Forget the puffer jacket, which has dominated the coat market for the last few years. This season, quilted jackets are set to become the outerwear of choice. It is a multigenerational trend, seen from the school gates to social media. Gen-Z influencers can’t get enough of them on TikTok, while the 70-something model Maye Musk (yes, Elon’s mother) wore a black one to a recent Christian Dior fashion show.
Among the street style set, the cult New York fashion brand the Frankie Shop’s moss green “Teddy” jacket is proving to be the most popular. Net-a-Porter is reporting a 30% increase in search for it over the past month. Retailing for more than £200, on eBay it sells for double. On the high street you can find a plethora of similar iterations at M&S, Arket and Cos. Mango’s £59.99 version even has a waiting list.
Demand for quilting has not been this high since the 1970s when the former US air force colonel Steve Gulyas launched his outerwear brand Husky. Pictured been worn by Queen Elizabeth II while out riding, it quickly became the jacket of choice among the country set.
Georgia Dant, the designer of label Marfa Stance, says it is the antithesis of tradition that is appealing. “We have reimagined it in a luxurious, user-friendly and timeless way,” she said. With a background in menswear at Burberry, she focuses on functional womenswear (deep pockets are de rigueur) and sustainability (nylon is sourced from Japan, which has stricter environmental regulations than the UK and Europe). Customers start with a quilted base that they can add to when the weather changes – think aviator collars and waterproof layers. Dant says they are clothes that are “designed to be enhanced rather than replaced”.
In 2022, the high street versions are definitely more fashion than function. Cooler than a puffer, they work for this strange in-between seasonal weather. Nevertheless, come December, they may not feel quite as toasty.
They may also be ditched because of their negative environmental impact. Most quilted jackets are made from polyester and polyamides – . “While some brands are using a certain degree of recycled synthetic materials, we need to move away from our reliance on fabrics that are derived from fossil fuels,” says the sustainable fashion writer Hannah Rochell. “They shed microplastic fibres every time they are washed and will hang around in landfill for thousands of years, unless the brand takes responsibility for the end of the garment’s life and recycles it in a closed loop system – which, more often than not, they don’t.”
