For some, the 2011 film “Drive” is all about an intense elevator scene and a slick, ’80s-indebted soundtrack. But for me — and, I bet, many others — it’s a 95-minute endorsement for that silky, scorpion-embroidered bomber jacket Ryan Gosling’s stoic wheelman wears while kicking a lot of ass.
Good news for cool hunters: A half-decade later, the style — called a souvenir jacket — has emerged as one of spring’s most happening pieces.
“I love a souvenir jacket,” says Will Kahn, senior market and accessories editor at Town & Country. “It is a logical extension of the baseball-jacket and coach’s-jacket trends from recent seasons.”
Many of menswear’s most formidable tastemakers are championing the show-stopping second layer over standard-issue varsities. Kim Jones at Louis Vuitton; the design duo behind Valentino; and Gucci’s Alessandro Michele all offer stunning variations on the souvenir theme, priced in the four-digit range. But the trend isn’t limited to the luxury sphere: You can pick up a version of the jacket from Lord & Taylor’s in-house brand Laboratory for $88.
Also known as the sukajan, the souvenir jacket was first popularized in the 1940s, when American servicemen stationed in the Pacific during World War II made mementos of their flight jackets to commemorate time spent overseas. Troops would commission custom bombers — which, legend has it, were sometimes made from excess parachute silk — to be adorned with Japanese and Chinese dragons, tigers, cherry blossoms and other Eastern motifs.
Modern versions remain loyal to the original concept — and have recently caught on with an army of very famous fans. In February, Jared Leto won a fashion-world thumbs up for rocking a not-yet-in-stores Gucci souvenir jacket to a pre-Oscars dinner. Not long before, Justin Bieber and Keith Richards prompted many a “Who Wore It Best?” face-off, performing separate shows in Saint Laurent’s $2,690 palm-printed update on the satin sukajan. Drake, Harry Styles and Miguel own designer iterations, too.
That’s a high rock-star count, to be sure. Should regular guys jump on the trend, too?
“You definitely need a good amount of swagger to pull this off,” says Kahn, pinpointing Kanye West, who was recently snapped sporting his own Saint Laurent bomber. “Kanye has swagger for days, and I like how he pairs [the jacket] with jeans and a dark tee. My advice for the Everyman is to follow his lead and keep the rest of the look simple.”