ESSENTIALS' Fall 2022 Collection Is Huge
This article was published on August 16, 2022, and updated on September 27, 2022
Fear of God is big but ESSENTIALS is massive. FoG's ultra-popular sub-label has an immense following and, for Fall 2022, ESSENTIALS is playing into its wide appeal with its largest collection ever.
There's more beige stuff here than anyone could ever realistically need but you won't hear any of ESSENTIALS' one million Instagram followers complaining.
ESSENTIALS' popularity comes from a few key items, which are all slightly tweaked for Fall 2022, but FoG appears to be keen on pushing the stylistic envelope of its best-selling brand with silhouettes that get more advanced every season.
Retailers just can't keep ESSENTIALS' branded hoodies, T-shirts and shorts in stock.
There's just something about ESSENTIALS' signature branding, neutral color palette, and generous cuts that reels in casual streetwear fans by the dozens — ESSENTIALS has an international following especially among sneakerheads and young shoppers seeking something more premium than fast fashion but more approachable than Fear of God mainline.
But there's at least some internal mechanisms in place designed to encourage the ESSENTIALS customer to grow with FoG: the American luxury label, founded by Jerry Lorenzo, has been expanding its output over the past few months to include a dedicated Home line and its Core Collection of FoG staples that Lorenzo envisions as wardrobe foundations.
Then, there's the Fear of God Athletics project that Lorenzo is developing with adidas, presumably leading towards a more holistic sportswear crossover than what he created with Nike.
ESSENTIALS is like the FoG gateway drug. It's an affordable taste of Lorenzo's opulent vision, one that's in-demand enough to sell out almost immediately every season.
Expect ESSENTIALS' Fall 2022 collection to pull the same trick when it launches on August 24 at Fear of God's website and shortly after at ESSENTIALS stockists.
This offering sees ESSENTIALS doing what it does best: lounge-y athleisure, toss-on layering pieces, and mix-n-match basics. Yep, you've got your usual polo shirts and shirts but there's also much more going under the hood (or should that be hoodie?).
For instance, those fan-favorite hoodies and T-shirts boast revamped branding that unusually brings together ESSENTIALS branding with Fear of God's own name, making the collection feel that much closer to its mainline sibling.
This collection builds upon the foundation of past ESSENTIALS collections in ways that you'd expect from this flourishing operation: there's womenswear, kidswear, a denim program, supple knitwear, and an expanded accessories offering that goes beyond the California mule, which wasn't an ESSENTIALS-specific silhouette anyways.
Plush leather crossbodies, totes, and messenger bags are all here, as well as particularly warm-looking sandals that boast oversized straps and a Birkenstock-style sole.
When reached by Highsnobiety about the sandals, a representative for ESSENTIALS didn't "have any additional information to share" but did clarify that the California shoes will release in greige, coral, and "new, exciting" colorway later this year.
There's almost too much to mention in one simple writeup, which is exactly why FoG tends to release the ESSENTIALS collections across multiple drops, so August 24 may only be an appetizer for more goodness to come.
Then, the second drop goes live on September 28, offering fans another opportunity to dig into fresh seasonal fare from ESSENTIALS.
