From runway to wardrobe, leather returns with a vengeance

After a few seasons in the doldrums, supplanted by dramatic tailoring, floor-length coats and sheer fabrics, for example, the leather jacket looks set to make a triumphant return to mainstream menswear this autumn.

The first signs of its comeback appeared at the fashion shows at the beginning of the year, when moody, tough-guy leather was on the march at the likes of Amiri, Dolce & Gabbana and Louis Vuitton, which is perhaps not too surprising. However, there was deft use of leather at less maximalist brands, such as Lemaire or Auralee, too. And even Prada – usually so ascetic and sleek – played host to a clutch of two-piece leather suits.

But few designers indulged in biker-ready animal hide like Haider Ackermann, who unveiled his debut collection for Tom Ford in Paris in March. The label has long been known for its nightclub loucheness, replete with furs, jewel-toned tailoring and winkle-picker boots sharp enough to dispatch a small animal.

However, the first look of Ackermann’s era at Tom Ford was an all-leather affair. Like something lifted from the deserts of Mad Max, it combined a cafe racer jacket with skinny, low-rise leather pants and a leather crew-neck top, all in black, punctuated only by the model’s peroxide-blonde buzz cut. (The boots, it should be said, made it into production.)

Further looks introduced sharp, 80s-era power tailoring – inspired by American Psycho’s Patrick Bateman, Ackermann told reporters – but the leather motif was sustained in slick overcoats that offset the power-dressing red of a Wall Street tie, or in the soft creak of hitman gloves peeking from crisp white cuffs.

Granted, there are few pieces of menswear as divisive as the leather jacket. For some, it is akin to a trilby hat, or a pair of dungarees: not impossible to pull off, but fundamentally unwearable for mere mortals and men on the street.

For others, though, the leather jacket is the height of masculine cool, and pop culture would tend to agree: cinema is littered with good guys – and some of the best bad guys – dressed in leather, from Marlon Brando’s Schott Perfecto in The Wild One, to Harrison Ford’s hyper-space Harrington in the Star Wars series.

‘Over the past century, leather-clad men have always worn it with a sense of confidence,’ says celebrity stylist Gareth Scourfield, pointing to such icons as Steve McQueen, James Dean, and David Beckham, each of whom has left an indelible mark on the leather jacket’s rebellious reputation. ‘It’s a skin that’s always had a slight irreverence to it,’ he adds. ‘Leather leans towards an anti-establishment mentality.’

For the uninitiated, Scourfield suggests starting with accessories – a leather rucksack, perhaps – that ‘can mix into your everyday wardrobe without causing a raised eyebrow’. He adds, ‘You can even play with some muted colour or texture.’ At Auralee’s AW’25 show, leather was considered more as a layer than the main event, sneaking in under neat woollen coats or as a replacement for a suit jacket.

The perfect leather jacket, says Scourfield, is probably vintage – well-worn and softened by years on the back of some wayward rockabilly. But the more generous, oversized leather bombers at Zegna’s AW25 show were ‘perfectly styled on both older and younger guys’, and may serve as a more luxurious way into the trend.

At Saint Laurent, the French label synonymous with rock’n’roll chic, leather took the form of thigh-high boots, worn, curiously, with razor-sharp tailoring and lashings of hair pomade.

Despite the formality, however, you’d be safe to assume such boots won’t make an appearance in your neighbourhood any time soon – but there is a way to wear leather in a municipal environment should you so wish.

‘Keep to the classic colours of black, chocolate brown and maybe a dark olive green,’ advises Scourfield. ‘Pare back on the hardware details in a neat bomber or biker style to give the leather an elevated appeal, or throw on a Belstaff belted Trialmaster over a pair of tailored dark denims and navy crew knit. The leather jacket will pull the look together without shouting “look at me, I’m a rebel without a cause”.’

Three years ago, Tom Ford was purchased by Estée Lauder Companies for $2.8 billion, and, after a handful of critically underwhelming seasons, the hope is that Ackermann’s new, historic-biker vibe will re-inject some life into the label. That he chose to use leather to do it, with all its capacities and connotations, speaks to the material’s perennial appeal. And, perhaps, to a gap in your wardrobe.