Classic Menswear Is Cool Again

The shift is a rebellion—not against fashion, but against excess. Against the overwhelming informality of the last decade, where sweatpants became dinner attire and hype culture overshadowed actual style

- Niraj Kakade

Think of menswear and womenswear as two adults at different life stages—one in their 20s, the other in their 40s. The 20-something, like womenswear, is bold, experimental, and constantly evolving. One day, it’s a barely-there dress; the next, oversized tailoring. It thrives on reinvention, pushing boundaries and reshaping the conversation with every season. Menswear, by contrast, has long been more reserved, clinging to classic silhouettes, neutral palettes, and an unshakable sense of tradition. But here’s the thing about men: the more you try to change them, the more they resist.

Much like menswear itself, men operate according to Newton’s Third Law of Motion: for every action, comment, or critique, there’s an equal and opposite reaction. Tell a guy to ease up on the shots, and he’ll order four more just to prove a point. Suggest he can’t fight a bear, and he’ll spend hours researching bear anatomy just to see if he could. Menswear is no different. The more you try to reinterpret or—as the “dude bros” say—“make it woke,” the more it digs in its heels, clutching its suit and tie like a family heirloom.

For years, classic menswear—the kind that requires a tailor, not an app—was pushed to the margins, dismissed as too rigid, too formal, too out of step with modern, casual sensibilities. Instead, wardrobes filled up with hype pieces: hoodies that screamed status, despite the city humidity. Sneakers that cost more than rent, and graphic tees that wore the man instead of the other way around. Logos became the new luxury, and exclusivity was measured not by craftsmanship but by drop dates.