Playing around with notions of sex, gender and what is traditionally items of clothing for one sex being adopted by the other is hardly groundbreaking within the Fashion world and ok so men embracing their feminine side might still be less mainstream. What would the world be without such iconic imagery as Marlene Dietrich, Madonna and Bianca Jagger all playing with their interpretation of the tuxedo, the late, great David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix and Prince all playing with the stereotypes of gender or more recently, Gucci’s, item of the season, pussybow shirts and Jayden Smith front the latest Louis Vuitton Campaign. Gender neutrality is big business Zara, KTZ, Whistles X Stutterheim and Selfridges are all loving their agenderness. Females for decades have been helping themselves to their boyfriends wardrobes whether it be jeans, jumpers or Blazers. However, one wardrobe staple which has, until now, eluded unisex sharing has been footwear.

But for Summer 2016, luxury brand, Salvatore Ferragamo presents the Ferragamo Off-Duty project, a special footwear collection inspired by a new casual and sporty mood, without gender distinctions. This collection includes shoes designed to be worn by him and her – in sizes 31⁄2 to 15 – reflecting the unisex lifestyles of the new generation.

With its streamlined design which looks to sportscar drivers, the driver – one of Ferragamo’s best- sellers – stands out for its distinctive sole with rubber inserts making it incredibly flexible, an example of craft expertise, the brand is renowned for.

However, the driver isn’t on its own, it’s joined by the Stylish and understated, moccasin, with its double Gancio buckle is the distinctive signature feature, alongside a wide range of materials and this season’s colour combinations. Plus a hyper-contemporary street-savvy trainer, sorry, sneaker.

The palette for the Off-Duty collection imbues the driver and moccasin with the new unisex Piuma print or the warming tones of summer: Anemone, Mimosa, Orange, Grapes, Saxony Blue, New Sprint, Red and Blue Marine, as well as Black, the gender-neutral colour par excellence. Whereas the lace up sneaker combines parts in plain calfskin, patent, soft split leather, suede and Airspring print fabric, or Piuma print leather in three colourways: wine-blue-grey-brown, dark rain and burgundy, sand and rose.

Men’s leisurewear brand Hamilton and Hare, inspired by the original boxing short, have partnered with the longest-reigning super-middleweight world champion in history, boxing legend Joe Calzaghe to create a limited edition capsule sportswear collection. Inspired by the aesthetic of British boxing, the collection transcends the gym for all day style. It uses only premium natural cotton fabrics, as synthetic fabrications are useless outside the gym and leave the wearer prone to sweating and overheating the range is created with a technical construction to provide excellent breathability and temperature control, cooler when active, balancing temperature during recovery and providing warmth when inactive in leisure time.

The first brand collaboration will feature details that represent Calzaghe’s superstitions in the ring. His ‘black only’ uniform became a visual mantra during his career as he continued to win and reached his undefeated status. This is reflected also in the range’s branding which includes Calzaghe’s distinctive Celtic cross, tattoo.

As with all Hamilton and Hare pieces, it has been designed in London and made using small-scale producers in England and Europe, quality and fit are a top priority. Their approach is to treat underwear and loungewear with the same attention to detail as outerwear. Combining the finest cottons fabrics with a masculine aesthetic the range of versatile wardrobe essentials is testament to their belief that basics don’t have to be boring.

Harvey Nichols has come a long way, not only since its launch in 1831, making it one of the oldest and most respected names on the International retail market, but from the 1990’s when it was seen as THE temple to designer consumerism and everything sweetie and darling!

Now with stores not only in London, but Manchester, Bristol, Edinburgh and internationally in Dublin, Hong Kong, Dubai and Istanbul. To celebrate the opening of their newly refurbished menswear department, which occupies the two lower ground floors of the iconic store, and is the first stage in an ambitious 4 year plan to renovate the entire store. Spanning some 28,000 square feet the space features the brands new design concept which moves away from the traditional shop in shop format and instead features a ‘collection of specialised boutiques’ where rooms which feel more like a gallery of eclectic fashion and art installations, creating a more individual and contemporary retail experience.

The newly designed space boasts
– A luxurious Style Concierge suite that offers complimentary personal styling service with a team of highly trained Style Advisers on hand, ensuring your visit is quick and of course stress free.
– A Traditional barbers offering an array of grooming services and treatments.
– A cafe bar servicing food and menu to rest after the hard work of making sure you look tip top.
– The latest in lifestyle brands and gifts and a curated series of installations and pop ups.
– The denim room is merchandised by product categories so denim shirts, white T-shirts it leather jackets will appear together on a rail regardless of brand.
– The Tailoring room will be merchandised in the same way, by end use; so day suits, formal and tuxedos providing a seamless and effortless experience for the customer.
Plus the cherry on the 5* cake is the ultra special and top secret ‘Project 109’, which will open early next month, will house the very latest in gift, gadgets, sunglasses and grooming, literally offering an emporium of boys toys.

