CLOTHES MAKE THE MAN
The extraordinary mens blog for the modern man
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5 Carlos Place: A New Retail Experience by MatchesFashion

by Keanu Adorable

Ever since Matchesfashion.com launched and all physical stores were rebranded and resources poured into creating an online empire, it now has reached to some 170 countries and stocks over 400 brands. Over the course 2018, the site has already had over 100 million traffic towards the site. Last year, Matchesfashion.com revealed that it’s on the move, with plans of opening a retail space at 5 Carlos Place near Mount Street in Mayfair. Fast forward to this year, and the 5,000-square-foot building that spans six floors is now near it’s planned September grand opening.

The destination at 5 Carlos Place promises to be a mixture of a shop, an events space and a broadcasting hub; with all the designers it stocks contributing to the experience. And we can’t forget to mention that there will be a courtyard and a chef’s table, too. “We want to bring a sense of enjoyment back to physical retail and create a sense of community,” says Jess Christie, chief brand officer. “We understand our customer’s lifestyle and interests — whether it’s art, photography, wellness, floristry or food. Creating an event programme that reflects the cultural calendar feels relevant and personal.” She’s taken note of research that shows consumers, in particular, millennials, engage and seek more experiences rather than just access to the product. “Retail needs to be surprising, inclusive and personal — it’s about how it makes you feel. If customers take the time to come into your space, they’re looking to connect and discover something, and here nothing will be fixed — it will constantly evolve to reflect each event and designer’s installation.”

Matchesfashion.com will be focusing on integrating various technology and physical aspects. “In a world where a narrative is fast becoming the most popular way to consume content, broadcasting live feels like the freshest way to deliver a brand experience,” says Christie. “We’re launching a podcast series because audio is an exciting medium right now — partly because of the popularity of new voice-activated devices as we move to a heads-up, hands-free world, but also because it’s the best way to deliver quality, long-form content to audiences oversaturated with visual distractions.”

Jess Christie is adamant that this is the way for stores to survive amongst the retail apocalypse that has been prominent in recent times. “I think now more than ever our customers want everything in their lives to feel considered. They want to be educated about new designers, about the provenance of clothes and to understand the story behind the brand. We want 5 Carlos Place to feel as though you are being invited to the ultimate collector’s house where we can host you and create memorable experiences.” A stylish home away from home, where you’ll always find pieces to try on and purchase. But don’t forget, you do have to leave at some point — opening hours do still apply.

The video and September event schedule are now live at www.matchesfashion.com/5carlosplace

5 Carlos Place opens 3rd September 2018.

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Football Frenzy – World Cup Goodies Roundup

It’s another edition of the world’s greatest tournament and we cannot wait to binge watch football for a whole month without guilt (come on England, let’s not go out of the group stage this time… please). Whether you’re a semi-professional or simply a Sunday sports fan, an amateur or an “I only watch football during World Cup” type of person, it is always hard to ignore the World Cup fever that blazes every four years. We here at Clothes-Make-The-Man have rounded up some goodies that can get you further into the World Cup mood, so don’t spend too much on bets just yet!

Escuyer

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To celebrate this next event in style, the Belgian brand Escuyer has designed a capsule T-shirt collection highlighted in the colours of the eight countries that support the label. Escuyer has created a sober T-shirt, perfectly cut and with a subtle twist: embroidered on the heart, an iconic player embodies the colours of his country and expresses all the fervor of its fans. Eight countries are represented by their legendary players, for instance, Bobby Moore for England, Zinedine Zidane for France, Pelé for Brazil and, of course, Eden Hazard for Belgium. To portray them in the heat of the action and in all their active glory, Escuyer enlisted Matthieu Regout, Belgian graphic designer (Club Sandwich). Just like the rest of the Escuyer collection, each t-shirt is made of a superior quality cotton and is produced in Portugal.

