Like many men over forty I've found that choosing suitable clothes can be difficult. I don’t want skinny cuts and low waistbands, nor do I want the shapeless designs so often sold on our high streets and online. What I’m looking for is stylish, well-made, properly-fitting clothes that enable me to reflect my personality.
Such clothes exist, but they have to be searched for. Brands in general don’t advertise to the older man. When did you last see a menswear advert featuring a model over 25 years of age? I’m not talking about the folksy older models used to sell boxy tweed jackets and corduroy trousers in Sunday papers, I mean cool, stylish older men used in a non-patronising way to sell quality menswear.
Such clothes exist, but they have to be searched for. Brands in general don’t advertise to the older man. When did you last see a menswear advert featuring a model over 25 years of age? I’m not talking about the folksy older models used to sell boxy tweed jackets and corduroy trousers in Sunday papers, I mean cool, stylish older men used in a non-patronising way to sell quality menswear.
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| Image from Men in this Town image by Joshua Lawrence |
The failure to try to sell to older men can mean we don't buy. Unfortunately, we often give up on style after 40. As we we no longer have to compete for jobs, love, a partner, the need to look good is less pressing. Furthermore, the absence of inspiration and role models showing how well we could dress does nothing to encourage us. The clothing industry seems to have given up on us and the rarity of older men in fashion advertising is symptomatic of the problem.
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| Image: The Sartorialist from The Sartorialist X |
I’d like to see the menswear industry wake up to the fact that the older man is the most affluent and fastest-growing demographic. Retailers are losing money by failing to market themselves effectively to us. If they sell to the older man, we will buy.
I wanted to show that older men are interested in style and to encourage others to explore the possibilities. I decided, with some reluctance, to start showing images on the blog of myself wearing clothes I like. This has snowballed recently and I’ve arranged or been invited to take part in a number of photo-shoots (see, for example, the image below of a Marks & Spencer photoshoot).
If this encourages other older men to look again at their wardrobes and to recognise the power and importance of dressing well, I will be a happy man. If it encourages menswear brands to use images of older men in their sales and marketing, I will be even happier.
If this encourages other older men to look again at their wardrobes and to recognise the power and importance of dressing well, I will be a happy man. If it encourages menswear brands to use images of older men in their sales and marketing, I will be even happier.
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| Grey Fox in a collaboration with Marks & Spencer |
I first wrote a version of this article for Men's Style Fashion and have adapted it for this post.