How Zhou Guanyu’s F1 Trend Showcases His Persona

Trend is in Zhou Guanyu’s blood — actually.

Not like many Components 1 drivers whose parentage is commonly linked to the broader motorsports business, Guanyu’s mom was a dressmaker and labored on vogue units.

As the primary Chinese language driver in Components 1, Guanyu has continued to interrupt boundaries within the motorsports house and past. Particularly in China’s market, his reputation has skyrocketed since he joined Sauber’s Components 1 crew two years in the past — Guanyu boasts greater than 4 million followers throughout social media platforms Weibo, Xiaohongshu (or Little Crimson E-book) and Instagram.

Most notably, Guanyu is a model ambassador for Dior in China and has labored with the likes of Lululemon, Puma, LVMH’s Hennessy and extra over time.

This 12 months additionally marked the game’s return of the Chinese language Grand Prix to the game’s calendar, held in Shanghai — the place Guanyu was born. He obtained a hero’s welcome and was given a particular spot to park his automobile on the grid post-race to have fun his first house race.

Viola Meng, a Shanghai-based dressmaker and vp of the Affiliation of Picture Consultants Worldwide Chapters East, stated that Guanyu’s rise in reputation has additionally widened the game’s reputation in China and made him “a central determine for each present followers and newcomers.”

Furthermore, she stated Guanyu’s place as the primary and solely driver from China has put him in a “distinctive place that fosters a way of nationwide illustration — and resonates with younger Chinese language followers.”

Guanyu’s continued presence at varied vogue week occasions over time “signifies a profitable crossover from motorsport to life-style and vogue, enhancing his personal private model picture. Zhou helps bridge the hole between Chinese language tradition and worldwide traits by showcasing a contemporary, fashionable picture of Chinese language athletes to the world,” Meng stated.

Relating to vogue itself, Guanyu instructed WWD that he’s a threat taker and likes to strive new issues — whether or not it’s a brand new coiffure, garments or footwear. “Streetwear type is what I like essentially the most and is what I’m most comfy in.”

Whereas many athletes on the principle stage choose to work with a stylist by default, Guanyu stays true to himself by not working with one. He stated he’s consistently maintaining with the most recent collections put out, notable traits after which retailers straight on-line. He cited Rick Owens and Kim Jones as his two main sartorial inspirations — with Chrome Hearts being his all-time favourite model.

“For the outfits I decide for Thursdays (media day) and strolling into the paddock, I don’t need to have a stylist deciding that,” Guanyu explains. “I am going on-line, take a look at the most recent collections and decide from it. I don’t need to find yourself pressured to put on one thing I don’t like. I don’t need to be pressured into another person’s vogue sense.”

Opposite to Lewis Hamilton, who instructed WWD that he spends a variety of time deciding on appears to be like for the season together with his stylist Eric McNeal, Guanyu stated he doesn’t plan that far prematurely — oftentimes selecting his paddock vogue possibly a day or week out, at most. He usually appears to be like at a mixture of the clothes he will get despatched by companions and in addition makes positive to examine the placement’s local weather to evaluate what makes essentially the most sense.

“I don’t need to over exaggerate the style type,” Guanyu stated. “If it’s not related or what I’d put on in a sure temperature, then I don’t really feel prefer it is smart. I need to present people who they really can put on garments very casually like I do. I decide totally different kinds and colorways as a result of after I’m on the observe I attempt to be a little bit extra colourful than after I’m at house.”

Past seeing his mom within the vogue business, Guanyu mirrored on his youth, explaining that he’s been enthusiastic about vogue for the reason that age of 13, with this curiosity following him at present. The Guanyu household left Shanghai for Sheffield, U.Ok., when he was simply 12 to jumpstart his motorsports profession.

The Affect of Trend in Components 1

Eliza Huber, senior vogue editor at Who What Put on, has lined Components 1 and the broader impression of vogue on sports activities extensively since 2022. Relating to Guanyu’s private type, she stated that it has clearly been appreciated by the youthful Components 1 fan circles who’ve famous the rising presence of vogue within the sport.

“It was a genius transfer for him to construct a popularity within the sport as probably the most fashionable drivers, partnering with massive manufacturers straight out of the gate,” Huber stated. “Drivers, like athletes in so many different sports activities, have an expiration date — their our bodies simply can’t deal with it. They have to use their time within the highlight to construct a CV exterior of the game to maintain their success getting in different areas.”

