Experience this story and others in the new issue of Highsnobiety Magazine, available from retailers around the world and our online store.

Dearest Highsnobiety readers,

I spent my first New York summer steaming clothes. It felt far from what I wanted to do (write!), but as a recent graduate who had somehow cold-emailed their way into a fancy magazine job, I felt thrilled to be burning my fingertips in the name of fashion. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to make many memories outside of work, but I still remember the distinct excitement I felt making friends in an unfamiliar industry, discovering cool bars in new neighborhoods, and falling in love with the city for the first time despite the sticky humidity (and without owning an air conditioner). I was exhilarated by fashion, intrigued by runway shows, obsessed with finding new designers, and so energized by menswear that I spent my weekends collecting vintage men’s magazines and writing about them.

I’ve never thought of my love of men’s fashion as subversive. In fact, spend 10 minutes of scrolling aimlessly on FashionTok, and you will see that young people today care more about the energy around a brand than how specific garments or collections are categorized or labeled. It’s why the Highsnobiety Insights team has spent the past few weeks talking to readers about the state of menswear. And why I tapped one of my favorite voices in fashion right now, Rian Phin, to meditate on a question I, too, often ask myself: Who is “menswear” for?

It’s the reason the editorial team is just as interested in voices like Winnie Harlow, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and NewJeans as we are famous designers and legendary creative directors. It’s also why I’m thrilled to introduce you to Sam Morrison, the 26-year-old founder of Early Rising, the singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams, and the brand le PÈRE.

While making this issue, we traveled to Seoul, Tokyo, Berlin, Phoenix, Stockholm, Manchester, Los Angeles, and New York. We worked with new photographers, emerging stylists, and pulled from various up-and-coming designers. It was important to me that this issue reflects the youthful energy surrounding fashion this summer. After all, Highsnobiety is a community platform — most excited by exploration, originality, and what’s next.

As I ship this issue off to the printer, I’m reminded of that first New York summer. It’s already alarmingly humid, but I hope these words accompany you no matter where you spend these next few hot months: in a new city, with friends, steaming a newly purchased suit, or while looking at a vintage magazine, at Men’s Fashion Week, or you know, falling in love.

I can’t wait to hear what you think.

Love, Willa Bennett

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