8217; guide for menswear, retail intelligence company Edited saw lace-up dress shoes outshine sneakers, with these styles experiencing a 46 per cent increase in arrivals year-over-year, and button-down overshirts experiencing a 52 per cent increase in arrivals.  According to Statista, the global men’s apparel market amounted to US$555.3 billion in 2023, with the majority of revenue generated in the US. And with a compound annual growth rate of 5.04 per cent between 2022 and 2027, the men’s apparel market is projected to grow faster than both the women’s segment, which is set to expand at a 5.01 per cent CAGR over the same period, and the children’s segment, with a 4.4 per cent CAGR. In 2024 alone, men’s apparel volumes are expected to increase by 2 per cent.  This growth can be attributed in part to social media platforms like TikTok and the rise of hyper-specific trends like quiet luxury; gorpcore, which references items like cargo pants and hiking boots; and normcore, including items like dad sneakers, simple belts, and high-waisted jeans. What does menswear look like today? Jack Menashe, founder of Sartoria Studio, one of New York City’s premiere destinations for curated menswear and made-to-measure garments, told Inside Retail that the pandemic brought two contrasting sides of the menswear category into focus: more casual, colorful, and experimentative designs, as well as classic and structured wardrobe staples.  “There has been a big swing towards athleisure for the last five to 10 years – a trend that reached its apex during Covid. People emerged from isolation craving more structure and ready to dress again. Suiting is back – in fresh, contemporary ways,” he said. Menahse noted that menswear today is more inclusive than ever and offers more room for individual expression. “After Covid, everyone also wants to relax, be more playful, and have fun dressing again. There’s a willingness to mix and layering suiting pieces with everyday looks, and experiment with color, pattern, and looser silhouettes – and more men are wearing jewelry and accessories,” he said. But even as more casual fashions have become more normalised in the world of menswear, the studio founder believes that tailored styles are still part of the equation. “Customers are also exploring tailoring more casual looks – indulging in custom button-down shirts and more casual jackets that channel the loose styling of the times but that still offer the inherent quality, customisations, and perfect fit you’ll only find in a made-to-measure or bespoke garment,” he said. “I expect to see more development on this side of the business as a growth opportunity beyond our suiting and formalwear categories.” Menashe himself recently partnered with Italian tailor Enzo Carfora of Sartoria Carfora, giving the up-and-coming Neapolitan label a permanent New York home. Menashe explained that the “partnership also expands Sartoria Studio’s custom offerings beyond the made-to-measure category to now encompass bespoke suiting – a new tier of fully customised handcrafted garments that sets Sartoria Studio apart as the New York City destination for custom menswear and curated, high-end garments and accessories.” While garments curated and designed by Sartoria Studio are on the higher end of the spending spectrum, mid-tier and fast fashion retailers could also benefit from offering tailoring services. As Menashe pointed out, wearers of more casual pieces can also enjoy and benefit from having a more fitted wardrobe.  The rise of tailoring services In addition to custom shops like Sartoria Studio, several mass retailers offer either in-store or online alteration services, including J.Crew, Uniqlo, and Levi’s. For example, J.Crew offers a complimentary alteration program for its cardholder members and charges a small service fee for non-members.  With expanding consumer interest in sustainability, on top of retail brands embracing the resale of their own vintage stock, investing in tailoring services could be a smart move. In addition to providing consumers with a more sustainable avenue of shopping — since tailoring a piece of clothing, be it a blazer or a pair of jeans, will entice a customer to keep it in their wardrobe rotation for a longer period of time — these services also create a more personalised shopping experience. In a 2022 report released by Shopify, it was revealed that 49 per cent of consumers were likely to become repeat buyers if offered a personalised experience by a retail brand. Additionally, 62 per cent said that they not only wanted by expected personalisation, and that a brand could potentially lose their business if the experience was not available, an increase of 45 per cent from 2021.