Phoebe Philo Made This *the* Outerwear Trend of Fall 2024 | Who What Wear

Oct 16, 2024

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Phoebe Philo has a way of influencing the way that cool people dress. She's been doing it for years, through her days at Chloé, even more so at Celine (then Céline), and still today with her namesake brand. There are almost too many Philo-fused trends to count throughout the designer's over 20 years in the industry, but right now, the one that has people talking (and shopping) the most is funnel-neck coats.

We can't talk about being swaddled inside your outerwear via high-neck and scarf-like attachments without first crediting Philo. They were a through line in her first few collections—coming in a variety of shapes, colors, styles, and materials, including leather and canvas—and were quickly picked up by Kendall Jenner and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. As a result, the funnel-neck coat and jacket trend picked way up, eventually replacing almost all other cold-weather top layers, including long-standing favorites like maxi coats and fur-collar robe coats, in fashion circles.

Bottega Veneta's Matthieu Blazy was another early advocate of the funnel-neck coat trend, followed by Proenza Schouler, Chloé, Saint Laurent, and Khaite. Soon, more affordable brands like Banana Republic, COS, Source Unknown, and The Frankie Shop began carrying the incognito outerwear style in spades. A few short weeks into fall, they're already everywhere, with more arriving daily in the lead-up to winter.

Before they become a need more than a want, scroll down to shop the funnel-neck coat trend that's set to define not only the tail end of 2024 but 2025 too.

For fall, Stella McCartney made a strong case for ditching an outfit and instead simply relying on a truly beautiful piece of outerwear (and some great accessories, too). Here, a model at the designer's F/W 24 show can be seen donning an all-white leather trench coat fit with a chin strap, creating a funnel-like appearance. All that was needed to complete the look was an oversize white tote bag and matching pumps.

Proenza Schouler continued to push the funnel-neck agenda at its show in New York, debuting a black shearling coat that was styled, again, on its own, just with lug-sole sock boots and a black clutch. The lesson here? Don't invest in what goes underneath your outerwear this fall and winter. A good coat will do *all* the hard work.

If you were under the impression that the funnel-neck trend will be a one-season wonder, think again. For spring, Brandon Maxwell (and countless other designers) introduced warmer-weather versions of the fall-and-winter outerwear style, with many opting for technical fabrics and sporty silhouettes.

Switching strategies, Victoria Beckham offered up a different lightweight, spring-ready option in the form of a high-neck sculpted leather top in burgundy, pairing it with fold-over, olive-colored trousers, thus making the funnel neck a year-round silhouette that's more than worth investing heavily in.

Eliza Huber is a New York City–based fashion editor who specializes in trend reporting, brand discovery, and celebrity style. She joined Who What Wear in 2021 after almost four years on the fashion editorial team at Refinery29, the job she took after graduating with a marketing degree from the University of Iowa. She has since launched two monthly columns, Let's Get a Room and Ways to Wear; profiled the likes of Dakota Fanning, Diane Kruger, Katie Holmes, and Sabrina Carpenter for WWW's monthly cover features; and reported on everything from the relationship between Formula One and fashion to the top trends from fashion month, season after season. Eliza now lives on the Upper West Side and spends her free time researching F1 fashion imagery for her side Instagram accounts @thepinnacleoffashion and @f1paddockfits, running in Central Park, and scouring eBay for '90s Prada and '80s Yves Saint Laurent.

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