Dryrobes are for more than just wild swimming – they’re now a style statement

A curious new coat trend has emerged on the streets of London over the New Year. Perhaps unsurprisingly, considering the cold blast that we started 2025 with, it’s not a chic little number in the vein of Toteme’s scarf coat, and it’s considerably more heavy duty than Dôen’s barn jacket. Instead, it’s a £165 coat-towel hybrid, the Dryrobe.

Artist Rose Electra Harris, who lives in north-east London, bought her first Dryrobe, one from the Folk X Speedo collaboration, in a sample sale in November. “I bought mine strictly for warmth and comfort,” she says. “It’s great for dog walking obviously. I’ve not worn another coat since. I’ve worn it to the pub, and even fancy dinners and Christmas parties over a nice outfit. It just retains warmth really well. It’s long and the fleece inside makes it super comfortable.” Far from having any funny reactions to it, Harris’s friends have only expressed jealousy over her warmth – while her husband is now desperate to own one.

Another Londoner who wears hers over her party dresses is fashion PR Caroline Nelson. “My khaki and neon pink lined Dryrobe is one of my go-to items in my wardrobe during the winter months,” she explains. “It’s far too good to be reserved for wild swimming. I recently teamed mine with a Beulah velvet maxi and Mach & Mach heels on New Year’s Eve and then when the clock struck 12, carried one of my children home zipped up underneath it. Hey presto we were all kept warm. Beyond practical!”

Meanwhile, Stephanie Burgess, founder of the popular second hand clothing store Sister Sister Preloved, says Dryrobes are frequently requested by her clients: “I’m asked a lot if I have any in stock on my preloved website but it seems once people own them, they rarely get rid!” she says.

The trend for wearing a Dryrobe in the city isn’t exclusive to London, either, with Coleen Rooney spotted wearing a white faux-fur-trim one earlier this month in Cheshire, when she braved the snow for a trip to the gym.

Dryrobes first gained cult status in 2022, roughly coinciding with the rise in popularity of wild swimming. Triathlete Carol McHugh swears by hers for 6am swim sessions and says it’s a “godsend” on camping trips. Meanwhile, Penzance-based Kizzy-Kensa Maeckelberghe reveals that, despite trying other brands, “I’ve not found one which is of the same quality as the Dryrobe. I’d say 80 per cent of sea swimmers now wear them. Even people who initially made fun of me for having one succumbed to the grim reaper (Dryrobe) club.”

There are plenty of Dryrobe “influencers” giving the look appeal beyond the wild swimming hardcore community. “Bryony Gordon almost had me pulling the trigger,” confided another fashion insider. Gordon, a journalist and author with 240,000 Instagram followers, had posted a picture of herself on the beach in that camo/pink style (yours for £165 at Dryrobe.com).

“I don’t wear it other than post-swimming… though I did take it as my warm coat on a Christmas trip to Cornwall, where nobody batted an eyelid at it,” says Gordon. “It’s quite funny, because when I’m at Tooting Lido, I look totally normal in my bright pink dry robe. But as soon as I get on the bus, I look like the lunatic I am – someone who plunges in three-degree water in the winter.” Perhaps this is part of the appeal of Dryrobe; it instantly denotes how hardcore and intrepid the wearer must be, even if it’s not immediately apparent that they’ve just taken an ice cold dip. Many fans told me how they wear theirs for the walk home from their swim or to go for breakfast afterwards, their Dryrobe signalling the brave activity in which they’ve just partaken.

Another high-profile wearer is former Elle editor-in-chief Lorraine Candy, an outdoor swimming super-fan. “My Dryrobe is as much a part of my wardrobe as Carrie Bradshaw’s shoes are a part of hers. It was given to me, a small Lorraine monogrammed on the right sleeve, by Dryrobe in 2017 when I was training for a 70km relay swim across Lake Geneva, which changed my life. I slept in it on the boat and I spent most weekends in it beforehand as we trained,” she tells me. “The first time I wore it for coffee on the high street, after a local lido swim, people stared at me and a stranger asked me what it was, but nowadays everyone wears them when the weather turns rough. I worked in fashion for 30 years and believe in the power of clothes to transform your mood, when I put mine on I just feel happier. It’s one of my most precious items of clothing.”

Dryrobes appeal across all generations and taste levels. Emma Corrin and Harry Styles, two of the coolest people in Britain, were photographed wearing plain black ones while filming on Brighton beach. Meanwhile, Laura Jackson, TV presenter and founder of interiors website Glassette, makes a Dryrobe look effortlessly cool when she wears hers on her frequent trips to Cornwall; “Even if it’s blowing a gale and the water is sub 10 degrees, all you need is the Dryrobe,” she enthuses. “It does what it says on the tin and there is nothing more lovely than a hug in a jacket after a refreshing swim.”

There’s no doubt that the Dryrobe is divisive. Last April, radio presenter Kate Lawler was forced to share a faux apology on Instagram after her followers were angered by her wearing a different brand of changing robe - a Rugga Robe – to a children’s football match. “I’m so sorry my previous reel upset you all so much,” she joked. “I’d love to know why you feel so strongly about people wearing these coats out on rainy dog walks or to stand and watch their kids play footy on a Sunday morning when it’s minus 5 degrees outside. Please do enlighten me.”

Any controversy isn’t deterring founder Gideon Bright, though, who has nurtured a whole Dryrobe philosophy since founding the brand over 14 years ago, based on an idea his mum had when he was a young surfer. “I am very humbled to see how things have evolved,” he says. “The Dryrobe is original and its attitude – a disregard for a ‘normal’ look, combined with its focus on performance, utility and, ultimately, fun – runs through everything we do and became the Dryrobe way. We do things our way, the way that makes sense to us. That resonates with people.”