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news
Paul Smith launches 531 cycle clothing range with a £550 jacket
Designer Paul Smith is a relatively well-known name in cycling, having collaborated with Rapha in previous years and designed the Maglia Rosa jersey for the Giro d’Italia last year, but now Paul Smith has launched his own range of cycling clothing and called it the 531 Cycling Collection.
That’s 531 as named after the Reynolds tubeset of the same name by the way. Each of the garments are adorned with smart looking details shaped by the demands of cycling and with the 531 logo a regular appearance, but there is an overall understated appearance across the range. The new collection is said to bring together "Paul Smith's passion for cycling and the latest developments in technical fabrications" with 11 garments that meet "cyclists’ demands for breathable, water-resistant and insulating garments that have a versatility to see them right both on and off the pedals.”
There’s extensive use of highly technical fabrics from Swiss company Schoeller and a focus on clothing that performs well both on and off the bike. There’s also, and it's nice to see this, a good investment in visibility with bright colours and abundant reflective details.
The 531 Cycling Collection range includes lightweight waterproof jackets, sweaters made from merino wool, tights, shorts and hoodies. Paul Smith has roped in David Millar, who now has plenty of spare time on his hands, to put the clothing through its paces in this launch film.
There are quite a few products in the 531 range so let’s whittle through some of the highlights. First up is the Men’s 531 Weatherproof Cycling Jacket with Temperature Control, the real standout item of the range. It costs £550.
It’s intended to be a four-season jacket and is made with Swiss-made Schoeller C-Change fabric with a panelled construction on the sleeves and body, with the 4-way stretch providing a good fit. There’s a drop-down tail, reflective details including the chest panel, and underarm vents to help with breathability.
As much as it’s designed to excel on the bike, it’s also intended to work well off it too, as is a popular trend with clothing from the likes of Ted Baker jacket we reviewed recently and similar jackets and clothing from Rapha and Vulpine.It’s available in orange or black
The 531 Wind and Shower Resistant Packable cycle jacket costs £450 and is made from Schoeller 3xDRY fabric which is claimed to be water resistant and breathable, making it an ideal jacket to use when you get caught out by the rain, as it’s small enough (probably) to pack into a jersey pocket or rucksack to be there when you need it. be a good commuting jacket this one we reckon.
Again, there’s a panelled construction on the body and arms, strategically placed vents including two that double as hand-warmer pockets when not riding. There’s also drop-down rear flap and reflective details. It’s available in orange and teal colours.
The 531 Merino Cycling Hoodie with Windproof Panels costs £250 and is made from 100% New Zealand merino wool with Schoeller 3xDRY front-facing panels providing wind resistance. This top is one of our picks of the range, and looks the sort that can be worn off the bike as much as on it, and with the combination of insulating merino and windproof Schoeller fabric, should provide good on bike performance.
The hood is designed to be worn under a bike helmet if needed when the weather is really bad, there’s a raised ‘kangaroo’ pocket, reflective chest panel and scooped rear hem.
Costing £199 is the 531 Merino Wool Cycling Sweatshirt with Reflective Panels. It’s made from 100% merino wool and intended to be a versatile top for on and off the bike use, with a tailored fit, flat lock seams throughout and reflective panels.
This is the 531 Windproof Paneled Cycling Gilet. It costs £350 and is made from Schoeller 3xDRY fabric with windproof front panels and high-density mesh panels to ensure good breathability when it’s worn over a jacket or jersey.
There are plenty of reflective details and the high-cut pockets provide good stowage capacity.
Finally, the collection also includes these 531 4-Way Stretch Cycling Over-Shorts, priced £175. They use the same Schoeller 3xDRY fabric as used in the tops, with a water resistant treatment making them ideal for winter cycling, and a Coldback UV treatment for cycling in the sunshine. They’re designed to be worn over padded cycling shorts or tights, with a zip fly with top button fastening, front and rear pockets, a keychain ‘D’ ring for keys, and a high waistband made from neoprene.
Like what you see? You can see the rest of the collection at the Paul Smith website right here www.paulsmith.co.uk/uk-en/shop/mens/paul-smith-531
David worked on the road.cc tech team from 2012-2020. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds, and you can now find him over on his own YouTube channel David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes.
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59 comments
Bet Cav's got a set...
I wonder if Reynolds lawyers are as generous as Specialized's.
I don' think you can copyright a number. That's why Intel named a processor the Pentium instead of 586.
My remark was tongue in cheek, but Peugeot did well enough in stopping Porsche from naming any more cars x0x after the 901.
If you think it's too expensive you're not the target market.
Some nice looking stuff, but the price!
If your well healed enough, and are comfortable paying the luxury goods tax then all well and good. Rapha's stuff is more desirable, and relatively speaking a bargain. Luxury goods are an uncomfortable fit with cycling
Don't say that, they will put the price up again.
I'm not sure why this article reminds me of the Harry Enfield "saw you coming" sketches..
I love it when the term "designer" is used as if other things aren't designed.. You could say that the Aldi or Lidl cycling is designer too.
I love the comments from people complaining about the price. So what if they're expensive? They look great and if they function as well as they look, I might just buy one.
I currently run a rear light that costs 20 times as much as some here might spend on something similar. The front light is even more expensive. Would the same people complain that I was being "pretentious" by spending so much money?
Wind your necks in.
If I walk down the road wearing a Paul Smith jacket that costs £500, other *walkers* won't bat an eyelid. But if I cycle down the road wearing a Paul Smith jacket that costs £500, other *cyclists* will explode with rage!
What cycling 'shouldn't be' is when people try to decide what cycling should be.
(Disclaimer: I can't *even* afford a Rapha jacket).
