When Season Four of “Succession” premiered on HBO Max, fans prepared for the return of the eccentric and super-wealthy Roy family. And they got it — plus a season of television that’s become one of the biggest conversations in fashion this year.
The premiere of the show was a big fashion hit. The “ludicrously capacious” Burberry handbag scene, where character Tom Wambsgans (Matthew Macfadyen) critiques Bridget (Francesca Root-Dodson) for carrying a Burberry Title crossbody bag with a $2,890 price tag, went viral.
“What’s even in there? Are flat shoes suitable for subway use? Her lunch pail? I mean, Greg, it’s monstrous,” Tom said in a scene. “It’s gargantuan. It’s big enough to take camping. You could slide it across the floor after a bank job.”
Nicholas Braun (Greg Hirsch) and Matthew Macfadyen (Tom Wambsgans) in “Succession.”
Photo by Macall B. Polay/HBO
Fashion trends on the show — minimalist shapes, neutral colors, tailored suiting and invisible branding — have propelled interest in how the ultra-wealthy dress, and in “quiet luxury,” which has seen an increase in searches.
“Quiet luxury” refers to understated clothing made with very high-quality materials.
Google searches for “quiet luxury,” “stealth wealth” and “old money style” skyrocketed by 684, 990 and 874 percent, respectively, after the first “Succession” episode aired.
Quiet luxury may not be a trend — but it is certainly trending.
Karolina Zimarlak founded KZ_K Studio on the principles luxury, minimalism and slower fashion. She does not sell seasonal collections but rather curated drops. She has a trenchcoat priced at $1.945 and black trousers for $1.250.
KZ_K Studio warm cycle collection.
courtesy photo
For Zmarlak, “quiet luxury” refers to “a woman who has developed a personal style that she believes in and comes from her own confidence. She doesn’t look to trends. This means she wants pieces that aren’t good for just one season or thrown away after a few times wearing it. She wants investment pieces that are timeless and of high-quality crafted materials.”
Zmarlak doesn’t see quiet luxury as a seasonal trend.
“There’s an evolution within the American clients who want more of the minimalist ‘French girl’ style. The American clientele are looking for a look that is simple and easy to achieve. I’ve been having that conversation regularly with many of my clients. They want to buy less and have more things of higher value,” she said.
Zmarlak sees quiet luxury as a subculture with a wider appeal. She acknowledged that many businesses build their profits off fast fashion trends. However, other companies have built profit margins on clientele models or minimalist pieces. Zmarlak is a proponent of sustainability and believes that quiet luxury fits into a broader discussion about fashion.
“When designing for trends comes into play, after two seasons, companies are left asking what they do with that excess inventory from trend-based designs, and then you have more waste,” she said. “With quiet luxury and minimalist style, you’re designing for seasonless luxury, meaning customers can keep their pieces longer and reduce fashion’s effect on the ecosystem,” she explained.
Others in the fashion industry agree that while the term quiet luxury is trending, being a minimalist isn’t something new. Venk Modur, a Los Angeles-based celebrity stylist who works with “Succession” star Brian Cox, said, “Minimalism has been around for decades. Just look at brands like Jil Sander, Loro Piana and Hermès. I recently styled Brian Cox in Loro Piana to reflect the ‘quiet luxury’ style.”
Loro Piana, known among a certain set for cashmere and white sole shoes, recently took out ads that pictures its shoes and said: “If you know, you know.”
For pieces to fall into the quiet luxury movement, they must be timeless, made of “the finest quality fabrics,” and not have visible logos, Modur said. Then, they will be “forever wearable,” Modur said.
Modur pointed out that this idea of the wealthy wearing beige and other neutrals is American in origin.
“I am a first-generation American and Indian by heritage. My culture associates wealth with colors that are bright, loud, and beautiful. That’s just part of our culture and rich heritage. Many African countries are similar in this respect to India. They are characterized by bright colors and wealth. The idea of minimalism being associated with wealth is a very American perspective.”
Today, when people are talking about quiet luxury, they simply mean designer pieces that don’t have logos, Modur said.
Luxury buyers claim that these pieces are long-time bestsellers.
Ivanka DeKoning is a former buyer who now creates content. DeKoning spent 10 years working in luxury fashion, mostly as an executive buyer at high-end department store chains such as Barneys New York or Saks Fifth Avenue. Her focus was on Michael Kors Collections, Marc Jacobs Collections and Jason Wu.
“The American luxury houses with minimal to no branding and logos on their merchandise were some of the biggest power players and profit generators during my years as a buyer,” DeKoning said. “Multimillionaire customers with that level of affluence aren’t coming in and buying trendy luxury brands off the rack. While those brands still have trendy products that sell, high-net-worth customers are looking for…tried-and-true pieces that are timeless and won’t be over after two seasons. Customers spending large sums of money on investment pieces aren’t going after logo items. They want things they can still wear in 10 years.”
DeKoning also rejects quiet luxury’s status as a current trend. He sees it instead as an age-old aesthetic.
“The more we are thinking and talking about it now, the more it seems like a trend,” she said. “However, when you dress classic in a trenchcoat and cashmere sweater, that’s a timeless look reflective of personal style. To a quiet luxury consumer, their aesthetic is an entire lifestyle.”
Shoppers are increasingly asking for luxury items that offer quiet comfort.
Laure Dubreuil is the founder and creative Director of The Webster. She said that her business is moving away from bold prints and colors, in favor of more minimal pieces.
“Over the past several months, we have noticed customers requesting more minimalist and ‘quiet luxury’ pieces. In our purchases for fall 2023 and winter 2023, we were very focused on buying quiet luxury pieces. The offering from our brands selling quiet luxury pieces was robust, too, which gave us a lot of variety to choose from.”
Dubreuil said The Webster’s most in-demand and bestselling brands are Khaite, The Row, Wardrobe NYC, Celine and Bottega Veneta.
Khaite RTW Autumn 2023
Khaite Courtesy
Dubreuil believes that quiet luxury is a reaction to the logomania of recent seasons, and has a connection with sustainability.
“I find myself often, when purchasing pieces, thinking about what I want to save and pass down to my daughter, which also shows the longevity that investing in quiet luxury has,” she said. “That thoughtfulness that comes with the quiet luxury brands expands into a more sustainable mindset, investing in pieces of quality that will last more than a season or two.”
Dubreuil added that the aesthetics is part of the post COVID-19 cycle.
“During the pandemic, we all witnessed our clients living vicariously through their purchases, leaning into the maximalist approach and buying for a time when they could eventually be out and about wearing their party dresses and heels,” she said. “The mindset has shifted as things have become more open, and now it’s almost as if we do not feel that everything needs to be bold to be a moment. So while quiet luxury is not a total rebellion against those maximalist styles, it’s more of an awakening for clients to challenge their own styles to have range.”