To mark this launch the luxury retailer has collaborated with over 20 brands, including, Casely-Hayford, Tourne De Transmission, Philip Lim and Y3, to offer customers a series of exciting one-off pieces and exclusive capsule collections to be housed in the newly designed space in their Knightsbridge flagship.

M&S &… is the latest initiative from the truly British retail giant. The brand is teaming up with key leading individuals, from iconic leaders of fashion to exciting new designers, to build on and strength the power of their pull. Already we’ve seen two collaborations ‘Archive by Alexa’ a womenswear collection which has seen Alexa Chung delving into their extensive archive and ‘Lil’LonDunn’ a kidswear collection designed by Super Duper Model Jourdan Dunn. So for the third in the series, which launches in store today, it’s the turn of menswear and M&S have taken the brave move of working together with a widely unsung British Designer.

Kestin Hare is a Scottish fashion designer, and former Creative Director of Common People, and former Head of Design at Nigel Cabourn. Since launching his own menswear label Kestin Hare in Autumn Winter 2015, he has showcased at London Collections Men, been shortlisted for Scottish Designer of the Year 2015, and also opened four stores across the UK.

The ‘M&S & Kestin Hare’ 13 piece menswear collection has been designed and crafted by Hare himself and the in house M&S design team, to capture his distinct design, as well as being commercial and relevant to the M&S customer. The exclusive collaboration of summer pieces is inspired by vintage travel and botanical scenes, with a focus on print and fabrics woven in Europe, which include a relaxed textured blazer woven in Italy, printed tailored shorts woven in Spain and a polo knitted in Italy.

Tropical leaves are a key reference for the collection, and Kestin Hare has hand drawn all the prints used on the clothing, linings and trims. The leaf print t-shirt, shirt and shorts are the boldest pieces in the collection, in a colour palette of bright greens, with blue leaves and tropical flowers in reds and purples also featuring on a safari style shirt. Jackets and blazers subtly feature the prints on linings to add a flash of character to timeless summer pieces.

M&S is has shown a commitment to nurturing British talent, and the ‘M&S &’ partnership, has helped to support the brand new opening of a Kestin Hare store in Soho, London, this season. Hare is known for quality fabrics, print and craftsmanship in a clean, contemporary aesthetic, and has himself celebrated emerging British talent, by welcoming independent labels with common values and a shared design ethos to showcase their collections in his Shoreditch store.

“I am delighted to be part of the ‘M&S &’ project, and to collaborate with a British brand with such a heritage in quality menswear. I have always loved Marks & Spencer, and coming together with their in house design team to create the exclusive summer collection which offers something new to the M&S customer, has been a fantastic experience. Due to the support of this project, I am now thrilled to be opening my fifth stand-alone store, and my first in central London, in Soho”.

Boohoo.com is a retail phenomenon, if you are part of the current MTV generation, as a brand you can’t help to know who they are. However, if you are not of this certain clique and you think Zoella is a cartoon Dinosaur and Alfie Deyes is a character in Eastenders, this brand may mean little or nothing to you, just yet !

Since its humble start in 2007 it has catered for the needs of girls up and down the country wanting something to wear out on a weekend night out. But this wasn’t enough and the brains behind this simple e-commerce concept had much bigger and brighter plans. Mahmud Kamani and Carol Kane, Joint Chief Exceutives of the brand, saw a gap in the market for highly affordable, trend driven pieces and boy did they go for it.

Now shipping to over 100 countries, in 2013 they launched BoohooMAN to sit along its sister range to cater for a male demographic. However,  last week saw boohooMAN introduce a dedicated standalone site, catering exclusively to a menswear customer. Focusing on clothing, footwear and accessories, like its sister site there will be an emphasis on newness, with new styles dropping every week. The website offers a new shopping experience, featuring dedicated content for the male consumer and targeting that trend led; price conscious consumer or as Richard Clark – Marketing Director at the brand put it, 

“We had observed a shift in menswear buying habits, as men begin to embrace fashion trends, but as the market continues to evolve it felt like a natural progression to introduce a dedicated site for boohooman.com. The core of our business has always been to provide the seasons latest looks, whilst still delivering incredible value, but now we have the opportunity to tailor the offer and the content we serve up to the menswear customer, making their shopping experience more personalised and engaging.”

So to kick off this all new offering, a collection compromising of four key trends is up for your delectation. Updating a classic spring trend, NAUTICAL incorporates darker maritime influences, with indigo denim echoing ocean depths, and graphics focusing around sea life creatures. Denim also takes the lead in UTILITY referencing a relaxed Mediterranean approach to menswear. Linen is paired with varying jean washes, with a nod to the Rivera in the form of double breasted jackets lay-ered over denim shirts with open toe sandals. MOD is a trend of two sides, focusing on the sharp styling of the late 1970’s whilst also touching on retro sportswear. Bold colours and structured shapes are reworked to give classic shapes an updated look for 2016. URBAN SPORTS uses sport shapes with a motocross theme throughout.