CLOTHES MAKE THE MAN

Subscription boxes are becoming mainstream, particularly for the ladies market, make up, fragrances, accessories, Gin etc. However, less so within the Menswear sector, socks and underwear examples are starting to become more common place but a brand who really want to cut through the menswear market to stake their claim in it is The Essential Gentleman. With more and more of us having to start to return to the traditional office environment and which that we are beginning to see the return to more pre-pandemic form of dress, so no more trackie bottoms, say goodbye to your all day everyday loungewear.

The notion for this concept happened back in 2020 when founder of The Essential Gentleman, Hugo Warren, while shopping for a new tie to wear to a job interview. After working abroad for a few years, he struggled to find classic, affordable, and well-made men’s accessories when I returned to the UK. 

So, he set about sourcing materials and finding some talented craftspeople to partner with. On the way he added other accessories – working on the notion, that if he could make an affordable silk tie then why not a pocket square to compliment it? If you’re wearing a tie and a pocket square, then you need a decent pair of cufflinks…. and so on.

Nonetheless, the age old problem of, capital came into play, so how could Hugo order small runs of an item at a low price without negatively affecting the producer or my eventual customer.

The solution was pretty simple. He had to first find out what offcuts and materials his suppliers had, then design a box of accessories around that material. Maybe get a tie stitched in that fabric, and then source other products to compliment it. The atelier turns their spare stock into profit, and then he can offer affordable products to the customers.

So, working to these principles and offering a commitment to their customer that – “I’ll pay a fair price to the people I work with, I’ll take no more than I need for myself (to feed my dogs.” The Essential Gentleman, makes a great present idea for the guy who has everything or that quirky hard to buy for male.

Let me introduce you to an exciting new menswear brand who are utilising technology to bring made to measure shirts to the mases.

Edition One is a new made-to-measure shirting e-commerce menswear brand which has just launched in the UK, bringing exciting new technology to the menswear market. Ready to shake up the way men buy shirts and help every customer to find the perfect fit for his body type, whatever that is, Edition One is moving away from all standard methods.

Taking into consideration how e-commerce has changed the dynamics of the traditional physical retail model with high upfront costs, the complexity of online operations as well as fit finding is one of the biggest unsolved problems, Edition One is thinking one step further and, as a result, has turned their supply chain upside down. Edition One has built a streamlined on-demand supply chain that allows it to manufacture single pieces of clothing and deliver them to the customer in around two weeks. The secret lies in technology-enabled and a highly automated process; within mere hours of an order being placed through the brand’s web shop, a digital garment pattern is created, and the fabric is laser cut accordingly at the factory. 

With each shirt made specifically for the customer, Edition One allows customisation of the size and style of the desired shirt. By working closely with leading data scientists focusing on 3D body scans, Edition One is introducing ‘Alfred, your virtual tailor’ to help the customer overcome the hardest piece in the puzzle: get the initial body measurements into the system.  Alfred is essentially a measurement prediction algorithm that is based on a short 30-second survey where each customer is asked for height, weight, age, and specifics of their body shapes. As soon as this is done, every purchase becomes as easy as copy and paste in a different style and fabric.

Edition One’s debut collection consists of a wide range of formal and casual shirts, as well as overshirts and polos, tailored from high-quality fabrics from mills in Italy, the UK, Portugal and Japan.

Celebrating their 40th anniversary this year, The GUESS Originals Fall Bear collection is inspired by the original GUESS bear, a staple design feature originally introduced in the mid 80’s. First designed on quintessential GUESS Jeans crewnecks, the bear design played an important role in creating attention and interest during the early years of the company. Now, around 35 years after it was first created, the brand revisits the bear design for the latest GUESS Originals collection.

The men’s and women’s 21 piece collections embody a playful, laid-back moment while going beyond printing the graphic onto the GUESS crewneck in a way it was originally used. The brand elevated each style, capturing both the texture and essence of the original bear. Sherpa was used on accessories, jackets and layering pieces, bringing the bear back to life. All-over embroidery was designed onto classic denim jackets, as well as an intarsia sweater and puff print/foam embroidery technique to cross vintage heritage with modern design features. This collection is a moment for GUESS Originals to display its deep history in a light-hearted, yet contemporary way.

The men’s collection offers an array of striped and solid long and short-sleeve tees, sweatshirts, crewnecks and are seen alongside a stand-out sherpa denim jacket. The women’s capsule mirrors men’s by offering easy fit tees, hoodies, cropped crew neck tops, a sherpa jacket as well as a sherpa denim jacket. An assortment of beanies, baseball and bucket hats round out the collection with a variation of socks and sherpa crossbody flaps, backpacks, totes and bear belts.

British sportswear brand Umbro kicks off AW21 by teaming up with cult Brit designer Nigel Cabourn. In a celebration of vintage-inspired football and rugby kits, the new unisex collection puts a contemporary casualwear twist on a selection of iconic silhouettes.

The Umbro x Nigel Cabourn collection takes a contemporary design lens to football and rugby styles from the late 1940’s to early 1950’s with ten key styles reinterpreted for a modern design-led consumer. The partnership debuts with a ten style collection which not only acknowledges Umbro’s commitment to the footballing world, but also the brand’s recent step into rugby as Official Technical Kit Partner to England Rugby.

The range includes Umbro’s iconic Drill Training Top in RAF Navy with matching Training Pants, both featuring an embroidered diamond logo and pocket detailing. A pigment dyed Training Sweater in RAF Navy or Dirty White also appears and features a distressed two-colour Umbro x Nigel Cabourn print on the back. Hero silhouettes include the Regiment Rugby Top in blocky Gold or Sky Blue horizontal and vertical stripes, each featuring oversized ‘N’ and ‘C’ back patches.

A selection of key accessories completes the collection. With its vintage sports shoe shape – a nod to the snowballing trend towards vintage-inspo lower-profile sneakers – the Umbro x Nigel Cabourn Trainer is available in RAF Navy with a roughout suede upper and contrast Dirty White sole unit. Also available are ribbed beanies in RAF Navy and Sky Blue as well as an aged leather WW2 Rugby Ball with a gold foil embossed Umbro x Nigel Cabourn logo.

From six packs to hairy backs a new 100% vegan hair removal cream for men of all shapes and sizes has been launched by Hoosh.

This new UK brand brings a fresh dimension to the men’s grooming sector  – embracing an array of natural ingredients to produce the gentlest, user-friendly hair removal cream on the market.

The new metrosexual male has boosted grooming with hair removal products expected to witness a 5.5 per cent growth annually. Globally the industry is expected to be worth $3.2B by 2025.

Hoosh is symbolic of today’s diverse and inclusive society. Hoosh stands for body-positivity and to instil confidence in men. It is about encouraging pride in our bodies and to raise awareness of the importance of taking care of your body. Hoosh is about empowering men and giving them representation in the beauty/cosmetic world.

Hoosh men’s removal cream is formulated using Aloe Vera, Chamomile Oil, Neroli, Hamamelis Virginiana Water, Coconut Oil, Provitamin B5 and witch hazel water to give men beautifully smooth, hair free skin.

Gentle on the skin, Hoosh is easily applied to the body and rinsed off in the shower in just three minutes. The addition of neroli has eradicated the less-than-appealing odour associated with hair removal creams to leave the skin smelling fresh.

Hoosh has been developed with all men in mind and can be used all over the body to remove hair without fuss.

The Hoosh packaging has been purposely designed to appeal to all men and to distinguish it on the shelves and from the ‘lookalike’ women’s products on the market.