Last week we showed you how you can make your own bow tie in 6 simple steps. For those of you that need some additional help mastering this skill, we have now added this video tutorial that will teach you how to make a bow tie in just 3 minutes:

We hope that our little bow tie making video has inspired your next crafts project. For the printable bow tie pattern, please click HERE.

Even if you don’t wear bow ties yourself, they make for a perfect fathers day present, they are great groomsmen gifts, and they even look handsome on our four legged friends. In case you also like a printable step-by step instruction, then this guide should come in handy as well:

Giveaways have become a popular marketing tool, and they are a great way for us shoppers to get things for FREE. I am always on the hunt for bargain deals for stylish clothing, and what deal is better than getting stuff for FREE. I have tried over a hundred different menswear giveaways. Here are my personal TOP 6 weekly/monthly favorites. Am I missing one that should be on the list? Then leave a comment below and I will consider adding it (after having tried it of course).

My Tips to Boost Your Chances of Winning

Looking for ways to increase your chances of winning? Then here are three simple tips:

1. Enter multiple giveaways at the same time: Many of these giveaways make you upload a picture on instagram using a certain hashtag. This is a great opportiunity for you to enter mulitiple giveaways simultaneopisly by adding multiple hashtags. It takes a few seconds and will definitely boost your chances of winning.
2. Post regularly and stick with it: Once you found your favorite giveaways, make sure to engage often (like daily). It only takes a minute or two each day and I guarantee that your work will pay off.
3. Endorse the Product: If you happen to already own pieces from the retailer hosting the giveaway, then make sure to show it. Take a selfie and post it on different social channels with the required tags. It will get you noticed!

TOP 10 Best Menswear Giveaways:

#1: TSBMen Giveaway
TSBMen (aka “The Style Blogger”) is a popular menswear blog started by Dan Trepanier out of NYC. Style/menswear really comes natural to Dan. He lives what he preaches. In fact, he has been voted “Best Dressed Real Man in America” by Esquire Magazine. Each month Dan features a new giveaway of an entire wardrobe worth a few thousand bucks that is typically sponsored by several high end brands. Not only is this one of my favorite giveaways (I yet have to win though), but it is also very easy to enter. First, you got a share the giveaway on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. After that, you simply e-mail a picture of yourself wearing a stylish outfit to Dan. To view, and to enter the TSBMen Giveaways, CLICK HERE. I also suggest you take a look at Dan’s tips for taking winning photos towards the bottom of each giveaway. Please comment below if you have any good insight or tips for this giveaway.

#2 MensStylePro.com Giveaways
MensStylePro.com is another great menswear blog that was founded by Sabir M. Peele out of North Philadelphia. Similar to Dan of TSBMen, Sabir was also voted as one of the “5 Best Dressed Real Men in America” by Esquire Magazine. That being said, Sabir is passionate about style and dressing well. While his blog gives great tips on style, grooming, and lifestyle, Sabir also keeps an eye out for great menswear giveaways (in addition to featuring his own). Each month you will find a handful of different giveaways ranging from a BespokePost sponsored Baume & Mercier watch to a $3,000 wardrobe sponsored by Bonobos. Since each giveaway is different, so are the rules to enter. Click HERE to see the latest featured giveaways.

#3 BlackLapel’s #SuitCity Giveaway
BlackLapel is an NYC based menswear retailer that focus mainly on high quality, made to measure suits, dress shirts, and menswear accessories. While their pieces are very well priced, the folks at BlackLapel actually give you a chance to get some of their pieces for FREE via their #suitcity giveaway. All you got to do is dress up in suit or blazer, take a picture, and upload it on Instagram or Twitter with the hashtags #suitcity as well as #blacklapel. What I like about this giveaways is the fact that: 1) It is weekly, meaning you got lots of chances, and don’t need to wait a month to find out who the winner is; and 2) they often feature other brands such as recently featured pair of Allen Edmonds shoes. To joint this giveaway, CLICK HERE

#4 The #bowsnties $50 Instagram Giveaway
Very similar to BlackLapel’s #suitcity giveaway is the Instagram giveaway by online neckwear retailer Bows-N-Ties.com. This means you can in fact enter both giveaways simultaneously. To enter this giveaway, all you got to do is take a picture of yourself wearing a tie and upload it on Instagram with the hashtag #bowsnties. What I like about this giveaway is: 1) it is super easy to enter, 2) a new winner is announced each week giving me lots of chances to win, 3) the prize is for a $50 gift card to Bows-N-Ties.com and not for a particular product, allowing me to pick my own neckties or bow ties, and 4) I get a little bit of fame by having my picture appear on on their Website. To enter this giveaway and for more information, please CLICK HERE

#5 AOM’s Weekly Huckberry giveaway
Another great giveaway I recently found, is the weekly Huckberry giveaway which is featured on one of my favorite menswear blogs: TheArtOfManliness.com. Each week you can win any item you see on Huckberry.com – a site that carries cool men’s stuff ranging from a pair of designer denims to a must-have tomahawk axe. Not sure what item to pick? Then the blog’s founders, Brett and Kate McKay, pick out some of their favorite pieces each week for you. To enter is also simple. All you need to do is: 1. join Huckberry, 2. find an item you like, 3. comment on the weekly giveaway with the item you would like to win. To view, and to enter all the latest giveaways, CLICK HERE.

