THE JOURNAL
The MR PORTER team road test the exclusive Balenciaga capsule collection on an average day at the office.
We try to run a progressive workplace at MR PORTER. Yes, we spend much of each day opining on what to wear, and what is worn by whom, but when it comes to our team members, there is no specific dress code. “Smart and stylish” is about as far as it goes. Nonetheless, it seems, a certain style has evolved. Shades of navy, for example, are somewhat popular. So are button-down shirts and white sneakers. Trousers are worn cropped above the ankle. Bushy beards are rare.
Does this mean we are all just sheep? Or are we merely confirming the theory of French sociologist Mr Pierre Bourdieu, who, in his 1979 book Distinction, suggested that however much we might think otherwise, our tastes and values are largely about asserting a place in a specific social group? Either way, we thought the whole thing worth interrogating. Which is why we tasked the team to take a step outside their respective comfort zones and spend a day in the office wearing nothing but items from our new, exclusive capsule collection with Balenciaga, which lands on MR PORTER this week.
Why Balenciaga? Why now? First, in case it’s not clear, there are few brands that we are more buzzed about at the moment. Since he took over as creative director in 2016, Vetements founder Mr Demna Gvasalia has breathed new life into the 99-year-old couture house’s menswear, toying with the proportions of the male physique and mixing tailoring expertise with a startlingly contemporary streetwear aesthetic that defines the current style zeitgeist. More interestingly, part of the appeal of Mr Gvasalia’s work is that it focuses on the unconscious sartorial codes of everyday life, reinventing pieces, such as dad jeans or shell windbreakers, that are widely worn but, up until now, not really considered fashion statements.
A pertinent question, then: could Balenciaga be the corporate uniform for the Yoox Net-A-Porter-Group? The 360-degree feedback is, on the whole, positive.
“I think my Balenciaga look is a hyperbolic interpretation of what I normally would wear,” says Digital Designer Mr Olmo Rodriguez Roces, who test-drove this spring’s hand-painted leather jacket while (we assume) flexing his Photoshop muscles. “I like Balenciaga’s outerwear, particularly the coats and blazers, as they reflect the house’s tailoring heritage, as well as the structural designs of Cristóbal Balenciaga.”
Buyer Mr Daniel Todd took a break from his rather strict monochrome regime to trial a sweatpants-and-shirt combo. “I would say my everyday look is more minimal, so it was fun to wear something standout,” he says. “My favourite piece would probably be the denim jacket as it’s such a key style from the collection. Plus, a denim jacket works in anyone’s wardrobe.”
Studio Photographer Mr Richard Manning concurs in this respect, saying that he was particularly fond of his double-denim look (which chimed well with his usual skate-inflected style). Though he was slightly taken aback by the outsized proportions of the brand’s fantastic Triple S sneakers (which MR PORTER is offering in an exclusive green colourway), he also notes that they were “super comfy”, surely an essential attribute for the daily commute.
Accounts Assistant Mr Toheeb Adebayo, like Mr Todd, enjoyed the chance to step outside his comfort zone of “mostly dark colours”, opting instead for a pair of bright logo-print shorts and a black bomber jacket. The latter piece was a particular favourite. Some might find the idea of shorts in the office a little daring, but, Mr Adebayo says, the whole thing left him feeling rather relaxed. Could this be a helpful de-stresser?
This whole idea was conceived as something as an experiment. But perhaps – and do take this with a pinch of salt – this could also be the future of workwear. In recent months it seems that even more conservative offices are loosening up a little bit. In June 2016, the formerly sartorially strict JP Morgan announced it was embracing business casual in its office, meaning employees are now encouraged, with appropriate clients, to wear polo shirts and chinos in place of suits. More recently, in June 2017, it was decided that male British members of parliament are no longer required to wear a tie in the House of Commons. Yes, it may be a long way from here to Balenciaga’s red hoodie becoming a business staple, but things are certainly moving forward, as is men’s style in general, thanks in part to brands such as this one.
“Before I joined MR PORTER, I worked in retail for eight years,” says Assistant Buyer Mr George Archer. “Even during that time dress codes relaxed a lot from initially being quite stiff. I can remember how great it was when I started to see guys feel comfortable wearing skirts, for example, and having tattooed hands and necks on show. This was when Kanye West wore the Givenchy leather kilt in 2011 and men’s fashion was transforming rapidly.”
Beyond taking a meeting in an aforementioned hoodie, Prince of Wales check trousers and Balenciaga speed socks for the purposes of this article, Mr Archer is a genuine fan of the brand and already wears its oversized sweatshirts with black skinny jeans to the MR PORTER office. For him it’s all about feeling comfortable (“without pushing casual too far”), a sentiment we can surely all agree with.
Maybe such advances are not only inevitable but necessary. If working wardrobes are changing, they’re only doing so because work itself is changing. Mr Rodriguez Roces makes a good point on this front. “The amount of time we spend at the office, now, is proportionally greater than the time we spend at home, blurring the boundaries between private and public,” he says. “This certainly has an impact on the way we want to dress and progressively it changes the way in which we consider, as a group, it is acceptable to be seen.”
So there you have it: not only a landmark fashion exclusive, but food for thought, too. Perhaps we should do this more often. What’s HR’s extension again?