Not Excessively Warm

In an article titled “Why Are Young Men Embracing the Quarter-Zip Lifestyle?” published November 21st, 2025, Sandra E. Garcia wrote:

Almost overnight, there were young men at malls, meeting up in parking lots, hanging out on their school campus — men who might have previously been wearing sweatsuits, loungewear or Nike Tech suits — all sporting quarter-zip sweaters. T-Pain posted a picture on Instagram in a similar knitted sweater with the caption “401k and a quarter zip.”

But this is probably some niche fashion publication, correct?

Nope.

That’s from a newspaper called–let me make sure we get the spelling right–The New York Times.

Now, less than a year later, we are selling not exactly quarter-zip sweaters, but these quarter-zip pullovers.

Which makes us wonder: are we the disease, or are we the symptom?

To clarify, we don’t mean to flatter ourselves. The ‘we’ here stands not just for Meh but for all sites and stores that build their business model around delivering the cheapest deal possible. So, the question is, do things like quarter-zips become uncool when we get our hands on them? Or do we get our hands on them because they’ve become uncool?

Likely, it’s a bit of column A and a bit of column B. The public opinion of a product drops a little bit, meaning that sales dip, resulting in some stock that requires unloading. We, the repositories for such items, swoop in, getting them in bulk so we can turn around and offer them at a low price. Next thing you know, your weird uncle has one, thus driving the coolness (and, in turn, the sales) down even further.

But, again, do these really even fit the bill? Or does the fact that they’re not knit but made of a polyester/lyocell/spandex jersey blend material exclude them from the trend?

It’s hard to say. Because to know that definitively, we’d have to be cool. And the whole point of this write-up is that we aren’t cool.

You know what is cool, though? The fall weather that’s right around the corner. And so it’s not a bad time to buy something you can wear when it gets a little too chilly for short sleeves, but not so chilly that you need a coat.

And you know what else goes with cooler weather? A warm drink. But what kind of warm drink?

Hmmm, Let’s consult Sandra E. Garcia’s on this.

Many attendees were also carrying matcha drinks to round out the look. It is meant to signify maturity — not quite ready for a black coffee, but definitely not chugging a soda.

That’s right, folks! Look out for some matcha powder, coming soon to your favorite shitty deal site or store!