Carhartt’s influence on today’s fashion

Designers see this brand that defined the workwear aesthetic as an inexhaustible source of inspiration, reinterpreting its archetype from the subcultural sphere to decontextualize it and turn it into an elevated and sophisticated urban fashion product.

Carhartt‘s creations and its distinctive design codes have spurred countless reinterpretations by high-end brands over the years, as we saw at Miu Miu‘s FW23 show. In it, the hyper-structured zippered sweatshirts and its brown jacket with contrasting black collar seemed to evoke the brand’s classic “Detroit” and “Light Lux” jackets.

However, Miu Miu’s reinterpretation was not an isolated case. Balenciaga also presented in its “Fitting Rooms” collection for FW23 jackets with four pockets and a square logo that directly reminded us of Carhartt’s “Michigan” model. References that are reconstructed and reimagined by these brands that take as creative reference both their silhouettes and some specific details, such as the layout of the pockets, the collars in discordant tones or the use of tobacco color. Are we already facing the Carhartt-ization of fashion?

REBUILDING WORKWEAR

And beyond these luxury versions, if we scroll through its history and take a look at the catwalks of recent seasons, we can see how Givenchy also took inspiration from its imaginary to present a redesign of its “Double Knee” pants, while Loewe, for its SS23 collection, reimagined its “Car-Lux” jacket and its “Cord Rugy” polo shirt. Likewise, other cult brands such as Alexander McQueen or Gucci delved into the iconic Carhartt archive to rescue and elevate the “Chore” denim jacket to the stage of haute couture.