The New Look In New York

A new and distinct menswear market has emerged from New York.

In an article in Old Gray Lady, David Colman reports about the exciting shift that has transformed the image of American menswear. For decades there were two schools of thought:

1. Classic preppy style a la Ralph Lauren
2. Stylish, fashion conscious European labels

You were either enrolled in one school or the other. Men wouldn’t mix the looks.

“ ‘Never’, said Tom Kalenderian, the vice president for men’s wear at Barneys New York. ‘When you came into Barneys, you either went to the American House or the International House. You would never have considering mixing the brand lists of the two departments. It would have been very confusing.’ ”

Colman dissects how New York has stepped back up with designers from Thom Browne to Adam Lippes satisfying a market including stylish American men as well as their European counterparts.

This is great news to us and part of the reason menswear has been so exciting the past few years. Instead of sending Ralph Lauren clones down the runways, each designer is bringing a distinct flavour and aesthetic to their collections.

We hope this shift will continue well into the future.

How New York Got Its Look Back [NYT]