subjug/Getty, Zegna, US Open, Van Cleef, Tyler Le/BI
With bonus season coming, BI asked industry insiders what Wall Street’s current status symbols are.These 10 trends reflect a move away from loud displays of wealth to experiences and personalization.The list includes going to posh sporting events, hiring home organizers, and taking luxurious trips.
With bonus season just a quarter away — big banks like Goldman and JPMorgan typically communicate the numbers in early January — Wall Street rainmakers may soon be thinking about what they want to spend this year’s extra check on. And though investment bankers may not be quite as ostentatious as in the heyday of the ’80s and ’90s, there are still plenty of ways they choose to express their wealth and power.
BI spoke to four industry insiders who have eyes on what’s trending at all levels of Wall Street, including a junior banker turned private-equity employee and a personal stylist who dresses managing directors and partners. To be sure, status symbols vary by seniority: what’s impressive to junior bankers may be cringe to senior MDs, for example.
That said, everyone seemed to agree that the days of logo-forward purchases and other conspicuous signs of wealth are over — even on Wall Street. The industry’s movers and shakers are still into name brands but are leaning into those that exude “quiet luxury.” They are also spending money on personalization as well as experiences — think big trips, luxurious secondary homes, and posh sporting events.
Here are 10 of the top status symbols on Wall Street in 2024.
Posh sporting events
Attendance at exclusive sporting events like the Paris Olympics, the US Open, and Formula 1 races has become a surefire sign of status on Wall Street, insiders told BI.
Indeed, Bloomberg declared the 2024 Paris Olympics “Summer Davos” for Wall Street in a story that reported sightings of CEOs Ken Griffin of Citadel, David Solomon of Goldman Sachs, and Stephen Schwartzman of Blackstone, to name just a few.
Last month, the US Open in Queens took the spotlight online as the hottest place for New York socialites to see and be seen. And where there are celebrities and influencers, there tend to be Wall Street dealmakers.
“All my clients went to the US Open,” said Jessica Cadmus, a personal stylist whose clients are almost exclusively managing directors and partners at finance firms in New York.
Even junior-level employees said the famous tennis tournament was the place to be to mark the end of summer.
“I know at least three people in the finance community who were at the Open last night,” a young private-equity employee told BI in August after attending the tournament with friends.
Of course, the most elevated version of this status symbol is owning your own sports team — or getting access to private box seats.
Crowd watching the 2024 US Open Tennis Championships in New York City.
Anadolu/Getty Images
Home organizers
Wall Street executives have no shortage of personal assistants and staff, said Cadmus, because every moment of their time is worth thousands of dollars.
“Everybody that I work with has at least one person, if not multiple people, in their home all day long attending to X, Y, or Z,” Cadmus told BI. “There are assemblies of nannies, home cleaners, and chefs.”
Lately, there has been a new trendy addition to the usual in-home lineup — that of the “home organizer.”
Think Marie Kondo — someone who comes into your home, takes a good look around, and crafts a custom organization plan to make your space user-friendly and effortlessly neat.
“I would say over the last five years, I’ve seen people leaning into that sort of service more, and I’d never really seen a ton of that,” Cadmus said.
This person might, for example, put custom inserts for your kitchen cabinets so your Le Creuset pots fit seamlessly. But an organizer tackles just about any space you could conjure up, from a pantry to the coat closet or your kid’s playroom.
“People do want to feel more connected to the items in their home, and they do want to feel a sense that things need to have a purpose and they need to be organized,” Cadmus said.
Zegna sneakers
A PR expert who works in the industry said they have seen a trend in one particular shoe recently among very high-ranking execs in the office: Zegna’s “triple stitch” sneakers. The leather version (pictured below) costs about $1,300 per pair and come in a ton of colors. An espadrille version of the shoe was also a hot summer pick, this person said, and costs about $1,100.
Cadmus likes Zegna for men’s off-the-rack suits, but for office-friendly sneakers she recommends the Tom Ford nylon and suede sneakers in black and white, which she described as “heavy lifters” for her clients.
The Zegna triple stitch sneaker in navy blue.
Claudio Lavenia/Getty Images
Big trips and experiences
Cadmus has seen a notable uptick in senior bankers going on extravagant and foreign getaways.
“I feel like the shift, especially with the younger, up-and-coming rising stars is not stuff — it’s experiences, it’s travel,” said Cadmus.
This is leading to more safari adventures in Africa and, this past summer in particular, family vacations to Costa Rica. To be clear, we’re not talking about an all-inclusive Sandals resort situation here. They’re highly bespoke, private, and personal trips.
“Whether it be a Four Seasons or whether it be a super fancy boutique hotel, every bit of the travel is going to be a first-class situation.”
For example, you might have a personal tour guide to take you on adventure experiences away from the throngs of tourists, a chef to cook your family private dinners each night, as well as a personal driver. And when one person at a firm loves a place or experience, it tends to spread like wildfire in popularity.
“The culture is so strong and the word of mouth is so strong that if one thing or experience is vetted by someone and recommended, that recommendation is golden because everybody has the same sort of expectations,” said Cadmus. “Things really get passed from person to person. It’s a pretty tight community that way, especially in the bigger banks.”
Van Cleef necklaces and Cartier bracelets
Van Cleef is a high-end jewelry brand, and one type of necklace in particular has taken over the necks of Wall Street women (and the wives of male rainmakers): the Alhambra. It has an unmistakable nickel-sized pendant in the shape of a four-leaf clover, comes in various colors, and, depending on the model, costs about $3,000.
