WELCOME TO ‘What is #menswear talking about?’, a weekly 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.

Dior’s new Bondi Junction boutique fuses French heritage with contemporary design

Inside Dior’s new boutique in Westfield Bondi Junction. Image: courtesy of Westfield

As if a slice of 30 Avenue Montaigne has been teleported to Sydney, Dior has opened its newest Australian space inside Westfield Bondi Junction. What sets it apart from the brand’s flagship on Castlereagh Street in the city’s CBD is its contemporary façade, which features undulating curves fixed with light that recall the movement of the maison’s fabrics. The panels that make up the façade were shipped over from France, and this Bondi Junction boutique is the first Dior store in the world to flaunt them on its exterior.

A play on mixing Dior’s heritage with contemporary interior design, inside, a large portion of the space is dedicated to the Dior Men’s range designed by creative director Kim Jones. Currently in situ, is Jones’ balletic autumn/winter 2024-25 collection, where ready-to-wear, bags, accessories, and shoes are also available in-store.

The store is located on level 4 of Westfield Bondi Junction.

Lost in the desert: Jacob Elordi stars in Bottega Veneta’s new campaign

Bottega Veneta brand ambassador Jacob Elordi in a new campaign shot in Utah and Nevada. Photography: Alec Soth
Photography: Alec Soth

Lost in the desert has never looked quite so stylish. While photos of Jacob Elordi holidaying in Italy circle the internet, his newest campaign for Italian luxury brand Bottega Veneta has dropped. Here, Elordi – all six foot five of him – is photographed around the Utah and Nevada desert, wearing pieces from the brand’s autumn-winter 2024-25 collection.

“Bottega Veneta is in essence pragmatic because it is a leather goods company,” said brand creative director Matthieu Blazey in a statement. “Because it specialises in bags, it is about movement, going somewhere; there is fundamentally an idea of craft in motion.” And what better way to put that to the test than by capturing Elordi dancing around “the sleek architecture of the desert”, barefoot, even jumping over a chasm? We’re convinced.

Martine Rose collaborated with Clarks, reinterpreting five of its iconic designs

Desert Boots from the Martine Rose x Clarks collab. Image: courtesy of Clarks
The Oxford. Image: courtesy of Clarks

British-Jamaican designer Martine Rose is returning to Clarks for fresh reinterpretations of five of the brand’s classic shoes, in a new collection titled ‘Coming Up Roses’. Known for her takes on rave, hip-hop, and punk subcultures in her menswear, Rose was tasked with giving some the reliable shoe brand’s iconic silhouettes an update. The Desert Boots – Clarks’ hero product – feature textured croc and fur-like uppers, while other classic styles are redone in bold hues and exaggerated silhouettes. The Oxford in a buttery lilac with soles inflated like bubblegum is a highlight for statement shoe enthusiasts. The collaboration is a linkup between one of fashion’s highly sought after talents and a shoemaker who built its rep on unbeatable comfort. Surely, comfort and style are given for this drop.

The collection, ranging between $299 – $479, will be available on Clarks.com.au from October 10.

Ralph Lauren partners with the McGrath Foundation for its Pink Pony collection

Image: courtesy of Ralph Lauren
Pink Pony Twill Ball Cap and the Pink Pony Cashmere Hoodie. Image: courtesy of Ralph Lauren

To commemorate Breast Cancer Awareness Month, iconic American label Ralph Lauren has released its 2024 Pink Pony collection. A global initiative started in 2000, the brand has partnered with the McGrath Foundation in Australia this year, where 100 per cent of the sale of the Pink Pony Twill Ball Cap and the Pink Pony Cashmere Hoodie will be put towards breast cancer awareness and preventative cancer care. “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,” said Lauren in a statement about the collection. Also featuring popular sporty Ralph Lauren pieces in a black and pink palette, the collection will be available in select Ralph Lauren stores and online.

Learn more about the collection at RalphLauren.com.au.

Intersection of style and sport: On opens its first Australian store at Emporium Melbourne

It’s been a whirlwind year for Swiss sportswear brand On. Through its collabs with Spanish luxury brand Loewe and tennis legend Roger Federer, not to mention outfitting rising stars like Ben Shelton, the brand has ascended the realms of fashion and sport – quickly. So it seems fitting that its first Australian store should be in Melbourne: arguably Australia’s most stylish city and the centre of multiple major sporting events (which counts the Australian Open).

“Situated in the heart of Melbourne’s vibrant CBD, the launch of our first store in Australia marks an
exciting milestone for On,” said Asia-Pacific general manager Rebecca Cai in a statement on the store’s location in the Emporium. “As a global sports hub, Melbourne is home to a passionate community of
runners and athletes, and our store aims to be a dynamic space for connection and engagement.”

Inside, collections on their innovative sportswear are available, as well as their sport-specific shoe models for tennis, hiking, gym, lifestyle, and, of course, running. So run, don’t walk.

The store is located on the grand floor of Emporium Melbourne.

Sustainability in mind: Bassike opens its new Melbourne store

Display table made of Fibre Reinforced Polymer sheets. Photography: courtesy of bassike
1970’s Giuseppe Munari armchairs. Photography: courtesy of bassike

Certified B-Corp Australian label Bassike has opened its newest store in Melbourne’s CBD, designed with sustainability in mind. “The design of Bassike QV is an exploration of simplicity and modernity that connects with its Melbourne CBD location,” says Kelvin Ho, founding director of Akin Atelier, who crafted the store’s interior. “The store is simple, gallery-like shell with exposed services and joinery designed to feel both familiar but innovative.”

The store marks a new design direction for the brand, one that bolsters B-Corp certification to be felt in the spaces that house its designs. For one, Fibre Reinforced Polymer sheets (in that green hue) are integrated around the space in walls, shelving systems and table bases. It’s modern geometric forms are a contemporary touch when the rest of the space is fitted in mid-century furniture, the 1970’s Giuseppe Munari armchairs, for instance. The brand’s men’s and womenswear ranges of premium basics are available in-store.

The store is located at Level 1, Shop R01-090, QV Melbourne, Albert Coates Lane, Corner of Lonsdale Street and Swanston Street.

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