How Luxury Brands Are Embracing New Codes of Masculinity

As holiday gift-giving season rolls around, we’ve noticed that some leading global luxury brands are joining in the secular trend toward a much broader definition of what it means to be “masculine.” Here’s how traditional and new digitally-native luxury brands are responding to and sometimes embracing new codes of masculinity in luxury jewelry, makeup and handbags for men.

The current issue of GQ magazine is “the New Masculinity Issue.” The newsstand cover photo is Pharrell Williams wearing a 1 Moncler Genius Pierpaolo Piccioli bright yellow floor-length puffer cape. It would be hard for a sentient mortal to walk past that image and not pause to see what it’s all about. 

We did, and it got us to thinking. Is the world of luxury that has grown up around the traditional definitions of menswear, men’s grooming products, and masculinity changing with the times?

Of course, lots of luxury brands have embraced expansive definitions of what constitutes “menswear.” Many, like Gucci, moved to gender-less fashion shows and collections years ago.

Footwear has long seen a convergence in the behavior of cisgender men and women. For many men, sneakers have become what shoes have long been for many women: a fun and novel way to stand out sartorially, with frequent purchases and wild style choices.

But what about other categories? We decided to have a look at the current state of play in three bell-weathers that have traditionally been “for women only”: cosmetics, jewelry, and handbags. 

How Luxury Brands are Embracing New Codes of Masculinity

1. Luxury Cosmetics and Makeup for Men

According to GQ, 56 percent of American men wore a cosmetics product at least once in 2018. The male grooming market is forecast to be worth over $55 billion by the end of 2020. Charlotte Tilbury and Fenty, among others, market their existing products to all, with specific videos and “how to” guides for men. But with the same product formulations as for women.

However, some brands, both old and new, have taken the opposite tack, with dedicated cosmetics collections for cisgender men.

old school luxury makeup for men

Last year Chanel Beauty launched a capsule collection of makeup specifically designed for men. The Boy de Chanel line includes a matte moisturizing lip balm, a tinted fluid, and an eyebrow pencil. It debuted in South Korea in time for holiday 2018, and became available worldwide at the beginning of 2019.

Tom Ford Beauty also has a collection specifically for men. It includes a brow definer and a face bronzer. 

new school luxury makeup for men

A quick scan reveals that there are at least four new digitally native brands offering makeup specifically for men.

Altr, a UK-based brand, offers a concealer with a formulation made for men, using specific ingredients like China clay. The blemish fighting comes in a blue tin, and the moisturizer is billed as containing a “subtle whiskey extract.”

Stryx markets itself as “corrective cosmetics designed for men.” There’s a nod to traditional masculinity and male pursuits in the packaging: to select a shade, users can choose between three different whiskey tumblers filled with ice.

MËNAJI is another digital-native brand offering “advanced men’s skincare” and “corrective cosmetics.” Their product line includes eye gel, concealer, and anti-shine face powder.

Formen Makeup for Men offers facial and under-eye concealer and blotting powder for the face. The brand’s focus is currently on hiding redness, acne and bags under the eyes, not on color cosmetics more broadly.

2. Fine and Luxury Bijoux Jewelry for Men

Back in the day, the traditional view was that men wearing jewelry (other than a wedding ring or cufflinks) was “too feminine” – emasculating, even.

Fast forward, and global sales of men’s luxury fine jewelry reached $5.3 billion in 2017, up from $4.3 billion in 2012, an increase of 22 percent, according to Euromonitor International. That’s a tiny drop in the bucket compared to the $31.9 billion sales in the women’s sector in 2017 — but the growth trajectory for men’s jewelry has been steady.

More men – especially those under 35 – are wearing rings, bracelets and pendants than ever before. How is luxury responding?

old school luxury jewelry for men

Last month, Tiffany’s unveiled its first line of jewelry and accessories for men. The collection featured dog tags and cuff links. Designed by chief artistic officer Reed Krakoff, the aesthetic is described as “direct and uncomplicated.” The branding imagery includes footballs and tools like a wrench. Items range from an 18-karat yellow gold chain to diamond-studded ID bracelets.

David Yurman has had a men’s fine jewelry collection for almost 15 years. But last year it launched a new collection of rings for men that are more comfortable to wear: ridged, fluted, faceted and cabled, and made of titanium, forged carbon, meteorite, black diamonds and more, selling for $295 to $7,900. DY Dog Tags embellished with diamonds are also a strong seller for men.

Dior Homme and Alexander McQueen showed chokers and pendants on their spring-summer runways. Trend experts note that for men, black diamonds and spinels are more readily accepted than white diamonds.

Then there’s the classic cameo. Amedeo Scognamiglio has broadened the reach of his sixth-generation family-owned Italian hand-carved cameo brand by adding skull and crossbones, snakes and evil eyes in lieu of the traditional profiles and florals. They’re sold in the men’s department, not the jewelry department, in leading luxury department stores.

new school luxury jewelry for men

Dover Street Market is a style destination for fashion-forward clients and cutting-edge brands. In a press report a few months ago, the men’s jewelry buyer raved about rings from Tom Wood; The Great Frog; Castro; and Natural Instinct.

Cynthia Sakai, a Japanese jeweler who designs her Vita Fede line in New York, has launched a dedicated line for men (although Jaden Smith wore a piece from her women’s collection to the Met Gala this year).

3. Luxury Designer Handbags for Men

GQ notes that Pharrell special-ordered a custom-made Hermès Birkin bag in inky purple crocodile and, in 2007, he began wearing it everywhere. Tyler, the Creator has been rocking classic Chanel purses for a couple of years. These artists were clearly ahead of the curve.

But it’s clear that the attitude toward bags in menswear is changing. Small bags for men (can we just go on ahead and call them purses?), especially cross-body styles, have gone from something almost taboo to one of the hottest trends in men’s fashion.

old school luxury handbags for men

FENDI presented men’s versions of its signature Baguette and Peekaboo bags for fall-winter 2019-20. Kim Jones’ Dior Homme show saw almost every outfit complemented by a bag: the new cross-body men’s version of the iconic Saddle bag; neck wallets; small hard-case tube-shaped bags; and soft fur bags.

Prada and Loewe are similarly situated, with clutch bags, totes, and men’s variations on hit bags like the Puzzle.

new school luxury handbags for men

Brands like A-COLD-WALL*, ALYX, Off-White, Innerraum, and Acne Studios are among newer labels whose small bags for men are flying off the shelves. 

Online retailers like SSENSE and Mr. Porter are a great source for these brands and more.

How Luxury Brands are Embracing New Codes of Masculinity

The verdict? The handbag category seems to be moving most quickly in the direction of sneakers and other footwear. Soon there will be very little difference between the offerings for men and women, even from the traditional old school luxury brands.

Luxury jewelry and cosmetics are probably going to take a bit more time. But it seems inevitable that these two will start to evolve more quickly, too, even at the oldest and most heritage-driven luxury brands.

What about apparel, you say? Stay tuned. Luxury, like gender, is more and more fluid these days. And that means there’s going to be something out there for absolutely everyone sometime soon.

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