Do you even fashion, bro? : A descriptive study on millennial men and their relationship to fashion and the online environment

Abstract: Background: Historically, fashion was not always gendered. After the Great Masculine Renunciation however, men relinquished their rights to excess of physical aesthetics and being ‘beautiful’. Cultural masculinity and gendered norms have since impacted male fashion and constrained the western male look to being understated and practical. Recently, new male icons have surfaced. Certain celebrity appearances have received coverage by popular media, since they are exhibiting a more androgynous and diverse take on masculinity than what is normally presented in the public sphere. There is a hype surrounding this, displayed online. Increasing sales of menswear also indicates that this hype surrounding men’s fashion might be spreading to the general public. This phenomenon inspires speculation about whether or not the average western millennial man actually adopt this new trend they are said to be the leaders of. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to examine and describe the relationship that the millennial men have with fashion, with regards to attitude, subjective norms, and behaviour. Methodology: The research builds on a pragmatist philosophy which allows both interpretivist and positivist positions. This allowed a quantitative method to be conducted, using an abductive approach. The data was collected through a survey, using quantitative questions. The acquired data and was analysed through descriptive statistics. Findings: The main findings show that millennial men should not be treated as a single homogenous cohort in research surrounding fashion. The findings also demonstrate a clear shift in men’s attitudes towards shopping and fashion, showing that it is not a feminine activity. However, the attitude towards “the new style of men” is quite scattered. Thus, it seems that this hype around changing male fashion has only started trickling down from the niche community that is considered to be leading this change. Regarding their behaviour, most men still prefer buying clothes from a brick-and-mortar store and do not use the online environment actively to seek out and consume fashion.