When we say that Bitcoin is everywhere in 2018, we really do mean everywhere. Invading sport, gaming, and music, it appears that fashion is the latest industry to get caught up the crypto craze. New York Fashion Week (NYFW) is a must-see event for anyone involved in fashion, with the men’s shows proving to be notable highlights. While it’s pretty unexpected, the looks appearing on the runway from some leading designers appear to have more than just an air of cryptocurrency about them.
Straight out of the boiler room
The show that will have caught the eye of crypto fans is that of Raf Simons – the leading Belgian designer. Described by one critic as looking like “the inner sanctum of a boiler room, where brokers pitch their clients on penny stocks and digital currencies with a Machiavellian zeal”, it’s safe to say Simons’ new line has proved to be a real NYFW highlight. What Simons’ sent down the runway included topcoats matched with rubber boots and surgical gloves, slim-fit three-button suits, and patched turtlenecks that had some rather familiar acronyms. GBH and XTC weren’t placed on these items by chance, as the latter happens to be one letter off the acronym for Bitcoin – the world’s biggest cryptocurrency.
Bringing BTC to the runaway
With a journalist from the Financial Times (FT) in attendance, the publication gave a pretty amazing review of the collection. It reads, “Fitting easily on today’s youngest investors, who don’t stick to the Kiton and Zegna suits of their fathers and prefer Coinbase to TD Ameritrade.” While Simons’ collection might have led the charge for crypto-inspired fashion at NYFW, he didn’t stand alone. Tom Ford – a leading streetwear designer – debuted a line that included some crypto trader approved pleated trousers that had serious eye-catching credentials. Other items within his range included silk boxers carrying animal prints and shimmering metallics, so the crypto-styled clothing he brought to the runaway certainly wasn’t the most out-there style he debuted.
Crypto-inspired fashion takes center stage!
Are you likely to see crypto-centric fashion on the shelves on your favorite high street stores anytime soon? We doubt it, but what these styles at NYFW show is that designers aren’t afraid to look to the likes of BTC, ETH, LTC, XRP, and XVG for inspiration. Plus, as FT so rightly says, “Day traders flipping cryptocurrencies at home need something to wear”, so you can certainly expect to see more crypto-inspired fashion paraded down the fashion world’s runways in the very near future!
