Bite-sized style news to know what’s happening in menswear this October
Ralph Lauren's Pink Pony club, David Beckham's sophmore collection for BOSS, the new Loewe x On sneakers to wear, and more style news
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WELCOME TO ‘Bite-sized style news’, a monthly dispatch where we discuss the news, rumours and conversations that are dominating the men’s style discourse, and therefore, our Esquire water cooler chitchat.
Scroll on for this week’s edition.
Louis Vuitton lets the dogs out in their new campaign (oh, and Callum Turner)
There aren’t many who can steal a scene from Callum Turner. That was until he signed on to star in the in Louis Vuitton’s new Men’s Spring/Summer 2026 pre-collection campaign, a bucolic love letter to British tailoring, designed by Pharrell Williams alongside the true British aristocracy: dogs. Lot’s of them. Not even the chiselled jawline of the British actor can stand up to the charisma of a corgi.
Shot by Oliver Hadlee Pearch, the campaign pairs Turner with fellow English export and footballer Jude Bellingham, both looking as if they’ve just stepped out of a country house weekend where the dress code was “unreasonably elegant”. There are herringbone overcoats that hang with calculated ease, three-piece suits that swagger at the hip, and zip-ups that suggest Turner might, at any moment, jump behind the wheel of a classic convertible and make a break for the coast.
The pastoral fantasy is complete with a supporting cast of canines. Welsh Corgis, English Cocker Spaniels, and Border Collies all kitted out in Vuitton’s new pet capsule: monogrammed leashes, travel trunks, and what must surely be the most expensive poo-bag dispensers in history.
Pharrell’s Vuitton continues to reinterpret the codes of luxury with a wink: blending workwear, sportswear and old-money nonchalance into a uniform for the well-travelled man who knows his way around both a jet and a pair of wellies.
The collection’s first drop landed in stores this week, with a second arriving mid-November. Whether you’re heading to the Riviera or the Cotswolds, Vuitton suggests you do it in style and preferably with a dog that matches your coat.
Balenciaga brings a new look to its Sydney boutique
Balenciaga has swung open the doors to its largest Australian boutique to date inside Westfield Sydney, a two-level space that extends the brand’s “Raw Architecture” philosophy. It’s a design language that embraces the imperfect and the industrial. Concrete façades, exposed ceilings and weathered steel partitions create a visual tension between the brutalist and the refined, softened by taupe carpets, warm-tinted glass and low-lit dressing rooms nodding to the house’s Paris headquarters on Avenue George V.
The store offers Balenciaga’s full range of men’s and women’s ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories and jewellery, alongside the brand’s new fragrance collection. For Sydney’s opening, two store-exclusive charms: a silicone “Sydney” tag and a miniature postcard set with logo-stamped keys.
To mark the momentousness of the occasion, Balenciaga has also unveiled Five Women Behind the Dress, an exhibition of six archival couture pieces by founder Cristóbal Balenciaga. Each ensemble tells a story of cinematic glamour, gowns once worn by Grace Kelly, Marlene Dietrich, Annabel Buffet, Hélène Abecassis and Francine Weisweiller, and of the enduring relationship between the house and the world of film. The pieces, on loan from Balenciaga’s Heritage Department, form part of a collection of over a thousand preserved works that testify to the Spanish couturier’s lasting influence.
The exhibition runs until 17 November, reaffirming Balenciaga’s ability to turn even a retail opening into an act of cultural preservation.
Shop 3002 & 4001
188 Pitt Street, Sydney NSW 2000
Words Benjamen Judd
Ralph Lauren opens its doors in Chatswood Chase
The grand revamp of Chatswood Chase also comes with a slew of new brands calling the luxury precinct home. One of them includes the American label Ralph Lauren, which is located on the ground floor. Situated with 3584 square feet of retail space, the boutique will encompass a comprehensive edit of the Ralph Lauren stable, including Polo (men’s and women’s), Collection, Purple Label, Double RL (men’s), Home, and watches & jewellery. Currently on offer will be the autumn/winter 2025 luxury collections and the spring/summer 2025 Polo Ralph Lauren.
The interiors also act as a mise-en-scène to get the full feel of the Ralph Lauren world: wood panelling, ornate carpets, vintage luggage and wooden tables decorating the space. It’s a if you stepped into a grand Hamptons estate, and you never had to leave Sydney to do so.
Words Tyler Dane Wingco
Auralee x New Balance’s ode to the tennis shoe
Cult Japanese label Auralee has had the menswear community in a chokehold lately with its original fabric and colour treatments on classic styles. Yet part of a contemporary brand’s ascent also comes down to its footwear collaborations, for which Auralee has New Balance to thank. This Friday, October 31, the two brands are dropping their latest lovechild in the T500, the American label’s lifestyle tennis shoe.
The T500’s origins can be traced to 1982, with its polyurethane midsole, a hallmark of the brand’s 1980s technology. It was ripped from the archives and reissued late last year, just in time for the Australian Open and then Paris Men’s Fashion Week in January, where the Japanese label sent models down the runway wearing the tennis shoe. The Auralee-isms come in two colourways this season: vintage brown and vintage ivory. The former comes with breathable mesh panelling, whereas the latter arrives in a full-leather build.
The Auralee x New Balance T500 will drop online on October 31 at 10 am, and in select New Balance stores; $220.
