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Style Advice Older Man
Hi! I'm Antonio Centeno, the founder of Real Men Real Style. Today I'm going to be answering
the question, "How should an older man dress?"
Basically, I received an email from a gentleman. He's in his 60s and he's asking me, "Antonio,
how should I dress?"
Now, I want to let you know that this is brought to you by Kirby over at the Hanger Project.
Kirby runs his company at Dallas, Texas. It's a great company. In fact, what Kirby does
is he scours the globe looking for the best products in menswear to bring you. So he's
got some amazing socks coming out of Italy, ties coming out of Italy. He makes some amazing
hangers. In fact, he's got a really great story.
A University of Texas alum realized that there are not great hangers out there for the suits
and trousers out there that men are spending thousands of dollars on. So he went off and
he started a company. I really admire what Kirby is doing. If you haven't checked out
his company, just go check it out because you'll be amazed at the quality of products
that are out there. If you get tired of going to places like Target and Walmart and just
seeing really the disposable stuff that they try to sell, go check out what Kirby has.
You will be amazed. He's got things there which you'll pass on to your son that will
last you a lifetime.
The question that came in to me is, "Antonio, I noticed that all the clothing out there
is for young men. I'm a 60-year-old man. How should I dress? I want to go out and enjoy
a night on the town. What do you suggest that I wear?"
So a gentleman sent me that question. I really want to address but first let me talk about
some of the problems. A lot of older guys in their 50s and 60s are getting laid off
and they're finding -- they're out there and it's hard. They're competing against guys
who are half their age, who will take half the salary. It's a tough world. In addition,
there are guys that worked 25 to 30 years, Master Sergeant, First Sergeant, gets out
of the army and he finds it -- he's worked 25, 30 years of his life away. He's still
single because the army didn't issue him a wife. Okay, that was supposed to be funny.
But in any case, they're finding they're at this age, they're out there competing with
younger men, how should they dress? How should they present themselves?
Well, I'm going to give them a number of things. I'm going to take about five things in particular
which I would recommend for an older man.
1. Do Not Try To Dress Like A Young Man
The number one thing is, do not try to dress like a 20-year-old. Do not try to dress like
a teenager. A lot of guys, especially I hear this from guys getting out of the military.
They're in their late 40s and they find that they have the same clothing that they wore
when they entered. They have that REO Speedwagon shirt, yup, they still got that because they
picked it up at the concert back in 1988.
Okay, guys, if that's the case, you really want to upgrade and you don't want to, yeah,
you don't want to dress like a 20 or 30-year-old. Do not wear the torn up jeans. If you're in
your 30s, you probably shouldn't be wearing torn up True Religion jeans. You want to be
wearing age-appropriate clothing. What is that? Let me get in to number two.
2. Find Brands That Suit You
Find brands that suit you. If you're in your 60s, your body is starting to change. The
levels of testosterone are starting to go down a little. If you're working out, eating
red meat, taking care of yourself, they could remain up. But you're probably finding that
your body is shifting. You want pants that suit you, perhaps have a little bit higher
rise. Go see my friend, Casey Golden. She's over at The Butt Therapist and she's going
to recommend you in the interview we did. She talked about Zegna jeans. You can do a
quick search on jeans for the older men. I talked about this. But you want to find brands
which suit your age. So go to the finer menswear stores. Talk to them. You don't have to buy
from them. Talk to them and learn from these guys. That was number two, find brands. Number
one, don't dress like a teenager.
3. Be Aware: Society Has Expectations
The other one and number three is understand that society has expectations and that society
stereotypes you. People look at you and they make this quick decision. As an older man,
they're looking to you for leadership. They're looking -- you have a place in society and
don't try to fight that. Use it to your advantage. Women are attracted to older men. I know I
married one. No, I married a younger woman, not an older man. Okay, guys, that came out
wrong. That was number three. Let's go to number four.
4. Own The Latest Technology
Own the latest technology. Why is it important for you to have the latest iPhone or the latest
Android or to be sporting a pretty good laptop? Because you -- there is a stereotype out there
that older men aren't able to keep up on technology. So if you're talking about that Facebook thing
or that YouTube thingamajig or the Twitter, you want to understand that technology. So
spend some time, understand the technology. Carry a nice new phone. You don't have to
use everything on it. The reason you want to do that is you want to, if you go into
a meeting and you're surrounded by a bunch of 20-year-olds, you want to be able to put
your phone on the table or your iPad and for them to understand, yes, without saying a
word, you say that "I am up on technology. I have the latest gear. You don't have to
try to school me on it. Let's get to business."
5. Experiment With The Classics
The final thing, tip number five gentlemen, is experiment with the classics. I know you're
not in your 20's anymore. You're not getting a mohawk, not coloring your hair but what
you can do is you can introduce a Panama hat. You can look at a Guayabera. You can start
to wear gray flannel trousers. Those have been around for 50, 75, 100 years and they're
going to continue to be around. They looked great on your father and your grandfather.
I don't know if your father wore them but your grandfather probably rocked them. So
don't be afraid to experiment with the classics.
All right, those are my five tips for a gentleman over the age of 60, if you're in your 50s,
for the older gentleman to dress sharp. Hope you enjoyed them and definitely go check out
the Hanger Project and say hi to Kirby when you go visit him.
Take care. I see you guys in the next video. Bye-bye.