there's more to it than even that.

Hailing from the traditional textile town of Herning, slap bang in the middle of Denmark, KCA comes from a family that has decades of expertise behind it. It all started in 1969 when Jørgen Mørup got things rolling with just one second hand sewing machine bought from England and ramshackle premises in a disused fire station. Mørup took the time to learn, growing the company slowly and with a principled application of sustainable practices. The family now owns a cotton mill that has been producing organic cotton for five generations and those ethical credentials are woven deep into all of the company's processes. A wall of certificates prove its wool is coloured with non-toxic dyes, its organic linen is grown without synthetic fertilisers and even its polyester is made using recycled plastic bottles.

With the next generation of Mørup men at the helm – including Jørgen's son Mads – the look is a typically bold Scandinavian interpretation how any man should approach summer. Confident, colourful and relaxed.