Words Tyler Dane Wingco
R.M.Williams names Orson Heidrich for their latest Artist in Residence
Bootmaker and fashion brand R.M.Williams has unveiled the next chapter of its Artist in Residence program, welcoming multidisciplinary artist Orson Heidrich in collaboration with Arts-Matter. Known for his sculptural and photographic work, Heidrich spent time inside the brand’s Adelaide workshop, observing the rhythm and ritual of bootmaking. The experience has informed a new body of work that examines materiality, endurance and the quiet poetry of handcraft. Themes that have defined R.M.Williams since 1932.
The latest instalment of the Artist in Residence program will be unveiled at a special event on Thursday, October 30, from 6-8 pm, at R.M. Williams’ flagship store, 345 George Street, Sydney. The evening will showcase Heidrich’s new works and celebrate the ongoing partnership between R.M.Williams and Arts-Matter, which champions the dialogue between craftsmanship and contemporary Australian art.
For more than ninety years, R.M.Williams has stood as a symbol of Australian ingenuity, boots built by hand, designed to last a lifetime. In that vein, the brand has always been concerned with the nature of craft and craftsmanship. It’s literally in the name of their most popular boot, The Craftsman. Through Artist in Residence, that philosophy evolves beyond leather and thread, reminding us that craftsmanship is as much about imagination as it is about endurance.
R.M. Williams Artist in Residence launch will take place on Thursday, October 30, from 6 pm at the R.M. Williams flagship store, 345 George Street.
Words Benjamen Judd
Hermès men’s artistic director Véronique Nichanian steps down after 37 years
Véronique Nichanian, Hermès’ men’s artistic director, has announced that she is stepping down from her post after 37 years, making her fashion’s longest-serving creative director.
Told to the French daily Le Figaro, the 71-year-old designer said she has been discussing passing on her duties for the last couple of years with Hermès CEO Axel Dumas and artistic director Pierre-Alexis Dumas.
“Hermès was gracious enough to let me choose the moment that felt right to step away,” she said. “Now feels like the right time to pass the baton.”
Known for her inventive use of leather and eye for idiosyncratic colours, Nichanian was appointed to lead the French house’s menswear division in 1988 by former Hermès CEO Jean-Louis Dumas.
Nichanian will present her final collection in January 2026, during Paris Men’s Fashion Week for the autumn/winter 2026/27 season. A successor has not yet been named.
Words Tyler Dane Wingco
Pink Pony Club: 25 years of Ralph Lauren’s breast cancer awareness
To commemorate Breast Cancer Awareness Month this October, American label Ralph Lauren is bringing its Pink Pony collection to Australia, partnering with the McGrath Foundation for a second year. Marking its 25th year this year, the initiative has reduced disparities in cancer care by supporting programs for research, screenings, early diagnosis, treatment, education and patient navigation. “When someone we love has cancer, we are all affected – husbands, wives, mothers and fathers, sisters, brothers, and friends. This is our effort in the fight against cancer,” Lauren said in a statement.
The collection, spanning the brand’s iconic sporty polo and hats in black and pink colourways, is now available at RalphLauren.com.au. Twenty-five per cent from all gross sales from all Pink Pony products will go to the McGrath Foundation, while 100 per cent of sales from the twill call cap and cable-knit hoodie will go directly to support the foundation’s work.
Words Tyler Dane Wingco
David Beckham’s sophomore BOSS collection is here
If you happen to be escaping to colder climes as the weather warms up here in Australia, consider packing David Beckham’s sophomore collection with BOSS. Balancing comfortable, soft tailoring in wools and cashmere with ‘off-duty’ pieces of technical outerwear, the capsule wardrobe was partly designed with Beckham’s favourite outdoor and cold-weather pastimes in mind.
“I love this time of year, the layering, accessories and clothes that are stylish yet comfortable,” he said in a statement. “Right from the early stages of development, I wanted to create a collection inspired by the feeling I get when I am at home in the countryside in the colder months. With my second collection with BOSS, we’ve put a strong focus on textures and materials that give classic pieces a fresh, modern feel.” You are your own best customer.
Discover the full collection here.
Words Tyler Dane Wingco
Lovechild: Loewe and On introduce the CloudSolo sneaker
In the world of sneaker collaborations, the ones between Loewe and On have been some of the most anticipated (and quickest to sell out) in the last couple of years. And they aren’t without cause either: the Spanish luxury house is always willing to explore whatever new tech the Swiss label has cooking. Enter the CloudSolo sneaker, which is the first co-designed by both brands.
The key innovation here is the single CloudTec Cloud element at the heel, while the midsole is constructed with a Helion superfoam and a Speedboard, providing comfort and cushioning when hitting the pavement. (It’s also worth noting this is the first collaboration since Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez took over Loewe; the colourways, from earthy neutrals to sherbet, will fit right into this new era.)
Pre-registration opens on October 15 at On.com, and from October 16 will be available in stores and online with no registration required.
Words Tyler Dane Wingco
Fancy a chippy? Burberry explores London’s colourful characters in new campaign
It’s a big British link-up. In its new campaign in time for the northern hemisphere winter, heritage label Burberry partnered with director John Madden (Shakespeare in Love, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel) to produce four short films exploring the colourful characters of the Big Smoke. The first, for instance, features Oscar-winner Olivia Colman playing a chip-shop cashier serving up cod and saveloy to models Lucky Blue Smith and Mona Tougaard. (Two people one wouldn’t imagine in the same sentence.) The throughline in each film is the gloomy weather outside, which the characters are appropriately dressed for in the iconic Castleford trench to the new Fitzrovia coat.
Discover the short films here.
Words Tyler Dane Wingco
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Ralph Lauren will serve style again at the 2026 Australian Open
