The trench coat will always be a timeless closet staple, especially in those weird, confusing micro-seasons in between seasons. But we would like to put the classic trench's cooler, more laid back little sister on your radar: the cropped trench.
The trench coat originated out of necessity. It wasn't a fashion choice or a trend, they were keeping soldiers and officers warm throughout World War I. Does the term "in the trenches" sound familiar to you? They, or what would eventually evolve into them, were invented even before that (approximately 100 years) for military use. So how did trench coats become an everlasting fashion trend? How did we get to the point where a coat originally intended to keep soldiers dry and warm while literally in the trenches reach a cropped iteration? And how does Burberry play a role in this?
Gwyneth Paltrow
Getty Images
Well, this might be surprising to some people, but Burberry, the brand still creating recognizable trench coats with interiors lined in their trademark check print tartan pattern to this day, was founded in 1856. Thomas Burberry, in response to England's rainy and uncertain weather, created gabardine in 1879, the world's first breathable and weatherproof material. He supplied Burberry trench coats to the military during World War I and then, many soldiers returned to their normal lives with their coats and continued to wear there. And, alas, a fashion trend was born. Now, here we are in 2025, still coveting that Burberry trench coat that is seemingly permanently engrained in the fashion zeitgeist.
With all trends, evolution, adaptation, and change are to be expected—it's the natural course of fashion. We, wearer of clothes and designers alike, are always looking at trends and thinking: how can I make this different? It was only a matter of time before trench coats became cropped. A cropped trench coat makes for a more casual look, but still embraces the original model's formal details. I would argue that it, because of its casual and formal duality, can be thrown on with anything.
Getty Images
During London Fashion Week and for the Burberry show, of course, model Lila Moss took the cropped trench coat trend to a whole new level: a trench shrug. Perhaps a sign of the evolution to come, definitely and without a doubt a fun addition to the trench coat family and something that I'm certainly looking into for my own wardrobe.
Shop The Trend:
