Young dandies who go shoe shopping even more than girls

ACCORDING to many men, it’s women who usually fall head over heels for shoes.

But perhaps those chaps should take a good look in their own wardrobes – as research claims that it’s men who are more likely to be swooning over some new footwear.

Retail analysts Mintel say that men aged 16-24 are more likely to have bought a pair of shoes in recent weeks than women of the same age.

In fact, men may be getting more sartorially savvy, as they also found that those aged 25-44 are more likely than women to have splashed out on a new jacket, trousers or shirt.

At the same time, three in five men now believe that being well-groomed is the key to feeling more attractive.

They may be trying to emulate Premier League footballers, or rap stars such as Kanye West, who has his own designer label. His Adidas Yeezy trainers start at £150.

Meanwhile, Mintel suggests older men are adopting sharplooking celebrities such as David Beckham, Prince Harry, David Gandy, and Eddie Redmayne as powerful role models.

Men are also spending more on styling, as well as personal care products like scrubs and moisturiser – helped by the hipster trend with its carefully coiffed hair and beards.

Mintel said the menswear market grew by 2.8 per cent in 2016 to £14.5bn, which was well ahead of the 1.3 per cent rise in sales of women’s clothing.

However, this is still less than a third of the total market. Min- tel senior fashion analyst Tamara Sender said: ‘Millennial men are becoming more demanding, wanting higher quality pieces, frequently updated collections and unique designs, and they will choose to buy clothes from those retailers and brands that

‘‘Becoming more demanding’

step up to the plate.’ Mintel said 47 per cent of men aged 16-24 have bought footwear in the last three months.

This compares with 45 per cent of women of this age who bought shoes. The research also showed that men aged 25-44 overtook women of the same age when it came to buying clothes in the three months to December 2016 – 47 per cent compared with 43 per cent.

Miss Sender said: ‘As young men are buying clothes more frequently, they are looking for retailers to respond to this, with one-fifth [of those] aged under 25 wanting more frequently updated collections.’

Men are more likely than women to agree that it is worth paying more for British clothes at 42 per cent versus 37 per cent.

This peaks among young men aged 25-34, where almost two in three are willing to pay more for quality British fashions.

Interestingly, men increasingly reporting many of the same frustrations as women when it comes to clothes shopping.

There has been lots of controversy around the fact that female fashion brands fail to use consistent sizes.

Recently, H&M was criticised for offering supposed size 16 dresses that were too small for a woman who is a natural size 12.

But this is a concern for men too. Miss Sender added: ‘A third of male shoppers would like to see more consistent sizing, this rises to four in ten over-55s.

‘Some 13 per cent of male shoppers say they would like to see more plus sizes. At the other end of the scale, one in 20 would like to see more petite sizes.’