I recall reading a Business 2.0 article about how males spend equally the same amount of money on clothes online as do females, if not more so. So where’s the guy version of all of this?

Could that possibly be true? All of these sites encourage male users, there just don’t seem to be that many who join.

I’m cycling through my brain as to where I read the article. It may not be Business 2.0. Fortune? Fast Company? It was a couple months ago that talked about the trend for purchases done by males online and I recall it even broke down the types of males demographics: the graduated frat boys, corporate types, metrosexuals, dads and blah blah. Ugh I have to find the article to quote it properly.

I think a divide has to be present. Guys won’t turn to these sites. Ever. But if GQ or Esquire pulls some resources together and puts up a site with a similar model I’m sure it can be quite popular.

Alaska, Men might spend an equal amount as women, but the ways in which they talk/walk about clothing and fashion is completely different. While StyleDiary works well, a man’s site probably would not. (does not mean it should not be made). But could you really see Arrington, Calacanis, etc. showing off their latest clothing for the day?

I marketed consumer products to women for 10 yrs and really learned a ton about how different the sexes are.

You’re right, Allen. But when you step outside the echochamber you’ll know real men have never heard nor care about TechCrunch and et al.

But they do have multiple subscriptions to Maxim, Stuff, GQ, Esq, and maybe even Cargo. All of them have the requisite fashion pieces, and should that be aggregated that’s a lot of data that with the right presentation and right advertising backing could be quite lucrative.

I would love to know how to dress better, as of now all I do is go on a shopping trip three times a year with a couple gals, and to know the quality of expensive suits that I’m going to drop $3k on or which label offers bespoke couture.

I’m not even aware of any websites doing this besides independent bloggers. It seems quite interesting.

Thanx,

We know of someone who will be competing in a major, upcoming, global Beauty pageant; she is in the process of getting several gown designed. This would be an excellent resource for global suggestions about color, style and accessories.

You’ve neglected to mention StyleFeeder (stylefeeder.com). I visited them in Boston back in September and they are doing something very similar to these sites - they’re offering social bookmarking intended for clothing primarily and other consumer goods.

Alaska - I completely agree - I was kidding about the arrington/calacanis - just a joke.

I agree that the Maxim’s of the world are hot - and it’s not just for the pics. I met with a style consultant this year in London and had a great time - she said not enough men do this. She helped me figure out which colors work, which type of clothing, accessories and so forth to wear with my body/face shape.

Maybe it could work. While men read the mags for the tips, would they want to share them in public? Have you seen the man law commercials?

I of course would love a site like that.

@Alaska: Cargo mag went belly up earlier this year. It seems that there weren’t enough metrosexual men to support a shopping magazine. (As a side note: When I worked in e-commerce, I had a product featured in Cargo mag’s holiday shopping guide, and the referrals from Cargo were dismal…)

As for the chick in the Share Your Look screenshot, while I lean towards J.Crew and Ann Taylor, at least I know that a black bra does not go with a see through blouse.

Great to see TC although sticking to featuring startups…focus on something that most of us can relate to - fashion.

However, hard to see how the quality pictures will ever improve beyond a certain point as I dont see someone getting an outfit and going through the trouble to get a close to professional shot taken…its not going to happen.

Chickadvisor.com is sort of in this space too, but it’s more along the lines of individual items and not outfits, at least not yet. They have a bunch of nice web2.0 type features like video reviews.

Maybe it becomes time to connect fashion communities with photography communities. That way you’ll get the best of both worlds.

“As for the chick in the Share Your Look screenshot, while I lean towards J.Crew and Ann Taylor, at least I know that a black bra does not go with a see through blouse. ”

True.

No bra is the preferred configuration with a see through top. Especially if young hollywood is to be believed.

Wait…this isn’t wwtdd.com, is it?

Michael thanks for an amazing article! Yay!!

Actually, we’ve got quite a few guys on StyleDiary now and we have seen new ones join. It’s odd but most at this time are coming from other countries, especially Germany and the Netherlands, but the mens market overall in fashion is having a bit of a revolution - the web’s actually given you guys some options to shop, versus your choices only being Gap, Banana, Levi’s Dockers, etc. - so the interest in style is growing. We just recently pulled some photos of male members from our community - you can see that on the “Street Style” page a few archives back.

@ Search engine web, email me at info@stylediary.net - nearly every friend I have is in the fashion business, all are more than happy to donate clothes and jewelry to fellow girls. Maybe she’ll want to create a stylediary to document her quest for the pagent, what she puts together, etc. - that’d actually be a really fun article for our editorial.

I have nothing against women, But why does most of thier time focus around discussing and thinking about mindless crap?

No doubt men will get the blame for this obsession with appearance… Even though most men think women look best when they don’t make an effort.

@ pro-seo, hey! i’m as big of a tech and business geek as i am fashion

pro-seo, another hey. I am also a big techie who would rather have a blackberry pearl then a pearl necklace. And just so you know, men won’t get blamed for women’s obession with appearance. Most women dress for themselves and to share with their friends. That is exactly why sites like these have a great chance of working.

