It’s Father’s Day on Sunday, 18 June 2023, and the world is a very different place from the first celebration on June 19, 1910 (though the day wasn’t officially set as a nationally observed occasion until 1972). Even in the 70’s, a typical present might have been something hyper-‘manly’, like a hip flask or a pocket knife perhaps, but today’s society demands more nuance, and bling for the gents is increasingly a desired gifting option.
While jewellery has been an established category of menswear for some time, retailers still regard it as a relatively untapped market. This surely must be about to change, as online searches have increased between 43% and 28% year-over-year (according to data from Lyst, and ShopStyle, respectively), with the biggest percentage rise on the Lyst platform being for men’s rings (60% up). The ShopStyle platform recorded the largest increase in searches for men’s earrings (by 59%), followed by men’s bracelets (up 54%) and men’s rings (up 51%).
The rise of men’s fashion influencers on TikTok is one of the contributing factors. As these content creators share guides on how to style different pieces, guys start to feel more comfortable expressing their individuality through adornment. Celebrities as always are also leading the charge, and musicians Machine Gun Kelly and Travis Barker both launched jewellery collaborations in 2022.
According to Maxim De Turckheim, senior buyer for fine jewellery and watches at Mr Porter and Net-a-porter,“What we’ve seen is men are becoming a lot more adventurous, especially with the slight blurring of the lines between gendered products, that’s been really great for the jewellery category because I think in the past men have always seen the jewellery space as an unwelcoming and feminine space.” He notes that bracelets are the leading purchase in the men’s jewellery category among Mr Porter customers, and that the biggest sellers are chain-link options, beaded styles or multiple bracelets worn stacked. He notes too the rise in demand for single earrings, chains and pendants, and a growing interest in coloured stones: particularly emeralds and rubies.
Luke Raymond, senior menswear editor at Farfetch, notes that slimline necklaces continue to be popular as they’re an easily acceptable accessory for the less adventurous. He believes that the bolder male fashionista’s interest in pearls that we’ve seen over the last few seasons would die down in 2023, in favour of the mismatched, dangly earring trend that seems to be lingering on the catwalks. However, The RealReal (in its 2023 Luxury Consignment Report), found that shoppers’ interest in pearls — specifically pearl bracelets — more than doubled from the third to the final quarter of 2022. It also noted that interest in diamond bracelets concurrently dropped 50%. For a Southern African market that can lag behind the trends, pearls may still be a hot item through the coming year and even beyond.
For the 2023 seasons some of the past trends have stuck around, and some, like the playful kiddies-style beads, have fallen out of favour with shoppers. That nostalgic or whimsical theme seems to have been replaced by shells. In both the Spring and Fall 2023 men’s collections, we see that ocean inspired motifs and materials are still firm favourites – with pearls dominating the runways, alongside shells, starfish and other nautical elements like anchor and rope designs.
While gold maintains its dominance (it was nearly half of the market in 2021), many designers are turning to silver as a counterpoint, or making use of toned-down, less flashy white golds. Mixed metals are also still making a splash.
Cuff and stacked bangles were seen on a few collections, and sentimental, commemorative and/or personalised jewellery – anything symbolising significance – is a theme that’s here to stay. This is notable in consumer purchasing data across many industries. Nameplates are reportedly a popular option for pendant necklaces, alongside dog tags which sometimes feature customisation in the form of decorative elements rather than text.
The classic Cuban link chain is making a comeback, a bolder cousin to the popular staples like ball chains, cable chains, box chains and cord chains. Layering is still a Thing, as seen on many a red carpet this year. Especially with regards to bracelets on men: understated and often featuring leather and beads, or Silver chain in combination with a wristwatch.
If you’re not yet creating men’s collections, what are you waiting for? As the guys realise that modern culture is more and more accepting of self expression through jewellery, and as the runways give us ever more ostentatious looks for men, there’s scope to create from the traditional to the flamboyant. From the highly masculine styles to the more androgynous looks, don’t neglect this underserved market.
As Rachel Akmakijian, director of jeweller relations at jewellery insurance company BriteCo, says: “Jewellery is not being tied to a gender anymore. The lines are going to get more and more blurred to where it’s not a separate tab on a website, it’s just going to be jewellery across the board.”