The menswear market is experiencing unparalleled growth. We unpick the various influences shaping it today.

Men haven’t historically cared much for fashion. Of course, there are outliers — those who saw an Armani-clad Richard Gere in American Gigolo in 1980 and were inspired to wear louche tailoring, or the raft
of men who felt compelled to buy camp-collar shirts in homage to Jude Law’s character in The Talented Mr Ripley.

Certainly, putting together a three-piece suit with a tie, pocket square and appropriate shoes demands no small level of care. But compared to the women’s market, convincing men to buy clothes has always been a bit of a hard sell.

Retailers have even been known to directly target female customers when selling menswear, to encourage them to either wear it themselves or buy it for their male companions.

Recently, however, men have been buying clothes, shoes and accessories in an unprecedented manner: according to Euromonitor International, the menswear market is growing at a rate of 5.8 per cent, outpacing womenswear (at 5.3 per cent), and is projected to be worth $547.9 billion by 2026.

Such rising demand has seen retailers broaden their menswear buys and womenswear designers create men’s collections for the first time. Sales of men’s bags are also up, as well as men’s jewellery — which was valued at $6.5 billion in 2021, up 17 per cent against 2020, according to Euromonitor.