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One of the common style fears for aging men is looking like *that guy*. You know, the one who rockin’ and rollin’ all over town in an outfit that screams, “I wanna look cool”. He looks like he raided his 15 year old son’s closet and stolen his gear. We don’t want to be him. There’s a fine line between looking stylish and hip versus looking like a fool.
The inspiration for this topic are all of the 50 year old dudes walking around in the too small Abercrombie tee shirts and True Religion jeans. You can be still be cool but not dressed like 15 years old. So how old is too old? Alpha got an email from a 45 year old about this topic, which he reads.
Abercrombie, Hollister, American Eagle cater to a younger demographic. Once you reach into your 30s, you really need to start to be careful. The problem comes in when we are talking about big, bold logos. Branding is the biggest issue. Blinged out jeans are also not age-appropriate. If you stay away from the branding and blinged-out pockets, some of the options are as age-appropriate as The GAP.
All Express tee shirts should be avoided, regardless of age. But some of the items are standard at Express such as plain / basic button-up shirts as well as their pants (Photographer), suits, ties, and other stuff that is great looking. The quality is average at best, however.
The GAP (grown-up version of Abercrombie, Hollister, American Eagle) and Banana Republic (grown-up version of Express) are designed for the modern man. Nothing is super trendy, and the quality is better. The fit and fabric are pretty much working, and it’s stylish. ALDO has fashion forward shoes; however, the quality is a step above Steve Madden (*pretty terrible*). But nothing makes you look more terrible than cheap shoes.
Keep in mind, it’s more about style than store that you’re shopping in.