94 Five for Men
man drought, it’s a man desert.” In the whole country there are only 24,000 men who are straight, single, have no children and earn at least $60,000 a year, compared with at least 50,000 single women aged 25 to 39. So not only are men losing their identity, but they’re also losing their whole demography. However, there are still overtones of metrosexuality pervading their DNA these days. The pampered man is alive and well and shopping at a beauty counter near you. A new survey finds that more and more men are developing a “beauty regime.”210 Fifty-three percent of men said grooming was expected of them, 34 percent said having a beauty routine would improve their love lives, and 25 percent thought it would enhance their careers. At the same time, androgyny is on the rise, as French retail chains like the Kooples show androgynouslooking couples in its cooler-than-thou ads. Likewise, male model Andrej Pejic211 is taking the fashion world by storm and stealing the spotlight—at all the women’s shows. And it seems the much-maligned murse is having a moment with Lil Wayne, Jude Law, Kanye West and Cristiano Ronaldo as card-carrying supporters of the murse trend.212 Bryanboy, the Filipino fashion blogger making waves at shows, explains for the murse-ignorant: “A man-bag is something very utilitarian where function is prioritized over form. A murse is the opposite; a bag where form is prioritized over function. Most men who carry murses tend to have a sense of fashion awareness.” The Daily Mail Online has even spotted some clutches on the male set213 in the streets of the U.K. Is it time for men to get versed in murse? Regardless, look for men to explore their infinite
@ eurorscg