New men’s online shop, Mr. Porter, to open its doors soon
Gabe Alonso 
In response to the increase in men’s luxury purchases, Mr. Porter, a new men’s-only online shop, will be launching later this year. Aiming to give men a no frills way of shopping for luxury brands, Mr. Porter has taken steps to make their site more “man-friendly.” Most notably, there will be little use of the word “fashion” on the site, replaced with “style” as much as possible. Moreover, the site will be fairly uncluttered and provide style tip videos for its members.
Mr. Porter will be an interesting experiment in the ways in which men shop. The rate at which men’s online shopping has increased is not nearly as quick as women’s. Part of that is the way the current sites offer their products to men, says Net-a-Porter founder Natalie Massenet, the sister-site of Mr. Porter. The site will hopefully be able to change that current mindset and appeal more broadly to men everywhere.
Their site content will consist of profiles of “real men,” a motorbike designer, a banker, and a painter, all of course wearing stylish clothes. The brand selection will be limited so as not to overwhelm male shoppers, taking their presumed predilection to quick shopping experiences into account. There will be absolutely no female -based content on the site, as Mr. Porter will attempt to “…take fashion to the man.”
Mr. Porter will definitely rely (at first) on the heavily trafficked Net-a-Porter, hoping that some of its millions of female visitors will get on the site to buy for their man (Hint: Tell your girl now to become a member). The site will have tons of editorial content, as well as the aforementioned style video tips. You’ll be able to learn about the history of the products you buy, so you can gloat knowledgeably when you rock that new tweed blazer to your next happy hour.
In terms of brands, there will be a mix of high-end menswear and casual sportswear; Everything from designers such as Alexander McQueen and Balmain to retailers like Brooks Brothers and J. Crew. There will also be an emphasis on the classically stylish guys, men like Gene Kelly and Cary Grant. They will eschew ideas of current celebrity style (thank God, because it’s generally horrible).
It’ll be interesting to see if Mr. Porter can fend off “flash-sale” sites like Gilt MAN (if you want/need an invite let me know) and their upcoming full-retail store. I’ve already signed up to be a “founding member” of the site, so I look forward to seeing what they’ll have to offer. Check out their Facebook page for more info about their brands and site launch.
What do you guys think? Yay or nay? Sound off in the comments.
A Profile of Mr. Porter, A New Online Shopping Site for Men (WSJ.com)
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