Cos was once a low-key, premium high street brand loved for its office-friendly minimalism. But over the last two years, it’s reached the level of buzz normally reserved for luxury players or coveted online brands. The label ranked sixth in Lyst’s top 10 hottest brands line-up for Q1 of 2025, the only high street brand present, while its barrel leg trouser was the sixth hottest product, according to Lyst’s search and social media data.
The trousers are just one of many viral Cos products over the last two years. Its quilted bag, seen on Blackpink’s Jennie, began trending in 2023 and is still popular today. A £1,000 shearling coat, launched in February this year, became a coveted piece — if a controversial one at that price point. And this summer’s fisherman sandals play right into one of the season’s rising trends. The brand has almost 500,000 followers on TikTok, and 4.1 million likes.
High street prices have reached a new high, thanks to the popularity of oversized leather jackets and big fluffy coats — with some priced at £1,000 or more. But are they worth the price tag?
It’s not just virality — after staging its first fashion show in London in 2021, Cos debuted its most recent collection on the runway in Athens, Greece. Attended by Sharon Stone and Adrien Brody, the most recent event generated a total of £38.1 million in earned media value (EMV), according to the brand. It marked a continued “vibe shift”, for Cos, as outlined by cult magazine Outlander, as the brand repositions itself to align with luxury, likely taking aim at the former high-end shopper who may have pulled back spending as of late. (EMV is the equivalent advertising spend required to generate the same number of impressions gained via social media.)
Part of this transformation has been down to a new name at the top: Daniel Herrmann. At H&M since 2003, Herrmann was previously managing director of group brand Weekday from 2019 to 2021, after more than 15 years at the H&M brand. He was appointed as managing director of Cos in April 2024. H&M Group doesn’t break out individual brand revenues, but its power player Cos was one of just two brands in the portfolio to open stores in Q1 this year, alongside Arket. Group sales were down 1 per cent in 2024, missing expectations.
Cos was launched by H&M in 2007, and had become a reliable favourite for tasteful, minimal and well-designed clothing for a Gen X and baby boomer customer. While the new era at the brand had already begun by the time Herrmann arrived — with viral products like the quilted bag attracting a broader customer — he has focused on cementing the ‘Cos-ness’ of Cos, emphasising the simple but impactful designs that the brand is known for, backed up by shows, campaigns and new stores. It all complements the work of long-time design director Karin Gustafsson, who has been at the brand since its launch.
In his first interview since his appointment, Herrmann, along with Gustafsson, break down the brand’s elevation strategy, its new positioning on the high street and why design is central to its future.
Vogue: Daniel, you joined Cos just over a year ago. How have you made an impact?
Daniel: It was never about ‘making a mark’ for me. I spent quite a lot of time in the beginning just listening. I spent a good eight to 10 weeks just meeting all the teams, trying to figure out everything that happened with Cos already, from the beginning. I remember being a Cos customer when it first opened and it was interesting just to learn from people what that was about from the inside. Cos was so well received in the beginning, I wanted to understand what were the things that made us so successful in the early days. Like all businesses, we have also gone through periods of trying to understand and learn, what were some of the things that perhaps we could have done differently? And I used a lot of time just trying to figure out, what are the real strengths that we need to build on for this next phase?
Vogue: Was there a sense of looking at the core components of Cos as a way to move forward?
Daniel: We have now formalised the way we would like Cos to develop over this next phase. It’s to care for the beauty of Cos. It’s not to build another brand. It’s really just to find what’s unique about us. Of course, we’ve gone through tough times. Everyone has. It has been 10 hard years, but we are in a really good position and are ready to build on what’s to come.
Vogue: Cos is now enjoying something of a moment — having just appeared in Lyst’s top 10 hottest brands of Q1 for the first time. How does that feel?
Daniel: It’s important not to get caught up in moments, because we’re not trying to build a moment. It’s recognition that the things we’re doing are resonating, but the position we are trying to build long term with Cos is in the space between luxury and high street. So that means we’re not so focused on trying to be like someone, we’re trying to be Cos — in that space in between.
Vogue: You launched a shearling-lined nappa coat that cost £1,000 last year — a bigger price tag than most Cos customers are likely used to. Did it sell well?
Karin: We really wanted to offer that feeling of higher quality, but at a better price than luxury. When we’re thinking of a new silhouette or a new material, there are so many different elements that dictate the price, but if we do it in a way that is well made, the customer responds to that. They’re willing to buy investment pieces from us, because more of us buy and keep for longer.
Vogue: Is the idea that the customer will find investment pieces at Cos, whether it’s a coat or a T-shirt?
Daniel: People who normally buy from the high street are buying from Cos, and some people that are consuming more of the luxury offering are also buying from Cos — so it lends us to both worlds. Sometimes, we can go to the higher price point, coming closer to luxury brand price points, though usually we are a little bit lower; and then, we could go closer to the high street price point. What’s important to us is always value. You should feel value if the price point is low or high.
