The coach jacket is one of those pieces that sits in a slightly awkward middle ground between casual and smart and handles that awkwardness better than almost anything else at that price point. It’s lighter than a bomber and more structured than a hoodie which makes it genuinely useful for the kind of weather where you need a layer but not a proper jacket. We’ve found it works brilliantly as exactly that — a layer rather than the main event. Over a good hoodie or a chunky knit when the temperature is doing that thing where it can’t decide what it wants to be. On its own over a tee on a warmer evening when you need something to carry but don’t actually need much warmth. The key is keeping everything proportional. A coach jacket has a fairly clean streamlined shape and piling too much underneath it starts to look bulky and awkward. Slim fit underneath and the jacket can do its job properly.