And by the way, I got a blackberry because a (female) friend of mine had one. So women look to other women not only for style but for technology trends.

Beth B.

Please talk to the feminist nincompoops out there who insist that women dress as they do solely due to pressure put upon them from the patriarchy.

Thanks,

Reasonable-minded men everywhere.

Patricia -

Style Diary looks like a great site for my girls - I am going to have them check it out today…

I did not spend too much time checking it out (so I am not sure if you have this revenue stream) - but have you thought about adding a feature where the girls can put together outfits from online stores around the world (using Style Dairy’s affiliate ID) and Style Diary splits the affiliate commission with the “designer” of the mix and matched outfits if a visitor or member decides to buy. If you do not have this - it could be fun for your community and a great revenue stream.

Good Luck!

Pro-SEO,

If you have to preface your statement with, “I’m not ____, BUT…” then you probably are.

I’m with Beth B…I spend my time and money on nifty electronic toys. But the fashionistas of the world would probably think the time I spend on electronics and gaming is wasted on mindless crap. I think it’s a relative term

If we’re going to use mindless crap as a relative term, then I would also say men spend time on stuff women (and a fair amount of other men) consider “mindless crap”…fantasy football, anyone?

I think men and women view fashion sites differently. Women are interested in browsing and do a lot more window shopping and then buy while men go into look at an item and they buy it if they’re interested and then leave, they don’t want to waste time browsing and connecting with other men on fashion in a social networking arena. Also, sometimes, their wifes or girlfriends accompany them on shopping trips and help with the purchase decisions.

IMHO, a site that combines items for both men and women will probably not appeal to men as much as women. A site that’s dedicated to men will probably work better.

*
Hi !
First time reader who will be returning.
What an interesting site & top article !

Women & Fashion — don’t delay, make them happy : )

Michael-From-The-Future !
http://questionoftheday.blogspot.com/

this site gives hope to sites like mine…mine is on how to start a clothing line but we seem to have an almost equal amount of male and female users!

Hello,

I’m an 18 year old geeky male who hates both football (and most sports) as well as fashion.

Thank you.

Arrington is really 5′2

Fashion/style PR has also been one of the fastest to embrace and acknowledge the power of bloggers. Great piece on this in the WSJ about 2 months ago. Most top tier fashion PR firms now culivate a list of A list bloggers to invite to seasonal shows and they are regularly courted and pitched by designers who have figured out that the call to action is a click away.

My wife pointed me to this site:

http://www.mydailylook.com/

More of a produced media play than the others.

Marta mentioned the fantasy football league. Well, there is a fantasy league for fashionistas:
http://www.fantasyfashionleague.com/

So looks like the fashionistas are really getting into technology lately.

Arrington couldn’t get laid in a whorehouse with a fist full of 100 $ bills.

@Alaska - that was in Business Week

“Secrets of the Male Shopper”

http://www.businessweek.com/ma.....d=rss_null

Haha, thank you jj.

I would believe men and women spend the same on clothes online but that’s where fashion spending equality ends. I can only assume - based on marketing alone - that women spend more in general on clothes, accessories, hair, perfumes, make-up and plastic surgery than men. Each of those things participates in fashion, and I think women tend to like going shopping more than men. Although I would say that things like Treos and Blackberries have become tech accessories and do participate in fashion. Ten years ago that wasn’t the case, but now they do. Still, the gap is wide - even in metrosexual cities like San Francisco, I would venture to guess the ratio of women’s boutiques to men’s is at least 3:1.

Interesting…
The first comment wasn’t about the combination of social networking & fashion blogging or how women are one of the fastest growing segments on the web or how these websites tap into the way women communicate about fashion (friend to friend) or even how these networks/sites are an excellent way for marketers to access and influence buyers for a variety of products, not just fashion (autos, food, etc).

No… the first comment was on how to make it work for men. You don’t need fashion sense, but economic sense to understand the numbers.

How do you join?

@ Dave G, yes!! we have a lot of stores on the site and a lot of really cool plans in our revenue model. Also, because we have the editorial articles, we can also write about and promote stores, stylists, etc. in our community and that opens up another opportunity for them - that’s kind of one of the reasons why we have more than just the community on the site. We understood early on that social networking sites would probably evolve into media platforms, other ways to interact, etc. - all the usual stuff I’m always saying when I post comments on TC. Thank you so much for offering to tell your girls about it!! I hope they join!!

As far as men and clothes go, I’ve worked with a lot men regarding fashion - there’s definitely a difference in how much they’ll go through/how long they’ll go through it versus women but the male market has been very underserved so alot is changing right now. A good pair of designer jeans and a tee will go a long way for a guy but never feel enough for most women who love clothes and style. Fashion for men is always more about the individual pieces versus elaborate combinations of items as it is with girls.

Women indeed are the fastest growing segment on the web - in fact, women users are growing more than all users combined! they’re also statistically more interactive, not to mention apparel drives a lot of ecommerce online - I think that’s a big reason why we’re seeing lots of tech companies moving into the space right now. It’s really exciting for the legacy players like us (or Budget Fashionista, who is posting in this thread).

