When it came to the clothes, the mood was distinctive this Autumn/Winter 2025 menswear season, with a dual focus on creative tailoring and laid-back casualwear. But as male consumers seek versatility and longevity from their clothes, accessories took centre stage this season to inject some personal style and flavour.
Where the looks of previous seasons might have been complemented by leather goods or eyewear for the sake of styling, today’s designers are using accessories to demonstrate the versatility of their clothes — from dressing up a suit, to injecting practicality into a more frivolous look. “Men’s relationship with accessories has definitely shifted. Now, they serve a purpose,” says fashion critic and creator Osama Chabbi. “Not every look is shown with a bag now, so if there is a bag, it’s a huge one that actually fits stuff. If it’s a shoe, it needs to be something you’d want to wear throughout the day.”
Men’s accessories, notably handbags, are having such a strong moment and are in high demand right now, adds Stavros Karelis, founder of London concept store Machine-A. “Equally, other accessories such as neckties or statement belts and caps are performing extremely well, as men are looking to elevate their outfits,” he says.
As market potential grows, Vogue Business breaks down the key trends to note.
XXL bags
The AW25 runways were dominated by the giant tote and the weekender. In Milan, models sported capacious bowling bags at Prada, hugged oversized slouchy satchels at Magliano, carried multi-pocket megabags at Dolce & Gabbana and clutched suede earth-tone totes at Giorgio Armani.
In Paris, maximalism was also the mood for Louis Vuitton Men’s creative director Pharrell Williams, who presented a collaboration with A Bathing Ape founder Nigo. Huge monogram weekenders appeared in various shades of pastel and denim this season. At intervals, models even wheeled enormous monogram trunks down the runway, with Japanese tea sets inside and showed off new-age Birkins at Hermès. Rick Owens was also thinking about packing his bags: “Rick Owens’s recent Rimowa tie-up put a new perspective on travel accessories like packing cubes, but also ID lanyards, which showed up as the invite for this season’s Louis Vuitton show,” adds Jian DeLeon, men’s fashion director at Nordstrom.