Vogue: What are some other changes that have been introduced recently?
Daniel: The commitment to quality and lasting desire has always been with Cos. What is always changing is how you put that in a relevant context. So over the last five years, we have started to introduce fashion shows. We didn’t have that before. We have been perhaps more attentive to tapping into modern culture by casting. Working with someone like Adrien Brody has helped us to put the product and the offering in a really relevant context.
Vogue: Cos has always been a more grown-up brand. Has it been discovered by a younger generation?
Daniel: We haven’t intentionally gone after a new age bracket. We’re just trying to deliver really, really strongly on Cos. And we think that’s pretty ageless.
Karin: When we talk about our customers, it’s more the mindset. It’s a big city mindset, someone who is culturally aware.
Vogue: Karin, you have been with Cos since the beginning. How do you keep the aesthetic fresh?
Karin: That’s such a good question. Often we talk about that. We want to be wearable, we don’t want to complicate clothes or overtake the person [so the clothes become the talking point, rather than their wearer]. We want the person to shine and feel better about themselves, but I think it is just to never stand still, and the importance of reinvention.
Vogue: Why do you think, from a design perspective, certain Cos items like the quilted bag have gone viral?
Karin: We never plan that when we design. The quilted bag was actually designed during lockdown in one of our designers’ houses. Like most teams, we had to find new ways of working.
We’ve also had some exposure with the fisherman’s sandal, or the barrel leg trouser. I think it probably is an element of being aware of what’s going to be ‘the thing’, and that’s very hard… but we think it is important to be relevant in the moment. We talk about that a lot when we’re designing. We are trying to be ahead, not underestimating customers, and actually daring to move on.
Vogue: People often align Cos with brands like Phoebe Philo and The Row. Would you agree?
Karin: They are obviously fashion houses and designers that are incredible. And I personally tend to get inspired by things that are more to the point, not overcomplicated, but that has also always been Cos. The direction from the beginning was to be more timeless and focus on form following function.
Vogue: Cos has made collections with recycled denim, and you used hydroponic cotton [cotton grown inside to contain the water usage] for pieces in the show. Does responsible design attract consumers to the brand?
Daniel: In this industry, we have a responsibility to become better — no matter if the consumer rewards us or not. When we measure success for ourselves, we’re trying to create a compelling customer offer and build a brand that means business value for shareholders. Now, we’re going to measure that success also from an emissions standpoint. We’re going to measure sales and profit, and emissions. And we’re not successful in our own world unless we’re hitting all three of them.
Vogue: Is that across the H&M Group?
Daniel: I can’t speak for the group, but we have defined that for ourselves. The three most important areas to actually affect emissions are connected to sustainable materials — we need to continue pushing for that. The second part is decarbonising the supply chain; here, we have really high ambitions as a group, so we’re tapping into the group’s ambition. The third area is actually being much more precise in how much we buy in relation to sales, so creating more desirable products, pieces that can last longer, but also being better in predicting demand.
Vogue: Cos and Arket were the only brands in the H&M Group to open a store in Q1, Cos in South Korea. What is your store strategy?
Daniel: Physical experience is really important, and it doesn’t become less important because digital sales are going up. I think the show is an example of how powerful that experience can be, both for the people attending, but also for the content that you can actually create from it and communicate digitally. As far as stores go, they are part of our plan going into this next chapter. We have a lot of existing, nice looking stores and we’re going to invest in making them even better. We’re in a position where we are going to invest a lot of money and go into new places, opening up new stores and trying to find a lot of new Cos customers. It’s going to be an important part for us in this next chapter.
Vogue: Trump’s tariffs are a talking point currently. How are they going to affect Cos, and which manufactures across Europe and Asia?
Daniel: It changes from week to week, like a lot of things in our industry, though not always things like tariffs, which are macroeconomic. Our approach is always to assess carefully and to understand what type of long-term impact this would have on the consumer primarily, and then make decisions based on that. We’re more observing than trying to act at this point.
Vogue: What’s next for Cos?
Daniel: Looking ahead, it’s important to recognise the importance of design, and for design to be present within the management team, to have different perspectives and diversity not only when we take design decisions, but actually when we make decisions on branding and other important things.
Karin: I believe in that for my team, and I believe in that for Cos because I think creativity and the product offering is ultimately going to make the difference, isn’t it? The pressure got so heavy on my shoulders, but I think it is the right thing — I think it is refreshing.
Comments, questions or feedback? Email us at feedback@voguebusiness.com.
Corrections: This article was updated to correct Cos s founding year to 2007, not 2006. This article was also updated to correct Karin Gustafsson s title to design director, not creative director (28/5/2025).
We’ve officially entered the era of the £1,000 high street coat
