When I say that Prada menswear is really good right now, you may read into that as meaning that Prada menswear wasn't good before. That would be incorrect because Prada has always been really good, it's just that right now, Prada is really good.
It's not like much changed at the brand, either, it's more that the world has shifted around Prada and recognized that its current output is particularly excellent, neatly demonstrated by the Prada Spring/Summer 2024 menswear campaign.
And, not that prior Prada campaigns starring household names like Tom Holland and Frank Ocean weren't evidence enough, but the SS24 campaign feels like a particularly salient moment to hang our metaphorical hat on here, though Prada also had a particularly strong and unmissable presence at the 2024 Golden Globes thanks to stylish representatives like Bella Ramsey and Willem Dafoe.
This ad does indeed star influential young stars like Harris Dickinson, Troye Sivan, and Kelvin Harrison Jr. but Prada's imagery highlights more than handsome faces: the emphasis, as it always is with Prada, is on real clothes.
Authenticity is the name of the game and few luxury labels do it as well as Prada.
Like, you wouldn't expect creative directors Miuccia Prada or Raf Simons to make a big deal about how exciting their product is because that's not how they or the maison roll.
But, still, Prada is everywhere because everyone genuinely wants to wear it.
The luxury label's pouch-strapped shoulder bags and Monolith boots are as ubiquitous as their imitators. Prada's material experiments alone set off trends and that's to say nothing of industry-shaping sibling label Miu Miu.
Confident in the strength of its triangle-shaped logo, Prada has even begun producing clothes solitarily branded with the shape itself, because that's all it takes to sell clothes (a $3,900 cashmere cardigan emblazoned as such has sold out online in all sizes).
But it's not just the logo carrying the weight here. Wearability has also always been at the heart of Prada, perhaps more than any of its high-end peers. Prada has perpetually promised approachable elegance, stuff that's simultaneously indulgent and versatile.
Today's Prada menswear perfectly reflects this attitude, as it always has, but in the current climate, where luxury shoppers crave real clothes, it's never felt more vital.
"The reason I wear Prada is not just because I like the clothes; it’s also because Miuccia has a mindset that I can relate to," Simons said prior to joining Prada. "You know, there are all these brands in the world today making so many beautiful things... but I don’t want all that shit if the mindset is not what I can relate to."
This is something Simons always understood but the folks buying Prada today have evolved to comprehend and share his POV.
Look again at Prada's SS24 campaign as proof of the Prada grindset in action.
Dickinson, for instance, wears a generously-cut interpretation of a field shirt, accented with a glossy leather shoulder bag. Exquisite but also hardy. Wearably fancy.
Sivan, meanwhile, wears a loose chore coat faded and distressed as if worn to a worksite for months on end.
It's a single piece that's perfectly indicative of today's Prada menswear: familiar, effortless, an elegant riff on the kind of thing that dudes around the world shrug on every day.
But it's not just a Carhartt by any other name. Prada's worn-in workwear is elevated by a soft lining and a crackled leather collar, thoughtful details that you won't find on any vintage work jacket (and, even then, certainly not to Prada's level of quality).
Prada feels essential because folks are craving a genuine connection with the stuff they buy. They want stuff that's substantial but also sumptuous.
Prada has long since perfected this balance: its current collection is dappled with the sort of fare that's designed to be effortless and special enough to be personal. Relaxed pajama shirts, silk track jackets, graphic shirts that don't require high-effort styling to make a suitable any day statement.
It's perhaps the truest form of quiet luxury, where the focus is on expressing oneself through shapes, textures, feelings, and garments themselves, rather than big branding (see: Prada's logoless logo).
Think of contemporary Prada menswear as "patient luxury," in that these clothes aren't hurriedly chasing this trend or that trend, desperate for approval. They will always be here, patiently awaiting the moment that the zeitgeist returns to their way of thinking.