@ mike watson, you can join here:

http://www.mystylediary.net/SignUp.aspx

Recently I was talking with some friends and the wife remarked, “I don’t understand how you guys can spend so much time playing video games.” I thought for a moment. How was it that girls didn’t waste time like that? Then I realized they did - but on something else. Clothing. Style. Makeup. Hair. We all have our time wasters, but usually they are divided by gender.
Anyways, I know exactly what you mean about not having anything to add to the conversation. Before I met my wife I would oftentimes wear pants and shirts of the same color since they “matched.” After I married my wife she would not allow me to leave in the morning without her seeing me first, and I was never allowed to wear the same color - as I was informed this was not a “match” at all and rather looked completely dorky.
My wife trusts me to dress myself now, but she still likes to buy my clothes (and I don’t mind - I hate clothes shopping), but she buys me “stylish” stuff when I would prefer my comfortable ragged clothes (no leaving the house in stained or ripped clothing!).

Alaska Miller…

I would love to know how to dress better, as of now all I do is go on a shopping trip three times a year with a couple gals, and to know the quality of expensive suits that I’m going to drop $3k on or which label offers bespoke couture.

I’m not even aware of any websites doing this besides independent bloggers. It seems quite interesting.

See Askmen.com

Ive been on stylediary for about a year, Its the better of the site like this i have seen…www.trendmill.com is another one that is just starting out.

Very cool post, very cool sites!

pro-SEO: Women dress to impress other women, not to impress men. Beth B’s comment is right on the money.

David Mackay: Having your wife dress you is a double-edge sword. On theP one hand, she knows what she likes to keep herself attracted to you. On the other hand, she may very well be dressing in a way that signals to other women that you are very much married, i.e., “keep your hands off bitch, this one is mine.” See comment above.

vanguyafo: “Shopping” can be explained in evolutionary psych terms as the “gatherer” term in the “hunter/gatherer” equation.

For you single guys looking for “fashion advice:” Don’t think “fashion,” think “style.” Style is actually a tougher nut to crack, but worth it. The look you want is the one that says to women you are attracted to: “This guy dates women like me.” Example: if you like little goth girls, dressing like a lumberjack probably won’t help (in general).

another one in the planning stages is http://yourunway.com
watch this one

I like the title of this article “Women. Clothes. Style. Ugh.”

@ Dave you’re absolutely right on the money See? guys get it!

It’s flattering to see so many sites start up based on our concept!! for us, we created stylediary (back in August 2004 - we added the community and new design you see today in May 2005) because i saw that people were really inspired and interested in what other people wearing, and that no other media really did anything like it. I hope that more fashion and shopping startups continue to develop, hopefully with fresh ideas, because as the current market leader and also a long time online fashion participant, there are so many things people would respond and want that nobody’s creating. The fashion/shopping niche is a good one but it’s been sooo underserved - we have been really supportive of the new ideas coming into the space for this reason and will continue to so please keep us in mind when you roll things out. There are definitely a lot of places to play online - if anybody wants to email me on some of the things I think can work or that are missing in the market, I’d be happy to share insight. We’ve been knee deep in this stuff for a long time, we’d love to see more for the girls (and guys) in our market.

^ I shoud add our email (since I’m asking you guys to keep us updated on what new sites roll out) - info@stylediary.net. We’ve got our editorial and have covered several new sites playing in the fashion niche (such as Like.com, kaboodle, etc.)

Patricia,

Glad to see that your site finally getting recgonition from “the boys”. I’ve read that you were working in PR in L.A. and this site was your part time project. Has that changed? Is the site profiitable enough for you to quit your job and expand it full time?

I’m a big fan.

@ SueAnn, no amoung we make could support the shoe habit

(just kidding) - it’s so great to hear you like the site, thank you so much!

And while this is a dissenting view, and dissenting views can be dealt with harshly on social sites, I just wanted to say I actually didn’t like the title of this article “Women. Clothes. Style. Ugh…” I know it was meant to be tongue in cheek and edgily non-PC, but it made me sad.

And I was wondering whether anyone who asks why women don’t present more at conferences–or generally put forward their voices more assertively in forums like this–sees a connection between that phenomenon and the fact that a prominent member of “the community” feels confident giving a blog entry a title like one written by a squeamish 10 year old boy about icky yucky girls.

And for the women who let it be known that they’re not one of “those girls”…I understand the impetus to do so (i.e., letting it be known they’re not of the bubblehead ilk so that maybe the guys who rank in the social hierarchy expressing this opinion will like them; and conveying their approval of gadgets over fashion signaling they should be taken seriously), but it doesn’t do any of us any good.

And for people who say lighten up, or “we don’t know you anyway so your opinion doesn’t matter to us,” that’s ok! The above just needed to be said.

Looks like I am not the only one taking pictures of my clothes and talking about what I am wearing.

A site about hot girls showing pictures of themselves? No complaints from me =)