“I distinctly remember that my first day of banking training there were three or four girls with them on their necks, and I was like, what is that necklace?” said the private-equity junior.
This person, along with the other insiders who spoke to BI for this story, laughed at the mention of the brand because it has become so ubiquitous. But cliché or not, they agreed the brand has an undeniable presence in investment banking.
“I think they’re sort of perpetual,” added Cadmus. “And beyond Wall Street too. It’s just kind of a favored wealthy person brand.”
Another popular piece for Wall Street women is the Cartier “love” bracelet — a bangle with the brand’s iconic circular screws that sells for $7,350.
Cadmus loves Cartier as a choice for fine jewelry staples, but for her clients, she often opts for the slightly less popular “Juste un Clou” line.
“The Love bracelet has been ‘the one’ for a while now,” she said.
The Cartier Love bracelet in gold.
Instagram/Cartier
A green and gold Van Cleef & Arpels Alhambra necklace.
Jeremy Moeller/Getty Images
Personal Jewelers
There’s another option for those who want more unique pieces: handcrafted jewelry. Cadmus said she has seen an uptick in clients who prefer to have their jewelry customized.
“A lot of my clients have a jeweler with who we discuss what will be made for them,” said Cadmus. “We’ll see something, and a lot of times we will riff on that and be like, ‘oh, that’s cool, but it’d be better with this stone’ or, ‘I like that necklace, but I would prefer it as a bracelet.’ Then we talk to the jeweler, and we have it made.”
Depending on the materials you choose, she said, you can often have items made for 30% to 40% less than designer prices.
Quiet luxury clothing brands
“Quiet luxury” is the new protocol for looking chic on Wall Street versus the ostentatious brand flexing of the past. The term refers to wearing pieces that are very high-quality and expensive but don’t sport conspicuous logos and aren’t necessarily made by household luxury names.
“The bonuses aren’t as outsized as they used to be, and when they are, that’s not something your institution really wants you to advertise in any way,” Cadmus said. “So there is this quiet rule, and especially with the big MDs, which is just don’t be ostentatious about your wealth. It’s very frowned upon.”
The private-equity junior agreed. “No guy walks around with a Hermes or Gucci belt,” this person said.
Pop culture phenomena, like the popular HBO TV series “Succession,” have put the quiet luxury trend in the spotlight. Leading actor Jeremy Strong wore a coat from the brand Loro Piana (pictured below) in an episode of the show.
“Loro Piana is probably the preeminent quiet luxury brand,” Cadmus said of the label, which she has used for years.
Other quiet luxury brands Cadmus reaches for when styling clients include Armani and Tom Ford for men and Akris and Max Mara for women. For quiet luxury bags and accessories, Cadmus recommends brands like Hermes, Celine, Bottega Veneta, and Khaite.
Jeremy Strong on the set of “Succession.”
HBO
Overhauling the homestead
Cadmus has also observed an uptick in clients going all out to make their homes truly their own.
“Most of my clients have apartments that were originally two or three separate apartments that they had renovated to become one,” said Cadmus.
The same goes for their other properties. It’s not surprising that high-earners on Wall Street would have second homes (or, in many cases, multiple). But it’s not just buying a great place that’s a status symbol — it’s having a whole team behind every facet of its construction and design, said Cadmus. That means, for example, hiring a renowned architect for the project and a best-in-class interior designer to outfit the home with luxurious furnishings.
“It’s a major production. It’s not like, ‘Okay, we’re just going to snatch this thing up and live in it as is.’ It is a major overhaul.”
The Hamptons
The beach towns of the Hamptons have long been a Wall Street favorite thanks to their proximity to Manhattan. They remain a popular spot for summer trips and second homes, Cadmus said.
Even juniors tend to rent out homes in Montauk and split the cost to get in on the fun, said a former banking analyst who recently quit. Indeed, in the summer, the train from Manhattan to Montauk is “full of finance people on their phone arguing about a deal and legal docs and clacking on their laptops,” added the private-equity junior.
Nantucket and Cape Cod, according to Cadmus, are also popular but less cliche choices for second-home locations.
A party at a private residence on July 20, 2024, in East Hampton, NY.
Sean Zanni/Getty Images
Equinox memberships and personal trainers
For young Wall Streeters, having an Equinox membership is par for the course, said the two ex-investment banking analysts.
Equinox is a “luxury” gym that has “innovative group fitness classes, luxurious spas, and exclusive boutiques,” as described on its website. A membership costs hundreds of dollars a month, varying by perks package and location access. The top-tier membership is $500 a month plus a $750 initiation fee.
There are about 30 Equinox gyms in Manhattan, but “having access to the Equinox Hudson Yards location is a status symbol,” said the former analyst who recently quit.
As BI reported in 2019, the Hudson Yards location has — among other amenities — views of the Hudson River in nearly every part of the gym, both indoor and outdoor pools, and is complete with its own cafe and bar.
To be sure, this is a status symbol unique to younger people. Senior bankers don’t want to be part of a gym scene, Cadmus said. Among their aforementioned lineup of domestic staff is usually a personal trainer who comes to their in-home gym.
“Yes, a younger person is going to enjoy that — there are social perks to that. But senior people do not want to be looked at when they’re working out,” she said. “They want somebody tracking it for them — their progression and all that kind of stuff. It’s just totally different.”
Equinox Hudson Yards overlooks The Vessel.
Benjamin Goggin
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