The Menswear Brands to Pay Attention to This Year

From Scandinavian classics and performance luxury, these are five menswear brands shaping how men will dress in 2026. 

The menswear world has often been touted for its slow pace, favoring more timeless silhouettes, traditional and artisanal techniques, and less trend-led collections over womenswear. 

But the sheer number of catwalk shows – let alone the 750 stalls at trade fair Pitti Uomo – undertaken across Milan and Paris last month proves that the menswear industry is a bustling one, and shouldn’t be dismissed as any less buzzy.

While new brands may spring up all the more regularly in the sister sector, new collaborations, pop-ups, and brand expansions mean there’s plenty of reason to keep your eyes on what’s happening in menswear. On that note, find the five brands we’re watching this year for good reason.

Rubato

Since launching in 2018, Rubato has quickly established itself as the brand to shop for Ivy League designs instilled with Scandi sensibility. The founders, Oliver Dannefalk and Carl Pers, take inspiration from 1920s to 1960s workwear for their refined, timeless collections, which are gaining momentum outside of the brand’s Swedish homeland via pop-ups in London and New York. 

Unfortunately for the menswear heads who like to gatekeep, the brand’s growth in international retail guarantees plenty more fans. Quality and desirability are confirmed when trying their products for the first time; lambs wool crewnecks or classic cut chinos are the type of garments you’ll become addicted to wearing. 

Auralee

Despite a decade in business, only in the last few years has Auralee started to hit the mainstream – and by mainstream, I mean the style crowd that elevates IYKYK brands into international successes. 

Now, Auralee is one of the star events on the Paris Fashion Week calendar, as season after season, founder Ryota Iwai presents unpretentious clothes in a variety of wondrous pastel hues. Luxury retailers immediately put in their orders, and critics continue to marvel at Iwai’s talent for making simple pieces feel special. Such demand has seen Auralee partner with New Balance, Tekla, and Kith on sell-out collaborations. I suspect the brand’s popularity will be that of The Row within womenswear, garnering a cult-like following.  

Derrick

While you still could describe this brand as fledging, its traction is growing. The founder, Luke Derrick, graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2021, and has become a name on the London Fashion Week scene for his contemporary, practical, and utilitarian approach to tailoring. 

Despite training at the likes of Brioni, Dunhill, and Savile Row institutions, his suits have taken a gorpcore direction, designed for the man who wants to dress smartly but without too many traditional connotations. Celebrity fans come in the likes of Tom Hiddleston, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Matthew Goode.

Ghiaia Cashmere 

Sometimes, knitwear brands can feel a bit antiquated, as if their focus on exquisite craft has stopped them from remembering that they’re marking pieces for a contemporary shopper. That’s certainly not the case for Ghiaia. While pieces are still made in a family-run facility in Italy, Ghiaia knits have a touch of Californian flair. 

Davide Baroncini founded the brand in 2019, and it’s now stocked at luxury retailers like Mr Porter, has its own bricks and mortar store in San Marino, California, and has been endorsed by celebrities like Kevin Costner. The brand has expanded to present a full ready-to-wear offering, including cashmere blazers, suede hiking boots, and cotton sweatshirts.

Sease

In 2019, Franco and Giacomo Loro Piana decided to start a lifestyle brand that would combine the luxurious quality synonymous with their surname, with performance pieces made for the slopes and sea. 

Seven years later, and the brand is expanding into new sports. Last year, they unveiled a tennis-centred capsule at Milan Fashion Week, and last December, the brand was ​​the main sponsor of Automobili Amos at the historic East African Safari Rally race. That exploration of activities has naturally influenced the garments, too. Looks that were originally ski or sailing-inspired now also take notes from pieces worn on the courts and tracks.