Okay so this is going to sound completely unhinged but I’ve been tracking fashion editors’ sweaters for like three years now and I need to tell someone about what I’ve discovered because it’s honestly kind of blowing my mind.
It started when I was scrolling through street style photos from Paris Fashion Week – you know how I do, analyzing every single outfit for content inspiration – and I kept seeing the same navy sweater. Not similar sweaters, the exact same one. On different people, styled completely differently, but definitely the same piece. I have this weird ability to spot duplicate items in photos, probably from spending way too much time studying influencer outfits and trying to figure out where everything’s from.
At first I thought it was some new designer piece that everyone was getting sent, because that’s usually how it works when you see multiples of something at fashion week. Brands will gift the same item to a bunch of editors and suddenly it’s everywhere. But this sweater looked so… normal? Like not in a boring way, but in a “this is just a really good sweater” way that didn’t scream designer collaboration or trendy brand moment.
I became borderline obsessed with figuring out what it was. Started screenshotting every instance I found, zooming in on details, even asking in fashion ID Facebook groups like some kind of sweater detective. The breakthrough came when I saw it on a fashion assistant I actually follow – she tagged M&S in her stories and I literally gasped out loud in my apartment. My neighbors probably think I’m losing it.
Marks & Spencer. The most unglamorous, uncool, thoroughly British retailer you can imagine. The place where, like, your mom buys sensible cardigans and your dad gets his work pants. I had to go see this sweater for myself immediately.
The Pure Cashmere Crew Neck Jumper, sitting there on a rack between some truly tragic floral tops and those weird graphic tees they always have near the checkout. It’s £89 now, was cheaper when I first discovered it, but still absolutely nothing compared to what fashion people usually spend on knitwear. I bought it in navy obviously, telling myself it was research for content, but honestly I just had to know what the hype was about.
Three years later I own it in five colors and I finally get why this random M&S sweater has achieved cult status among people who normally shop exclusively at Net-a-Porter. It’s genuinely perfect in the most boring, unsexy way possible, which is exactly what makes it so good.
The fit is like someone actually thought about how humans are shaped – relaxed enough that you can layer it or eat a full meal without looking pregnant, but not so oversized that you disappear into it. The cashmere feels substantial, not like those tissue-thin designer versions that develop holes if you look at them wrong. And the colors are properly considered – not just “blue” but the exact right navy that goes with literally everything you own.
I’ve put this sweater through absolute hell. Coffee spills, getting caught in rain, stuffed into overpacked suitcases, even accidentally washing it on the wrong setting when I was half asleep after a late night editing session. It just keeps looking good, which honestly feels revolutionary when you’re used to fast fashion falling apart after three wears.
What’s wild is how it works with everything. I’ve worn mine with vintage Levis for coffee runs, with a pleated midi skirt for brand events, even with leather pants for a night out because why not. It’s like the clothing equivalent of that perfect Instagram filter that makes everything look better – it just elevates whatever you put with it without trying too hard.
But here’s the really interesting part – this sweater has become like a secret handshake among fashion insiders. I’ll be at events and spot someone wearing it, and there’s this moment of mutual recognition. Like we’re part of some exclusive club, except the membership fee is under a hundred pounds and you can join by walking into any M&S.
A stylist friend told me she keeps one in her kit bag at all shoots because it works with literally anything and she can replace it easily if disaster strikes. Another editor I know bought backups in her favorite colors because she was genuinely worried M&S might discontinue it. These are people who have access to every luxury brand you can think of, and they’re panic-buying knitwear from Marks & Spencer.
I think what’s happening is that fashion people are so tired of the constant trend cycle that finding something genuinely good quality that exists outside of it feels almost rebellious. Like, everyone in the industry knows that expensive doesn’t always mean better – we see behind the curtain of markups and marketing. Finding something that’s actually well-made at a reasonable price is honestly more satisfying than scoring the latest designer drop.
There’s also something to be said for pieces that just work without you having to think about them. When you’re running between appointments all day, carrying way too much stuff, trying to look put-together while essentially living out of tote bags, having wardrobe staples you can rely on is genuinely valuable. This sweater is like the Swiss Army knife of knitwear – it just handles whatever you throw at it.
I’ve started playing this game where I try to spot them at fashion events. London Fashion Week last season I counted at least six in one afternoon, all styled completely differently. There was the fashion director who paired hers with an insane ruffled skirt that probably cost more than my rent. A street style photographer wearing it with vintage jeans and designer sneakers. Even spotted one on someone I’m pretty sure was Anna Wintour’s assistant, though obviously I couldn’t just go up and ask about her sweater choices.
The funniest part is how M&S seems completely oblivious to their fashion world takeover. They just keep making the same sweater, season after season, maybe adding a new color here and there but never messing with the formula. In an industry built on constant change, this consistency is almost radical.
I’ve tried other high street cashmere options obviously – Uniqlo’s is decent but thinner, COS has some good pieces but they’re often too directional, the supermarket versions are… well, you get what you pay for. But something about this specific M&S version just hits differently. Maybe it’s the weight of the knit, or the particular way they’ve cut it, or just the fact that they’ve been making basically the same thing for years so they’ve had time to perfect it.
What’s really interesting is that this isn’t some new phenomenon – I’ve been doing research and fashion people have been quietly obsessing over this sweater for like a decade. It’s survived countless trend cycles, industry shake-ups, even M&S’s own questionable attempts at being more fashion-forward. Remember when they were trying to be all trendy and directional? We don’t need to revisit that era.
The staying power says something about how fashion actually works versus how people think it works. Everyone assumes fashion insiders are constantly chasing the newest, most exclusive things, but honestly most of the genuinely stylish people I know build their wardrobes around incredible basics and then add trends sparingly. This sweater fits perfectly into that approach.
I’ve reached the point where I genuinely look forward to the new season drop when the cashmere section gets restocked. Last year I set an alarm to buy the burgundy color online before it sold out in my size, which is behavior I’d normally associate with limited edition Supreme drops, not M&S knitwear. But apparently I’m not alone – multiple people have told me they have calendar reminders for the autumn launch.
The best part is the secret recognition factor. Once you’re aware of this sweater, you start seeing it everywhere in fashion circles. It’s like when you learn a new word and suddenly hear it constantly, except it’s expensive-looking knitwear at industry events. There’s something deeply satisfying about being in on this particular secret, especially in an industry that can feel pretty exclusionary.
Is writing about this going to ruin the whole underground appeal? Probably, but honestly the sweater is good enough that it doesn’t need exclusivity to maintain its status. It’s popular because it deserves to be, which in today’s fashion landscape feels almost revolutionary. Plus M&S has never been cool enough for mainstream fashion hype to really stick to it anyway.
So next time you see a fashion girl looking effortlessly chic in what appears to be expensive minimalist cashmere, there’s a decent chance it came from the same place she buys her underwear and her lunch. Sometimes the best things really are hiding in plain sight, even if that sight is the knitwear section of Britain’s most aggressively uncool department store. And honestly? That makes it even better.
