“We’ve had a gender-fluid era, and we’re returning this season to a more classic representation of masculinity: cowboys at Louis Vuitton, American workwear, tailoring in all forms, jacket variations at Junya Watanabe, suits at Yohji Yamamoto,”’ observes Matthieu Morge-Zucconi, menswear journalist at French newspaper Le Figaro. As an example of the workwear trend, he noted that both Louis Vuitton and British designer Grace Wales Bonner collaborated with Timberland.
Vogue Runway’s Luke Leitch says: “That was definitely a perception of classic masculinity expressed through tailoring, which could either be interpreted as a shift in gender representation or a conservative move as a reaction to what is being widely reported as a downturn in the luxury market. However, it was interesting to note that those companies that have been performing well recently, such as Zegna, Brunello Cucinelli and Hermès, were slightly more adventurous than usual.” At Hermès, artistic director Véronique Nichanian described the collection as “dandy chic”.
The underlying theme, notably at Loewe, was a new kind of masculinity — one that is playful and sexy. Designers embraced the no trousers trend that has proliferated on the womenswear catwalks. The front row reflected the mood, featuring handsome actors and singers: at Kenzo, One Direction’s Zayn Malik; at Loewe, new house ambassador and Fifty Shades star Jamie Dornan as well as Josh O’Connor and Andrew Garfield; at Dior, Nicholas Hoult.
Clothes you can put in your wardrobe
The season took place in a challenging climate with rising costs, the Israel-Hamas war, and overall deceleration of the industry’s growth in all regions. “This winter was complicated for everybody,” Paul Smith told Vogue Business ahead of his show.
It’s an open secret that many pieces on the runway never end up hitting stores. At least three brands take a different approach: Paul Smith, Officine Générale and Dries Van Noten. “I really wanted clothes that you could put in your wardrobe because there’s a lot of clothes out there, which are for the fashion show, but not really for the way we all look,” Smith said. “Every show, everything is always produced.”