Shop the limited collection now online at Escuyer

London Denim

For this World Cup London Denim has made a tee-shirt for every single teams participating – yep that’s for all 32 countries, each t-shirt is made of a superior quality cotton and is produced in Portugal. They’re made in partnership with the UK’s No1 Eco Fashion factory so totally sustainable, and at £24 they’re 80% cheaper than our mainline collections. They’ve also added these fantastic women’s boyfriend Tees to our eco Graphic T World Cup collection.

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Saturday Night Fever Pitch by Simon Doonan

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Author Simon Doonan has two passions in life: Fashion and Football. At one time these two obsessions would have made very strange bedfellows. But times have changed: the unapologetic and unbridled style choices of today’s soccer stars offer a fascinating window into the heart of the game. Football and fashion have fallen in love.

Looking at the beautiful game through the lens of style, writer, columnist and football obsessive Simon Doonan celebrates the magic and madness of this unique culture with his distinctive laser wit and humour. Charting football style from its very beginnings, he pays homage to the great style icons of the game, from George Best to David Beckham, before turning his gaze to the hair, the tattoos and the cars, not to mention those other style icons of the game: fans, managers and of course, the WAGs.

Doonan’s hilarious observations are complemented by more than 230 photographs, making this a laugh-out-loud read for football fans and fashionistas alike.

You can purchase the book here

Louis Vuitton

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After South Africa in 2010 and Brazil in 2014, Louis Vuitton is proud to announce its ongoing relationship with FIFA for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia. The House is marking its third participation in the world’s biggest sporting event with brand-new projects.

The collection has a distinctive and playful look, created by using an innovative and highly technical embossing process on Louis Vuitton’s classic Epi leather. The collection includes new versions of Keepall and Apollo bags, two wallets, a pocket organizer, a coin purse, and luggage tags. The collection also sports a specially designed Louis Vuitton FIFA World Cup logo, while the initials “L.V”, in lettering first used on the personal trunks of Gaston-Louis Vuitton (1883-1970), are placed like a team badge. Continuing the House’s long tradition of personalization, an ingenious customization tool will give clients the chance to create original and unique flag-inspired coloured versions of the collection’s Keepall bags during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia. Customers can choose from one of 35 national flags, representing the 32 nations taking part in the World Cup and 3 others that have marked the competition’s history.

 

Hublot

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Limited to 2018 pieces, Hublot presents the Big Bang Referee 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Smart Watch, the ultimate accessory that all football and Hublot fans have been waiting for. Instantly connecting you to every decisive second of the matches being played at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, a much-anticipated innovation sees the watchmaker and the footballing universe collide to create a silhouette rendered in gleaming titanium that catches the light to frame a circular digital screen, connecting to your Android or smartphone for on-the-go style and instant match updates.

UMBRO

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Back in 1966, Umbro was all set to kit out all 16 teams in that summer’s world cup. John Humphreys, son of Umbro founder Harold, had travelled the world to arrange deals with all the competing nations.

However, when the tournament started, only 15 of the teams wore Umbro. The USSR arrived with their own kits rather than the agreed Umbro designs, which were then lost to history. This story is the inspiration behind a new lifestyle collection unveiled today – Unforgotten. Ahead of this year’s tournament in Russia, the new collection uses 1960s design, sportswear style and striking graphics to create a smart capsule.

The Lev range is inspired by possibly Russia’s greatest ever player, Lev Yashin, who was always played head-to-toe in black. Known as the Black Spider, Lev is still the only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d’Or, and was known for his dynamic, athletic style of play.

Shop the collection here

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Overalls – M.C. Overalls

There’s a tasty new trend on the block for Summer 2018 – ‘ice-cream’ shades. Yeah we ain’t talking about your Mini Milks, Feasts, or Strawberry Spilts here.

Menswear traditionally doesn’t tend to experiment much with colour palettes, but more brands are now diving into the world of colour, with brands like M.C. Overalls . The brand launched their new Spring Summer 2018 collection with takes on a dusty pink ’strawberry’, ‘vanilla’ white and ‘blue ice’ palette with a number of their core staples, including their classic Coach Jacket, Work Trousers, Snap Shirt and Boiler.

