Men Want the New Not the Old

Everyone knows that retailers are hurting these days, but something's got to be selling...right? We called a few top men's buyers for their take.

"Men are asking themselves, 'What don't I have? And what, therefore, do I need?'" says Tom Kalenderian, vice president for menswear at Barneys New York. The answer, at least at Barneys, includes raw denim (especially in gray and resin-coated black), checked shirts, and anything with bright colors.

"Men are not coming in for another suit, or another navy sweater," says Bergdorf Goodman men's fashion director, Tommy Fazio. "They want something that feels new. The attraction to color cuts across all price points, too. Our in-house BG collection is overloaded with color this season, and that's been a bright spot for us, [and] colorful pieces from Gucci, Loro Piana, Etro, and Brunello Cucinelli are also selling well."

Saks fashion director Eric Jennings is also seeing a lot of color. "It's about escapism" this season, he says, adding that "guys are buying shorts like crazy. And designer sneakers, too. They're dropping some serious cash on those—Dior (pictured), YSL. It's like price is no object." Kalenderian agrees: "Oh, yeah, the $800 sneakers are selling out. And for some reason I can't quite put my finger on," he adds, "we're doing an exceptional business in scarves."

These East Coast buyers are unanimous on one other thing: No one is buying suits. It's a different story out in L.A., however, according to Confederacy co-owner Ilaria Urbinati. "We're selling suits better than we're selling T-shirts or jeans," she says. "Maybe that's just because here in L.A., you can get tees and jeans anywhere, so men are coming to us for something different." She adds that "Tim Hamilton is maybe the most expensive designer we carry in the store—and probably the most directional—and his stuff is selling out. The sense I get is that guys are more willing to spend $400 on one of Tim's check shirts than $80 on a shirt that doesn't seem worth that much."

Kalenderian makes the same point. "A real fashion customer isn't necessarily driven by price first," he says. "I think they go for the look. Brands that don't look like anything else, that have a distinctive DNA, they're doing well."

Well, that explains why we're seeing Rick Owens all over the place these days.