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Blog
24/06/2011
Style bloggers expand their domains
As the influence of the once-humble style blogger rises, so does their ambition it seems. Increasingly they're expanding their brands into the retail realm; both online and bricks-and-mortar.
NYC-based blog A Continuous Lean, greatly influential in the menswear field, has led the way this past couple of years with not only an online shop featuring exclusive collaborations with the likes of Mark McNairy and Alexander Olch, but also by co-hosting NYC's annual Pop Up Flea, a very 'Americana' temporary market where visitors can pick up brands such as Billykirk and Gitman Brothers while rubbing shoulders with the designers themselves.
Now other blogs are getting in on the action. The UK's Denim Geek went live with its own web store just the other month, featuring not only the premium denim you'd expect (APC, Edwin and so on) but also a small selection of shirts and outerwear that is set to grow.
Free/Man, another acclaimed men's style blog, opens its own online store this month; if the selection of goods is as well curated as the blog then it'll be worth keeping an eye on. The Free/Man crew also bring the pop-up market concept to Vancouver this month with their first Gentlemen's Reserve event, dedicated to handmade clothing and goods, on 25-26 June. Again, well worth a peep if you're in the area.
And the blog-to-retail traffic isn't simply one-way. That the blogger exerts an increasing influence on sales figures is evident in Gilt's decision to establish its own menswear blog, GiltMANual, to drive clicks to its flash-sale site. Indeed, among the GiltMANual editors is one Michael Williams, the man behind the aforementioned A Continuous Lean.
Susumu Kusamura
NYC-based blog A Continuous Lean, greatly influential in the menswear field, has led the way this past couple of years with not only an online shop featuring exclusive collaborations with the likes of Mark McNairy and Alexander Olch, but also by co-hosting NYC's annual Pop Up Flea, a very 'Americana' temporary market where visitors can pick up brands such as Billykirk and Gitman Brothers while rubbing shoulders with the designers themselves.
Now other blogs are getting in on the action. The UK's Denim Geek went live with its own web store just the other month, featuring not only the premium denim you'd expect (APC, Edwin and so on) but also a small selection of shirts and outerwear that is set to grow.
Free/Man, another acclaimed men's style blog, opens its own online store this month; if the selection of goods is as well curated as the blog then it'll be worth keeping an eye on. The Free/Man crew also bring the pop-up market concept to Vancouver this month with their first Gentlemen's Reserve event, dedicated to handmade clothing and goods, on 25-26 June. Again, well worth a peep if you're in the area.
And the blog-to-retail traffic isn't simply one-way. That the blogger exerts an increasing influence on sales figures is evident in Gilt's decision to establish its own menswear blog, GiltMANual, to drive clicks to its flash-sale site. Indeed, among the GiltMANual editors is one Michael Williams, the man behind the aforementioned A Continuous Lean.
Susumu Kusamura