No one on the gird comes close to achieving what Lewis Hamilton has in his illustrious F1 career. However, as the Brit edges slowly but surely closer to his retirement, he has started giving life after F1 more thought. His various entrepreneurial initiatives are a result of that, and we have a feeling he won’t stop anytime soon. In fact, we believe the Brit might’ve just begun, and his biggest investment – his IP – is yet to come. There is also close to no doubt in our minds it will have everything to do with fashion.

Lewis Hamilton is a fashion icon with or without F1. His ideology has given him the confidence to wear anything and everything he feels comfortable in. This outlook towards fashion and the confidence to pull off bold outfits has even earned the respect of his rivals. However, outside the world of F1, the Brit is quickly becoming an icon, and he’s cashing in on it.

The Plus44 world of Lewis Hamilton and his various collaborations

Fashion has always played a massive influence on Hamilton’s life. There are dedicated Instagram pages about his wardrobe during every race weekend, and it’s just not fans. We saw recently how Donatella Versace went above and beyond to make a custom jacket for Hamilton for the Las Vegas GP weekend.

Versace is just one of many high-fashion, ultra-luxury brands that has and wants to collaborate with Hamilton. He became the face of the Maison Valentino’s Pink PP collection, the first man to do so. We often see him donning Tommy Hilfiger clothing on his paddock walks. However, we believe exchanging necessities and sporting cool clothes isn’t Hamilton’s end goal, an opinion that is a matter of personal perspective and not a general opinion. His vision is much larger for himself, as it has always been.

We believe Hamilton will, perhaps after he hangs up his helmet, be the next Tom Ford, Tommy Hilfiger, or Donatella Versace. We are well aware the Brit doesn’t have the same level of command on fashion as the aforementioned designers do. However, he has the X-factor, which has made him the fashion icon he is today.

This is precisely why we believe Lewis Hamilton is able and most likely will open his own haute couture in the future, with Plus44 being a stepping stone. Hamilton started teasing Plus44 in the middle of the 2022 season and launched his branch on the 26th of August. The brand instantly picked up as expected, and the fans swarmed to the online store to bag their Plus44 merchandise, which retails at a maximum of $200.

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However, it’s the Brit’s incredible collaborations that make us believe he’s onto greater things, and he won’t limit his creativity to Plus44 merchandise. We believe Hamilton will enter the world of luxury couture and bring his high-fashion to stores with his incredible network.

The incredibly talented group of individuals Lewis Hamilton works with makes us believe something big is on the way

The Mercedes driver has always endorsed and promoted designers from similar backgrounds and those who don’t get the recognition they deserve. His 2021 Met Gala look was proof of that, as he collaborated with designer Kenneth Nicholson. Apart from the Met Gala, he recently made an appearance at the 2023 British Fashion Awards donning Grace Bonner, with the designer herself, in a gesture of appreciation, showcasing yet another designer he is in cahoots with.

Hamilton even invaded the world of gaming with his own skin in the popular open-world multiplayer game Fortnite. His skin in the icon series has the Brit sporting a flashy outfit, staying true to his authentic self. However, moving away from the pop-culture world, the Brit is inspired by some contemporary artists as well.

Hamilton’s wide range of collaborations also includes some incredible people from Japan. Takashi Murakami is a great example, as the Brit has collaborated with the Japanese contemporary artist and infused his style in plus44 merchandise as well. The seven-time champion launched various articles in the collaboration and debuted them in Vegas. This was the second Plus44 collection Hamilton released in partnership with Murakami, the first being right before the 2022 Japanese GP. Hamilton also brought this collaboration to the world of F1 when he sported an eye-popping helmet designed by Murakami himself for the race weekend, which was a masterpiece in itself.

This was the second occasion where Hamilton collaborated with a Japanese artist. Earlier this season, Hamilton met and joined hands with illustrator Hajime Sorayama to drop a limited edition collection on Plus44. The designs were core Sorayama with metallic silver robot aesthetics. The two collaborated ahead of the Japanese GP as well, and Sorayama even designed a chrome helmet for Brit with a light-up visor, which was a little less practical than Murakami’s design.

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The Brit has chosen his people and loves working with them at regular intervals. This is exactly why we believe, perhaps after his retirement, we will see a Lewis Hamilton haute couture brand hit the markets, and no one will be ready for it.

Editorial Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of EssentiallySports.