Despite men’s previous serf-level importance in the Fashion Kingdom, menswear is on a huge upswing now. In the last few years, the menswear community has become a much more lucrative business. A large majority of guys are finally becoming interested in clothing, just check one of your friends’ Instagram pictures and you will probably see #GQ somewhere while they flex in their poorly fitted blazer.
It is common knowledge that men play a much smaller role in fashion. Over a month ago, the Council of Fashion Designers of America, or CFDA, announced that menswear is getting its own dedicated Fashion Week from July 13th to the 16th. There have already been similar men’s fashion events held in Italy and London but being America, we’re always a step behind when it comes to anything cool. The New York Times is even launching a Monthly Men’s Style Section beginning in spring, according to Capital New York.
Public School:
In 2014, Public School designers Dao-Yi Chow and Maxwell Osborne received the CFDA award for Menswear, which certified them as rock stars in the fashion world. The designers managed to blend high fashion and the rugged details of blacked-out, tailored sportswear. Public School is flawlessly creating MA-1 Bombers and slim fitting leather jackets. They are catalysts in menswear, so you better believe that Zara and H&M are going to be making some knock-off versions real soon.
John Elliot + Co:
Did you notice that sometime last year men started wearing more sweatpants? I’m not talking about the grease stained, stretched out pair that your high school gym teacher used to wear. I’m talking about the slimmed-down, streamlined version, a trend that was kick-started by John Elliot’s brand. Elliot’s ascension to the menswear throne happened quickly and his influence didn’t go unnoticed. In 2013, GQ profiled John Elliot + Co featuring the brand’s head designer and highlighted his obsession with making the best menswear essentials. Elliot created a line of clothes that took basics to another level with their best selling side zip “Villain” hoodie and fitted denim giving the whole menswear community a reason to want to try a more laid back style. In 2014 GQ announced John Elliot + Co as one of the winners in its annual Best New Menswear Designers in America contest.
Kanye West:
Mr. West is a brand that influences everything from hip-hop to menswear. In a now-famous interview with Zane Lowe from BBC radio, Kanye described himself as Wreck-It-Ralph. It is a somewhat bizarre metaphor but you have to admit Kanye West has the power to influence millions of people and no one is more polarizing musically or in fashion. When the Stronger video premiered and Kanye wore those white shutter shades, no one knew why the hell they were wearing useless sunglasses, you just did it because Kanye taps into culture. His original sneaker collaboration with Nike, the Air Yeezy’s sold out almost immediately. The second time around, the Air Yeezy II’s gave Nike an even more astonishing turnaround in profits. However Kanye and Nike’s lucrative creative partnership was soon disbanded after Nike and Kanye had a falling out over creative reasons. After Nike, Kanye had a connection with the French fashion company A.P.C. His first and second collaborative collection with the brand sold out again as expected. Kanye recently revealed his new Adidas collaboration, which is currently one of the most talked about events in menswear. The point is that Kanye shits diamonds and pisses gold when it comes to fashion collaborations and he moves products off the shelf.
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