They are the biggest brands. But without logos. And that’s the whole point.
Call it secret wealth or quiet luxury. For the rich and aspiring, logo-free fashion with oversized price tags is having a moment — at least among people with money to spend in the face of higher inflation and a volatile economy.
It’s an emerging trend, one that, while growing in the wake of the pandemic, traces its roots back to 19th-century American industrialists and 17th-century France. And retailers are taking notice, as are a growing number of designers looking to capture not just the rich but their wannabe followers as well.
Think Hollywood Nepo Baby and Goop multi-millionaire Gwyneth Paltrow and her head-to-toe Prada, luxurious cashmere sweater and Celine boots during her week in a Utah courtroom rolled into one Arguing about a skiing accident.
She was a picture of neutral-toned designer clothes, and those in the know of luxury easily recognized the brands behind her staid, logoless, very expensive wardrobe.
“If you know, you know, and that’s the point,” says Robert Burke, a luxury retail consultant. “The people who are important to them, the people in their rooms, know exactly what they are wearing. And they are the only ones who count.”
TV TRENDSETTER
Cue HBO hit “Succession,” the tale of the overflowing, cutthroat Roys, led by the snarling and – SPOILER – now dead patriarch Logan.
Costume designer Michelle Matland has created sumptuous yet understated wardrobes unique to the key developing characters, delighting the fans who have followed her fashion-forward breadcrumbs since the show’s 2018 premiere.
“It shouldn’t have bling quality,” she says. “You’ll always have your, I think, Kardashians — you know, the people who wear things that draw attention. They may have the same amount of money but different ambitions.”
The stealth fashion world consists of perfectly tailored dark suits, often custom made; bare baseball caps with perfectly rounded brims; and neutral power pieces carried by Roy’s only female sibling, Shiv.
No logos for the Roys and their jet set, though a key nerd in their midst had to learn the hard way about secret riches.
“It’s incredibly accurate. Every time you look at it, it tells you exactly how rich you are,” Shiv’s misfit husband Tom Wambsgans tells Logan of the Patek Philippe, which he introduces to the billionaire at the beginning of “Succession.”
With a typical murmur and nothing short of a thank you, Logan rebuffs, then gives away the birthday gift adorned with the name of the company whose watches have sold for over $300,000.
Fast forward to the latest season at another Logan birthday party. This time it’s Tom, still the creep but a far smarter one, dissing wannabe Bridget’s display of luxury: a conspicuously huge $2,890 Burberry bag in a plaid familiar to fans of the company, with no logo .
“She brought a ridiculously large bag,” Tom growls at his subordinate Greg. “What’s in there anyway, huh? Flat shoes for the subway? your packed lunch? I mean, Greg, it’s monstrous. It’s gigantic camping. You could slide it across the floor after a bank job.
SPARKLING TO CLASSIC
Paltrow, to be fair, has always been drawn to sleek, minimalist luxury. But her latest try-on has been shown on TV at a time when more brands are placing subtle (but expensive) tones and shapes on runways and shelves.
Some do so while remaining loyal to customers who live their spend out loud with bold, recognizable silhouettes, fabrics, logos and jewelry.
“The mood of secret wealth has been solidified in this season’s buys, as the normally flashier brands like Loewe, Saint Laurent and Miu Miu tilted into the more classic sensibility,” says Jodi Kahn, vice president of luxury fashion at high-end retailer Neiman Markus .
These designers joined companies that always have, including some worn on “Succession” and Paltrow’s back: The Row, Brunello Cucinelli, and Loro Piana among them.
Burke says much of the moment can be explained by the pandemic, as young aspiring shoppers, awash with stimulus money and savings, went after big brands with visibly big propositions.
“There is a degree of fatigue now, along with uncertainty in the economy,” he says. “People feel like they don’t necessarily want to show they have a lot of money.”
The quiet moment of luxury has counter-moments, as fashion cycles generally do.
company from toothpaste manufacturers to discounters are bringing more premium items like $10 toothpaste and $90 creams to supermarket shelves. Some are looking for new ways to increase sales and profits by focusing on premium items while overall sales are slowing.
Martin Pedraza, CEO of The Luxury Institute, a research, consulting and employee training firm, says hidden wealth is a long-standing code among the super-rich. Now with A White-Collar Recession“all the people who get laid off want to look very flawless.”
Can they afford to do it in the $1,390 Tom Ford hoodie worn by fellow Roy Kendall? Maybe not, but they do buy more affordable cashmere and other goods from mass brands like J.Crew, Banana Republic, and Vince. It’s the difference between $400 or less and over $2,000.
“It’s all about fabric and texture,” says Matland. “You can have a cashmere sweater that you can get from J.Crew, but you can see the difference in how a more expensive one from another brand looks.”
THE EVOLUTION OF CALM
Analysts are finding that people want to brag when times are good, not when nerves are frayed about their financial future. Explains Pedraza: The rich try to emulate the masses, while those in the middle and at the top of the crowd emulate the minimalist rich.
He cites other stealth eras in fashion. There was the minimalist aesthetic of the 1990s, when Donna Karan and Miuccia Prada brought practical clothing into fashion, and a show of covert wealth amid the 2008-09 recession.
Patricia Mears, Associate Director of the Museum of the Fashion Institute of Technology at FIT, goes back even further.
“People with real money and power have always done that, at least in the United States,” she says. “We have this kind of WASP culture, Protestant culture that turns away from maximalism.”
That’s just part of a larger story, says Mears.
“You really have to go back to the end of the 18th century. You have the fall of the French monarchy, and then you have this twin rise of industrialization and the rise of urbanization. And so people enter what is called the Great Renunciation.”
There’s a move away from powdered wigs and floral brocade suits covered in lace.
“All that court life goes away and now you have the real power base, which is the industrialists. They come in, they build wealth and power, and they do it in a uniform, the dark suit,” says Mears. “Many scholars have said that if you want to be both strong and reserved, this really does become the respectable uniform.”
Does stealth wealth mimicking work? Investing in quality staples is achieved for longer-lasting wear and tear and less waste, but trying to dupe the rich with cheaper alternatives can be a problem. Because once you know, you eventually know.
But minimalism is not everything. Nobody expects logos to go everywhere along with recognizable signature prints and edgier silhouettes.
“There will always be people who want the logos. Chanel could hardly give up its logo,” says Pedraza. “But there will always be brands that cave in to what’s going on.”
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Associated Press retail writer Anne D’Innocenzio in New York contributed to this story.
