Introducing Cardio Couture: Behind The Rise of Luxury Sports Kit, Where Fitness Meets High Fashion

So, you’re on the hunt for new sports gear. A tennis racket, a set of dumbbells—or perhaps even a surfboard. Summer is, after all, the perfect time to get a little outside and get moving. But before stepping foot into your nearest sportswear store, you might want to check in with your favourite fashion house instead.

Luxury labels have well and truly sprinted, skipped—and yes, surfed—into the sports equipment game. And no, I'm not just talking about logo-stamped sports bras or a pair of monogrammed yoga leggings. I'm talking about fully-fledged surfboards from Fendi, leather-wrapped weights by Celine, and an entire Louis Vuitton golf collection. Welcome to the era of cardio couture.

This trend has been gaining momentum for a while. “Fashion brands truly understand the power and value of sports, especially luxury brands,” says Daniel-Yaw Miller, sports and fashion journalist and writer of the SportsVerse newsletter. From Lorenzo Musetti's woven leather jacket at Wimbledon to Lewis Hamilton's recent capsule collection for Dior, sport has been tapping into a far more specific sector than the catch-all "luxury lover."

In an increasingly crowded market, targeting niche groups such as golf fans, tennis obsessives, and padel enthusiasts allows brands to cut through the noise. And interest is hardly slowing down. According to PureGym’s UK Fitness Report, two million more people started exercising in 2024 than the year prior, and one in four have upped their spending on health-related purchases.

“All of our favourite brands have really met our generation where we're at, living in our wellness era,” says Lauren Kelly, personal shopper at Threads. “They are recognising that high fashion customers want to curate every aspect of their lives, which absolutely includes fitness—whether it's a Pilates class or personal training session.” Where interest grows, brands inevitably follow.

Still, as Miller points out, these aren’t items meant to rival pro-grade gear. “I don't think anyone would be taken seriously pulling up to a tennis match with a Prada tennis racket, for example,” he laughs. These pieces, he explains, are rarely about mass sales. In fact, some aren’t even available to buy. “They’re very useful marketing items which can signal how a brand is thinking about its relation and proximity to the world of sport,” he adds.

One standout example? “The Celine Pilates collection caught everyone's attention this year when it dropped. Our DMs exploded with requests for the mat, which is now super tricky to locate—it was an instant sell-out!” says Kelly. Now, her clients are crossing their fingers for similar releases from The Row or Khaite. Because, as she puts it, “people love incorporating pieces from their favourite fashion designers throughout their spaces, whether that be the gym, the living room or even the kitchen. Your home is an extension of your style, after all”.

And right now, there’s no shortage of covetable kit. Prada ping-pong paddles, Pucci padel balls, and a Fendi skateboard are all currently up for grabs. There’s even a Gucci racket created in collaboration with Head—the trusted brand of Wimbledon pros—hinting that maybe we’re edging into a more practical luxury fashion sports era altogether. After all, fashion trends are never simply limited to accessories only.

If the Spring/Summer 2025 catwalks are anything to go by, athleisure wear is well and truly in. With design houses like Miu Miu, Louis Vuitton, Ferragamo, and Labrum among the many brands that have incorporated sportswear into their collections.

Not quite got enough saved to invest in a designer padel racket? Collaborations between sportswear brands and household highstreet brands have been making a resurgence, too, offering a high-street alternative to the luxe, higher price point kit. Taking adidas, as an example - while historically they've collaborated with the likes of Gucci and Balenciaga, more recently, they've released a sports-inspired collection with ASOS, staging a runway show in central London.

Similarly, Swiss brand ON is taking cues from fashion houses and enlisting celebrities beyond the sports industry to serve as global brand ambassadors. Collaborating with Zendaya and FKA Twigs while working on their luxury partnership with Loewe worked to position the brand on the quarterly Lyst Index report for the first time due to a 50% increase in searches for the brand during Q1 of 2025.

All of this to say - athleisurewear is here to stay, and luxury and high-street brands alike want in. One Global Athleisure Report from Allied Market Research found that the athleisurewear sector is expected to reach $257.1 billion by 2026, up from $155.2 billion in 2018, and growing at a staggering 42% over the past seven years.

So, whether you're looking for a practical yet functional sports accessory or simply on the lookout for versatile, fashion-forward kit, rest assured that sports and fashion will continue to deliver as the unlikely duo that continually proves that teamwork indeed makes the dream work.

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