Over the years I've bought lots of cycle kit, but a recent shift to some Rapha kit (in my opinion) has proven to be good value for money… it works so well that it makes two or more similar pieces of cheaper kit redundant… but you do need to take a leap of faith when committing to a Rapha purchase. The Paul Smith kit looks well designed, no doubt some shared design minds behind both this and Rapha, but the price is clearly aimed at a 'luxury' customer… like Belstaff motorcycle jackets, I remember having one for motorcycling, but you'd be mad or well-heeled to use a new one in the wind and oil of daily commuter biking, they're predominantly fashion accessories now.
It's good that Paul Smith is taking a more visible position within the industry, rather than just a small number of very high-end associations… hopefully his ideas will trickle down into some of the more 'maintsream' suppliers.
I wouldn't pay so much (and I've got a lot of Rapha!), but then I've not bought normal Paul Smith stuff either, so I guess I'm not the target market.
If you wish to spend your money, fair enough.
A review on this website will often call out a product for being overpriced where appropriate, and yet this article reads suspiciously like a paid 'fluff' piece to advertise Paul Smith. There's no mention of the fact that £550 is a ridiculous price to pay for a cycling jacket, designer or not.
You think it's a 'ridiculous' price to pay for a cycling jacket. Other people might not think the same as you, as crazy as that idea might seem to you. People can make up their own minds if it's for them or not
The point I was trying to make is that there is no mention of any possible negatives to any of these items. A lack of "balance" in viewpoints to this article, if you see what I mean. Calling it "ridiculous" is perhaps a bit over the top on reflection - but the price as compared to almost any other cycling jacket you can buy is surely worthy of comment, at least?
Perhaps the internet is so full of advertisements disguised as articles that my suspicion-o-meter has been mis-calibrated.
The thing is, without testing the clothing - I haven't even seen with my own eyes or touched this new 531 clothing yet - it's impossible to know how it performs, if there are any negatives, if it's worth the price tag. It might be. It might not. I've simply reported the news of the clothing launch
Who in the world is going to pay £550 for a cycling jacket? Pretentious rubbish!
The same guy that goes and buys a top dog Colnago C60 with Campagnolo Super Record EPS and the trimmings, because he can.
I'm not justifying the prices, I don't have that kind of money to spend on a jacket. That said I can't afford to buy any of his clothes but thats not the point. Sir Paul Smith produces luxury clothes for people that can afford to pay for them.
In reality what's the difference between buying a pair of Zipp 404 for €2000 plus or a set of Mavic that cost say €700? Granted, you might go faster on the Zipps yet I see them every weekend on the club rides. It always amuses me that riders give the likes of Rapha, Assos etc a hard time and equate same to buying the same from LIDL. They are leagues apart. Yet, turn up on a set of 404s and it's nice wheels, must go fast blah blah. Yank out your Rapha Pro Race Cape and you're an banker etc.
I just don't get it.
It's like everything in life, you pay for something because you judge it to be worth the money and this goes on everything, a BMW or a Ford? A Bordeaux red thats 10 years old or WolfBlass. The list is endless and yet the judgement by all accounts isn't apparent.
Jealousy and envy that's what it is.
They wish they had the disposable income to buy it.
I know, it's ridiculous isn't it? Everyone has something they will prioritise to a greater or lesser degree, whether it's cars, hi-fi, wine, suits, interior design, cigars, whisky etc etc. The irony for me is that cycling isn't a cheap sport to start with. Sure, you don't need a C60 with EPS or Paul Smith clothing, but you need more than, for example, a football and some boots, or running shoes and shorts. The reverse snobbery is bonkers. I don't sneer at people for wearing Aldi, so why would the opposite be true if I wear Rapha?
Totally disagree, there's a large section of the population that purchase goods purely as a statement, a statement that they are affluent enough and extravagant enough to buy such items, NOT necessarily that they believe it's value for money.
This mentality has existed for generations, the badge mentality, nothing to do with 'it's worth it mentality'.
Those with that mentality deserve all the derision they get.
If you have 5 mill in the bank, whats 550 quid...SFA... It's all relative.
I like it. I have Paul Smith suits, Shirts, shoes and a belt from the early 90s all expensive but they have paid for themselves over and over again as the quality has been exceptional. I don't see why this stuff would be any different, buy cheap......keep on buying again and again.
Aldi cycling kit is everything cycling, IMO shouldn't be when it comes to kit, you might as well wear a plastic bag and Bibshorts made of papier-mâché, that is a waste of money to me. But each to their own.
I would & probably will buy something from the PS range.
While I admire Paul Smith as a fashion designer and I know his love of cycling, this range reflects everything that cycling shouldn't be.
Paul's really captured the Biffa look with that orange waist coat.
A hood under a helmet is dangerous in my opinion, it r events you from looking behind or sideways properly.
On a plus side it makes that rapha gear I was thinking of seem pretty reasonable.
"The 531 Wind and Shower Resistant Packable cycle jacket costs £450 and ...... a good commuting jacket this one we reckon."
Until it rains and you get it covered in road shit.
What a banker!
These look great, I can now leave the Ferrari at home and commute into work knowing I will get equally envious looks.
That orange tabard thingy looks nice but it is a direct copy of the ones I sell under the brand name "Parcel Force". I may have to take to social media to complain.
To be honest, I can see why Record EPS costs the money, but a bloody windproof for £450! It should prise me out of bed, tickle my hamptons and make me a cup of mellow birds of a morning for that price.
My Sportiva mountaineering boots are handmade, cost £200, have lasted 12 seasons and umpteen trips above 20,000 feet and yet people lust for a pair of Manolo Blahniks cost £3,000 and don't even take step in crampons.
Different items for different purposes...
Comparing apples with pears.
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