Soggy out there, isn’t it? And windy. The kind of weather that calls for a chic trench coat you can pull on, belt-up, and turn up the collars and step out into the elements feeling like a French movie star who is elegantly immune to drizzle.
Or perhaps I’d do better to say it’s the kind of weather that calls for The Trench by Marks and Spencer. Because today the design team at the nation’s favourite clothing store launched their ultimate version of the classic British coat. There are other waterproof coats - including cute car coats - in their range, but because they’re so proud of all the extra details in this one (more on them below), they’ve gone as far as to name it The Trench.
They won’t have done this lightly, because it really is quite the claim. I can even hear the food advert in my head.. “this isn’t just any trench, this is a Marks and Spencer trench.”
But here is the excellent news: for the price this coat earns its name. It's a coat that does everything you want it to. I know this because, last week – as you’ll notice in the video in the top of this article, I visited M&S flagship fashion store the Pantheon on Oxford Street where they try and test new product launches – and once I laid eyes on this coat on the rail, well, you'll see.
It comes in two colours. I went straight for the black version with brown and black checked lining, a design straight from M&S archive, because my skin tone does not work with beige; think walking digestive biscuit and you’ll get the idea.
Once slipped on, it worked perfectly over dark denim jeans, red ballet pumps and my favourite Henley knit, and would work just as well with a heritage checked midi skirt and a shirt with knee-high boots.
Both versions of this coat are double-breasted and made from a premium cotton twill which is finished with M&S Teflon-based water-repellant and stain-resistant Stormwear treatment, and is shower-proof, rather than deluge proof, which is enough when you’re on your way from A-to-B.
Inside the coat - and this is one of my favourite features - it has an internal chest pocket enabling you to keep your essentials tucked away and dry. It also features a detachable belt, cute mock horn buttons, a buckle up collar detail, epaulettes on the shoulder and a rear storm flap; all essential design features of a traditional trench coat of the type you’d pay £2000 or more for at Burberry.
Yet this one is £95. Though I haven’t mentioned the precise cut of this coat, that too is extremely flattering and stylish; it made me look slimmer the second I put it on, and it comes in sizes 6-24.
Natural fibres, well-designed, practical and extremely chic and stylish, this autumn trench coat has it all. I can’t recommend it highly enough, and, amazingly, it’s fully stocked. If you are looking for a trench coat you can wear for many years to come, you’ve just found it.
