Menswear in a Post-Pandemic World

Explore the evolving landscape of menswear in a post-pandemic world. Discover how the global health crisis has reshaped fashion trends, preferences, and lifestyles for men.
Image Credit007, MGM, Daniel Craig

The golden standard of fine menswear is timeless styling, high-quality materials, and devotion to dressing in a way that evokes a sense of polish, class, and sophistication. When discussing the pillars of style (as it pertains to menswear), we stick to aspects that remain tried and true and refuse to rely solely on superfluous trends that typically come and go with time.

In early 2020, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic were fully realized on a global scale. With this event came a shift in how we operate, and the settings in which we find ourselves. When it came to professional life, many of us were forced to work from home and were discouraged from going to the office or other places of work. In our social lives, many of us avoided parties, weddings, and other large gatherings as well.

This has undoubtedly influenced how many of us dress. We've all heard stories of men pairing sweatpants with their suits at Zoom meetings, wearing no pants at all, or even ditching their suits entirely for more casual and comfortable clothing.

While the world around us changes, the pillars of style that we adhere to do not necessarily have to. Let's take a deep dive into how menswear has changed with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and our thoughts regarding these recent trends.

Don't Ditch the Suit

One trend we've noticed in post-pandemic menswear is the partial abandonment of the suit as the staple of formal and professional menswear. While working from home, many professionals have opted to stick to dress shirts and slacks as their primary work uniform or have adopted even more casual clothing (this is where the suit and sweatpants combo, unfortunately, enters the conversation).

A suit is not just a necessary piece of menswear that we are forced to wear at work. Wearing a suit is a part of a comprehensive lifestyle and philosophy that showcases your attention to detail, your devotion to style, and your sense of refinement overall.

Wearing a suit presents a myriad of benefits to the wearer. Wearing a suit can help to increase your self-confidence, and a scientific study in 2015 concluded that wearing formalwear alters the thought processes of the wearer in a positive way. Essentially, wearing formalwear helps us to feel powerful, and that influences the way we perceive the world around us. When it comes to other people's perceptions of us, wearing a suit also has a positive impact. Wearing a suit can impart a sense of credibility, and that sense of credibility will positively impact how others perceive you.

With all of this in mind, we firmly believe that wearing a proper suit is still relevant (and even necessary) in a post-pandemic world. And when we say a proper suit, we mean it, which brings us to our next point...

Stick to Timeless Styling

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As the habits and lifestyles of many people began to change during the pandemic, so did the clothing that they wore as well. In an attempt to adapt to this new shift in styling, many manufacturers of menswear implemented changes to their formalwear to allow them to fit into the post-pandemic world in which we live.

One example of this shift can be found in "stretch" suiting, which includes suits made of synthetic materials, and even suits that feature elastic in the waistbands in their suit pants. We are suit purists at Aklasu, and we truly believe that the best suits are made with natural materials, such as wool or linen. While synthetic materials may feature comfortable "stretch" attributes, they are not as durable, nor as high-quality as suits made using strictly natural materials. If you want a suit you can wear for years to come, we highly recommend sticking to natural materials.

Timelessness is an important attribute that we value highly at Aklasu. Timeless styling is truly crucial because adopting a timeless style will mean you always look like the most polished gem in the room. In our opinion, features such as elastic waistbands are not timeless, are not polished, and are frankly trendy aspects that are sure to look dated in a short matter of time. When cultivating a wardrobe, you never want to invest in pieces that will look dated within a few years. Your investments in your wardrobe should remain timeless, and look just as good a few years down the line as they looked when you first purchased them.

It's Time to Get Back to Looking Good

With the pandemic beginning to reach an endemic stage, it's time for many of us to spend renewed energy on looking our absolute best whenever we can. As more and more individuals are returning to attending parties, weddings, and work at the office, there is no time better than now to invest in some high-quality formalwear.

At Aklasu, we create high-quality neckties made in Italy from 100% Italian silk. Our curated line of neckties are perfect for the mass return to weddings, the office, and any other social event. Cultivating a timeless and refined aesthetic will undoubtedly lead to a boost in self-confidence, and a boost in how others perceive you as well.

Up Your Post-Pandemic Style
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