All through his time in Components 1, Guanyu cited Hamilton as somebody he admires, for his function within the present shift the broader vogue business is taking part in and for his asserting himself as a serious public determine. For a few years, Hamilton fought in opposition to the unfair restrictions placed on drivers — together with protesting in opposition to FIA race director’s Niels Wittich ban on drivers from sporting physique piercings or neck chains in the course of the race.

“Lewis made a large impression for our sport,” Guanyu stated. “He made it extra extensively open. Previously, it’s been extra in regards to the racing driver. Lewis actually confirmed individuals who he’s off observe. And when he comes again, he’s purely targeted on the job and being one of many biggest drivers ever.”

With the paddock now turning into the subsequent purple carpet much like the NBA’s tunnel stroll, Guanyu stated that Components 1 had by no means been on that stage of cultural impression or affect earlier than Lewis. Utilizing vogue, Guanyu exhibits off his persona and who he’s as an individual exterior of motorsports.

As a model ambassador for Lululemon in China and timed to the twentieth anniversary of the Chinese language Grand Prix this 12 months, Guanyu collaborated on a limited-edition assortment with the model together with clothes, bucket hats, luggage and extra.

Huber stated that vogue has grow to be a extensively interesting medium for athletes at present as a result of it provides “followers a glimpse of who [they] are off the courtroom or observe.” Furthermore, garments are a nonverbal type of communication — very true for Components 1 drivers who’re lined from head to toe once they step into the race automobile.

“Paddock [out]matches assist followers get to know them in a means they will relate to,” Huber defined. “The age-old saying ‘costume for the job you need’ applies right here. While you placed on a terrific outfit, you are feeling higher and extra assured — and in Components 1, confidence is paramount to success.” Whereas most fan won’t ever meet their favourite athletes, she stated followers can “study them by deciphering their outfits.”

Rashi Gaur of @hamazinglew is the primary account to showcase Hamilton’s vogue on Instagram since 2018 and has seen the shift within the English driver’s impression firsthand. “Drivers have realized that it is very important present your persona by means of vogue as followers can relate to them extra once they’re in a position to higher specific themselves,” Gaur instructed WWD.

Regardless of her account being devoted to Hamilton, Gaur can usually be seen on her Instagram tales additionally rooting for Guanyu — “I all the time need to know what he’s sporting.” Gaur stated when Guanyu first stepped into the paddock together with his model Dior ambassadorship, he was the one driver on the grid working on an identical stage to Hamilton.

“Zhou genuinely enjoys taking part in with vogue,” Gaur stated. “I’ve seen him experimenting together with his type, from Rick Owens to Dior — he appears very dedicated to trying fashionable as a lot as he can within the paddock. As a fan, it makes me blissful that drivers are normalizing displaying off their private type extra as a result of it has extra impression than they understand.”

In the meantime, a fan account devoted to decoding Guanyu’s type particularly is @zhouguanyu.closet, run by Alicia Warcollier and adopted by Guanyu. She first began documenting his type on Instagram in 2022 after seeing Gaur’s success with Hamilton. (Warcollier stated Gaur inspired her to start out her personal account.)

Warcollier stated she was drawn to Guanyu as a result of she noticed his “real love of vogue” with a “extra genuine” method to different drivers. After seeing Guanyu attend a Prada vogue present in 2022, she was hooked — being attentive to his type being a “mixture of cozy outfits with oversize hoodies, streetwear outfits and extra refined outfits.”

On Nov. 6, Guanyu put out a press release on social media that he would now not be racing for Sauber after this 12 months — “I will probably be leaving the Stake F1 Workforce Kick Sauber on the finish of the 2024 season. I’m immensely proud to characterize my nation as the primary Chinese language Components 1 driver. I hope that my racing continues to encourage others who’re following my story. I’m now discussing various choices to remain within the Components 1 Paddock.”

Whereas discussing his future with WWD, he stated designing vogue as a future endeavor is on the high of his listing. Whether or not a future as a vogue and picture marketing consultant in Components 1 or persevering with to point out off his sense of fashion in one other motorsport class, Guanyu’s pushing the envelope for paddock vogue is bound to be a serious affect on subsequent 12 months’s roster of rookies coming into the grid for 2025 — particularly as Components 1 enters its subsequent chapter full of vogue sponsors, together with an unprecedented 10-year cope with LVMH, throughout the paddock.