GUYS, YOU ONLY NEED 5 (GOOD) CLOTHING BRANDS

If you're in business or a creative, you've likely been told at one time to read Kevin Kelly's article "1000 True Fans". Kelly, the founding editor of Wired Magazine, wrote the piece in 2008, and it has since been translated into several languages and quoted by thousands.

I'll skip past the details, but Kelly's basic philosophy is that in order to make a good living as a creator, you don't need to go viral or have a massive audience. You just need 1000 true fans who love everything you do and are willing to buy almost everything you put out.

Recently, I've been thinking about how this translates to shopping.

You may be shocked to know, but most of my clothing, I'd say at least 80%, comes from about five brands. I understand that this seems strange for a guy who works in clothing.

But because I've been doing this for nearly a decade, I've been fortunate enough to sample from the buffet of fashion for a long time.

There are only a handful of brands out there that check all the boxes for me. It's rare that I'll find clothes that fit me very well, are offered in a style that I like, and have a price point that works for my budget.

I know what's out there, but I know I don't need everything. I just need the stuff that works for me. And the brands that are right for me won't be right for you, and vice-versa.

Everyone asks, "What are the brands??!?" like there's some magical store that houses clothing which fits all men regardless of their shape, size, skin tone, and price range.

You'll see men commenting on Youtube and Instagram influencer posts begging to know where they should be buying clothing.

Bloggers will proclaim, "These brands work the best!"

... Oh really... For whom?

Not all brands are created equal. Not just in terms of quality and price, but also in the types of clothes they produce, the colors they produce them in, and the way those clothes fit the body.

This is why style advice from the internet is so hard to apply and why guys get so frustrated trying to apply generic suggestions. What works for one, doesn't work for another.

You need to know that just like any business, a brand has an ideal customer in mind when they're developing clothing.

A clothing brand doesn't make clothing to fit overweight people, then the following month switch to producing clothing for tall slender men. Brands don't appeal to hardcore rockers and then make clothing for the preps the next day.

Brands have an ideal guy in mind every single time they construct an item.

This is very good news for you.

It means that there's a brand out there building stuff for you. You likely just don't know it yet.

You may have stumbled across one of these perfect brands in the past. Maybe you've been in a certain store, and everything seemed to be working. Everything was flowing easily. Things fit, you liked the style, and you were able to afford the stuff.

Congratulations, you found yourself a little gold vein; a brand that is likely building for guys just like you. Note it.

Your job, then, is to mine the hell out of it. It is the height of stupidity to mine for gold, and once you strike it, start digging somewhere else. Once you've found them, the best part is you only need a few of these little gold vein brands to sustain you.

Every season all of these brands will produce new stuff, but the core elements of fit and style will stay the same. This gives you an ever-rotating buffet of stuff you dig that fits well. You can then dip in and update your wardrobe whenever you want. Imagine a vein of gold that never ends.

I can almost always tell how stylish a guy is based on how many brands he has in his closet. If a guy doesn't know where his clothing came from, there will be issues. If he rattles off a short list of exactly where he gets stuff, I know he's going to look incredible.

So, do the upfront work of digging a few holes in search of gold or get someone like me who knows where to dig.

At first, you'll likely come up empty-handed. But after a few tries, you'll strike it rich with a never-ending flow of good clothing.

Best of luck, Prospector.

Hope that helps.

x Patrick


P.S. If you're one of my 1000 true fans, give the Instagram a follow for more style advice.