Christopher John Rogers has been including elevated versions of cargo pants in his lineups since spring 2020. “I think comfort and utility have become increasingly important to customers today, and we’re also seeing a slight flattening of trends, where now almost anything goes,” said the designer. “It’s also about getting the most out of your clothes.”
The post-pandemic fashion landscape has loosened conceptions about what constitutes “dressed-up.” What counts as fancy today is not what was considered so back in the Before Times. “Post-COVID, the cargo pant has become an elevated luxury wardrobe staple,” said Yumi Shin, chief merchandising officer at Bergdorf Goodman. “I find it most interesting when their perceived casualness is contrasted in luxurious fabrics, juxtaposed with a tailored jacket and styled with the right accessories such as a chic sandal.” She named cargos by Rogers, Luke and Lucie Meier at Jil Sander, and Chitose Abe’s Sacai as key styles.
Gilda Ambrosio and Giorgia Tordini’s collections for The Attico have helped define the new influencer wardrobe, but the distinctiveness of their sensibility lies in the way in which they challenge how wardrobe staples can be worn. Some of the Internet’s favorite dressers today do just that: give things enough of a twist that they find new life. See Marc Forné, stylist to Troye Sivan and Manu Rios, who mixes his camo cargos with pinstripe tailoring, and stylist and consultant Amanda Murray, who pairs vintage army surplus cargos with a trailing Dries Van Noten blouse or an an evening top by Junya Watanabe.