Why Fashion Insiders Are Buzzing About Patagonia

Why Fashion Insiders Are Buzzing About Patagonia

The classic Patagonia fleece jacket—that fuzzy ’90s-era staple—has gone from fond collegiate memory to cult obsession for fashion insiders, on the street and on the runway of brands like Louis Vuitton

By Lauren Sherman in the Wall Street Journal

JUSTIN STANWIX doesn’t have to wear a suit to work. But, as a director at eBay, the 30-year-old Manhattan resident puts a considerable amount of thought into his daily oxford-and-jeans look, sporting Bruno Magli shoes or Opening Ceremony sneakers, shirts from Engineered Garments and denim from Acne Studios. He tops off these decidedly “fashion” pieces off with one seemingly unglamorous Patagonia jacket or another. “I own the standard black fleece zip-up, a raincoat in neon green and the down ribbed hoodie in blue,” he said. “I started wearing the fleeces in high school. It’s a mellow brand that’s really good quality. Even the logo is not incredibly in your face.”

Few labels are sticky enough to withstand decades of trends, but Patagonia devotees like Mr. Stanwix are proof of its enduring appeal. And now, the Ventura, Calif.-based outdoor apparel brand is becoming trendy itself, earning the droll nickname “Patagucci” from some of its most committed fans, and inspiring runway looks from both women’s and men’s designers. This past fall, both women’s brand Altuzarra and Louis Vuitton men’s designer Kim Jones created outerwear that took cues from the brand’s Classic Retro-X fleece jacket with its distinctive nylon, side-zip breast pocket.

“It has a kind of romance to it,” said Patrik Ervell, 34, a menswear designer. “I always think of San Francisco, where I’m from. The captains of industry [there] aren’t wearing suits. They’re wearing fleeces half the time.” Mr. Ervell’s interpretation—offered in different iterations for several seasons—comes in high-pile Schulte mohair, a material often used to make teddy bears.

Scott Studenberg and John Targon, the designers behind unisex label Baja East, were also driven by nostalgia when dreaming up their spin on the fleece, a $2,795 bomber jacket made of French terry bonded with lambskin. “In high school, everyone was obsessed with the North Face, Columbia, Patagonia,” said Mr. Studenberg, 31, a native of West Bloomfield, Mich. Patagonia’s fleece dovetailed with the ’90s-era embrace of outdoorsy and distinctly unostentatious fashion. “We wanted to do something that is sporty and functional but in a luxe way,” added Mr. Studenberg.

While Patagonia does not consider itself a fashion brand, it has taken note of the industry’s increased interest in its wares. “We’re thrilled to see it referenced as often as it is,” said Lisa Williams, the company’s vice president of merchandising and design. “Our design philosophy is really about creating the best-quality product. Timeless, classic, simple pieces.”

Patagonia’s styles, which are only occasionally updated for fit, also play into “normcore,” the faddish idea that has evolved into a movement. To dress normcore is to appropriate relatively mundane items most popular in the 1990s as fashion pieces. “The normalness of that pre-Internet moment feels really authentic in a way,” Mr. Ervell said.

On the street, fashion professionals like Mr. Stanwix, who confidently mix Patagonia with high-end labels, exude cool. A friend of mine layers her olive down Patagonia jacket—bought in a boys’ size for a shrunken fit—under an Altuzarra fox-hood parka. That inspired me to wear my own black down Patagonia jacket which I originally bought for cold-weather running, with black Acne jeans, Saint Laurent boots and a tomato-colored Lyn Devon cashmere turtleneck. I could have opted for a wool coat, but this felt less precious. As if I wasn’t straining to be perfectly turned out.

Christine Mitchell Adams, the Burlington, Vt.-based chief content creator for men’s grooming brand Ursa Major, links the fascination to utility, which is—ironically or not—now in vogue. Ms. Adams, 29, has been wearing Patagonia since childhood; she has multiple fleeces and a down jacket that are part of her uniform. “I wear R.M. Williams boots, Imogene + Willie jeans and something by Patagonia nearly every day,” she said.

Utility notwithstanding, Patagonia does have things in common with the luxury brands that find inspiration in it, namely product integrity. “They have authenticity. There’s a guarantee to everything they make,” said branding impresario Andy Spade, who’s been wearing Patagonia fleeces since the late ’70s and whose agency, Partners & Spade, collaborated on the design of its new flagship on Greene Street in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood. (Mr. Spade also stocks vintage fleeces at his Sleepy Jones’ pajama shop in SoHo.) He added, “I don’t do logos, and I like their logo.”