Pink Overalls


Reflective Coach Jacket

Snap Shirt

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Virgil Abloh x Louis Vuitton – What does this mean for the world of high fashion?

by Isaac Perry

‘Louis Vuitton is delighted to welcome Virgil Abloh as its new Men’s Artistic Director”

Read the press release earlier this week, so the rumours were true, Virgil Abloh is the new Artistic Director of Louis Vuitton appointed on the 26th of this month, changing the face of fashion.

Having been an immovable force in the fashion industry over the past couple of years his brand off-white has caught global headlines and been awarded multiple honours, making streetwear the new desirable high fashion. Abloh has become Louis Vuitton’s first African-American Artistic Director and become one of a few black designers to have graced French fashion houses, with many recognisable names such as Gucci, Balenciaga and Burberry all being lead by white males and the introduction of Virgil to this elite group of brands will bring a fresh diversity, not seen within the last couple of years.

Louis Vuitton is one of the eldest and most recognisable brands around the world with its ever so iconic print desired by so many. The brand fused high fashion and streetwear together through their most recent collaboration with skatewear brand Supreme, which I’m sure you were all aware of. This collaboration was down to Abloh’s predecessor Kim Jones’s creative influence, with Virgil being a natural progression into this realm.

Virgil has been quoted saying, “This opportunity to think through what the next chapter of design and luxury will mean at a brand that represents the pinnacle of luxury was always a goal in my wildest dreams”.

Former creative director Kim Jones was appointed in 2011 and brought what could be considered a new look to this industry, he has now has moved to fellow LVMH- owned brand Christian Dior, is this the shift we have been waiting for?

London has been a dominating force in fashion over the past decades, however, are the iconic French fashion houses taking back the crown?  We’ll have to wait and see.

“For the last eight to 10 years we’ve been having this conversation about what’s new, and for me, that has to do with making luxury relatable across generations.” It has been revealed that he has been putting together an eight-page brand Manuel defining the new ethos of Vuitton, making it more relatable to what people actually wear, however forming a luxury vision.

His first show for Louis Vuitton will take place this June at Paris Men’s Fashion week and to say that we are excited to see what creative flair he brings to the brand would be a massive understatement, keep your eyes peeled.

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Cole Haan x Harrods – American Shoe Label Launches in Harrods

by Keanu Adorable

Inspired by the motto “Manhattan to Maine, Invention and Reinvention”, the Chicago founded footwear label, Cole Haan recently dropped its new Spring 18 collection, and it’s a quality line up. The company launched in the UK last year and continues its expansion through the UK’s finest department stores with a new collaboration with Harrods. The brand’s showcase in Harrods is located on the Lower Ground Floor of the Men’s Shoe Salon. It features panelled surfaces in gunmetal blue and fittings wrapped in charcoal grey leather to provide a sophisticated retail backdrop for the brand, which is known for its smart shoe/sneaker hybrid based on its bespoke Grand.ØS technology.

A five-piece collection, the line-up is comprised of signature styles like the ZeroGrand with Stitchlite Wingtip Oxford are presented alongside new launches such as the GrandPro with Stichlite Runner. Cole Haan’s GrandPro Tennis in black, navy, white and brown, and the ZeroGrand Wingtip Oxford in marine blue, are also available.

Grand.ØS replaces the heavy steel shanks traditionally used for support in footwear with a modern and updated cushioning compound which is stronger, more flexible and longer lasting, reducing the overall weight and slimming down the shoe’s outsole.

The men’s GrandPrø Tennis shoe weighs less than a third of the average leather court shoe, weighing in at 250 grams (based on a men’s leather court shoe in size 8.5). Other key features of the footwear are: an operating system designed to mimic the foot’s natural flexibility and light-weight foam footbed cushions which support weight distribution and moisture control.

We advise you head down to Knightsbridge ASAP as these will be snapped up sooner than later. The Cole Haan brand is also available for men and women on its UK website.