Meet GQ’s Best Designers On The World

Meet GQ’s Best Designers On The World

This year American GQ has gone worldwide in its annual search for the best fashion labels on the planet – and all three are coming soon to Gap. See who’s made the cut for 2017.

or ten years now, our brothers at American GQ have been selecting their favourite homegrown menswear labels as a part of their big annual Best Menswear Designers in America programme – which, for the past six years, has also included each designer producing an exclusive capsule collection for Gap. This year they’re doing something slightly different: Gap x GQ is going global.

This means that the three winners of GQ’s Coolest Designers on the Planet 2017 are the kind of labels shaking up the menswear scene on a global scale, hailing not just from the United States as previously, but also from France and Japan.

However, one thing remains the same: the three brands will still produce distinctly wallet-friendly capsule lines for Gap – and they’re all coming to the UK this September, both to selected stores and to the high-street heavyweight’s online shop.

Meet the three designers coming soon to Gap below, as well as the items we suggest you earmark for when the collection arrives in stores.

Ami
We’ve been big fans of French designer Alexandre Mattiussi since he launched his own label, Ami, in 2011 (after cutting his design teeth at Dior and Givenchy). His USP is relaxed tailoring and sleek streetwear with signature French flair – the kind of thing you’d see the coolest guys in Paris wearing. “When you’re a designer for a big brand, you can’t afford the pieces you’re designing,” says Mattiussi. “My goal is to imagine the clothes I’m designing now on real people I might come across on the street, on the subway, on the terrace at the café.”

Kinfolk
Representing America this year is Kinfolk. Founded by creative director Jey Perie in Brooklyn back in 2010, what started off as an event space and café now encompasses a full-fledged men’s brand crafting seriously cool skate gear with eye-popping graphics (check out the hoodies). “Clothes are as much a part of our DNA as nightlife is,” says Perie. “It’s easier to sell a gin and tonic than a $1,000 jacket, but in terms of how we shine in the world, our clothing brand has a much bigger reach.”

United Arrows
Over in Japan, United Arrows owns the casualwear scene – its luxurious two-story flagship in Tokyo’s upscale Roppongi Hills district is a must-visit for any man who’s serious about his menswear. The brand is steered by Yasuto Kamoshita and street-style blog regular Poggy, specialising in beautifully tailored suits and smart downtime threads. “Our relationship is a bit like father and son,” says Poggy. “The son, who loves recent street culture, wouldn’t talk about the latest trend with him, yet the father is a great figure for the son to rely on for advice on life and the essence of things.”

Source: GQ Magazine