“Quiet luxury” is the buzzword on everyone’s lips these days — but what exactly is it, and how can one find it in the menswear space?
What Is Quiet Luxury?
The short answer is: everywhere. “Quiet luxury” refers to the minimalist, label-conscious method of dressing often embraced by high social circles, where dressing in a trendy, stylish manner takes a backseat to one’s personal presence; think the entire wardrobe of “Succession,” or how Gwyneth Paltrow dressed for her infamous skiing collision trial earlier this year.
What Is Lazy Luxury?
On the shoe front, a key term to know is “lazy luxury,” coined by Stanley Korshak men’s director Alex Lancaster when describing the ease of Zegna‘s hit Triple Stitch sneakers in The Wall Street Journal. The brand’s best-selling style, which ranges from $790 to $1,350, has become key within the “lazy” luxury wave from its modern and relaxed appearance: a simple slip-on sneaker with elastic-strapped front tongues and minimal side stitching.
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Lazy Luxury Sneakers Explained
Within the same WSJ article, the Triple Stitch style — sales of which increased by 544% since a more lightweight redesign in 2020 — was even deemed the most popular shoe worn on private jets based on in-person observations by Zegna’s artistic director Alessandro Sartori.
The shoes were also discussed in the piece by shoppers with high-paying careers in fields like medicine, real estate and networking; and, if you need further proof on their adjacency to high society, they’ve even been spotted on Apple CEO Tim Cook.
Those who want to integrate more “lazy luxury” into their wardrobes in the future need to think minimalist. The trend often features hues of beige, black, cream, tan, gray, navy and brown with minimal prints or patterns — save from details like thin stripes or pointed collars.
Many of the key brands in the movement are also masters of this method of “stealth wealth” dressing, including Loro Piana, Tom Ford, Brunello Cucinelli, Zegna, Hermés and The Row. On the “lazy” shoe side, styles in the same vein as Zegna’s can also be found from brands like Common Projects, Tod’s, Santoni and Harry’s of London.
Though the luxury may be quiet, the trend’s sharp appearance and versatility are sure to still make a year-round statement.