#6 Monthly Giveaway by HeSpokeStyle.com
HeSpokeStyle.com is a menswear blog started by Brian Sacawa out of NY. Brian is an accomplished saxophone player who also happen to have a great eye for style. His blog is definitely worth a visit, and his Lookbook offers some great every day style inspiration as well. I was a little hesitant to feature this site on my “Best Menswear Giveaway” post since his last giveaway ended back in October of last year. But, I have already sent Brian an e-mail – trying to convince him to re-launch his popular giveaways series. I will keep you posted if he does. His giveaways typically feature an entire wardrobe containing items such as a pair of Allen Edmonds and pieces by ASOS. Entering is usually simple, typically requiring you to follow him on Facebook as well as commenting on his post.

Have you entered any of these giveaways, and want to give some input? Did I forget any giveaways that should be on this list? Then let me know by leaving a comment below.

When it comes to men’s neckwear, you’d be surprised how expensive Ugly can get. I’ve scoured the internet for The World’s 10 Ugliest Bow Ties to keep away from when hunting for the perfect piece.

I often get questions on tie colors, patterns, fabrics, and different neckwear styles. Years of tie related questions finally inspired me to create this visual necktie guide which I decided to call “TIE-A-GRAM”. Feel free to share it with your friends!

Other Suggested Posts:
Guide to Different Bow Tie Styles
Color Guide for Neckties

After taking a short break from my menswear insider series, I am opening the discussion again by featuring one of my favorite Tumblr pages – a site that obsesses about men’s ties almost as much as I do. I am talking about TheTieGuy, a photo blog with more than 60,000 active followers (and growing). I had the chance to chat with the creative mind behind this page: Taylor Camp.

Tie-a-Tie.net: Hi Taylor, thanks for joining in today on my Menswear Insider series. You are better known as The Tie Guy through your popular Tumblr page. What inspired this name?

TheTieGuy: Hi Hendrik! Thanks for giving me this opportunity to be interviewed! Once i started dressing better the name behind The Tie Guy simply clicked. The Tie Guy first started on Tumblr and then eventually expanded to both Twitter and more recently, Instagram.

Tie-a-Tie.net:You are 24. Most young men at your age don’t care too much about wearing ties. How long have you been a tie aficionado? What sparked this interest in ties and menswear?

TheTieGuy: I’ve been interested in menswear and neckties for about four years now. I started buying ties for exactly one dollar from local thrift stores around my area. As i continued to shop at these thrift stores, i eventually started buying dressier pieces like overcoats, blazers, dress shoes and sweaters. I remember thinking to myself “Wow, i can use these stores as resources to look great AND spend very little money on clothing!”. Ever since i realized this, I’ve been slowing curating a wardrobe for myself.

Tie-a-Tie.net: Being an expert on ties, who do you think makes the highest quality ties if there was no budget?

TheTieGuy: Any of the extremely expensive Italian clothing companies. Some of these include: Kiton, Brunello Cucinelli, Borrelli, Isaia, Hermes (French), and Bulgari just to name a few.

Tie-a-Tie.net: Assume you had to spend $100 on clothing today. Where would you shop and what would you buy?

TheTieGuy: I would shop at either Gant Rugger or Suit Supply. I would either buy a nice knit or paisley tie or a shawl collared sweater.

Tie-a-Tie.net: What if it wasn’t $100 but $1,000?

TheTieGuy: I would still be shopping at both Gant Rugger and Suit Supply. I would by myself a three piece suit.

Tie-a-Tie.net:You are quite the spokesman of these two companies. What do you like about these two companies/brands? If you could only pick one clothing brand for your entire wardrobe, who would you choose (from any, not just these two)? Why would you choose this brand?

TheTieGuy: I like how classic both these companies are. The products they sell are made with care and aren’t rushed. They sell pieces that will last you a long time which i think more companies need to look into. Quality and not quantity!

Tie-a-Tie.net: TheTieGuy is one of the most popular tumblr pages on menswear with over 60,000 followers. How did you become so popular?

TheTieGuy: I became popular on Tumblr by using it and interacting with my followers every day. It was a series of events that lead me to where i currently am. First, Nick Wooster AKA “Woostgod” recommend my blog on fashiontumblrblogstofollow.com and previously over the summer, Tumblr contacted me and added my blog to a list of suggested street style blogs to follow under the explore section.

Tie-a-Tie.net: Talking about Nick Wooster and street style blogs, who are some of the blogs that you follow?

TheTieGuy: My two favorite street style blogs are Themidwestyle and TheSartorialist

Tie-a-Tie.net: It is clear that you have a strong interest and good eye for the menswear industry. What are your plans for the next couple of years, after you are done with school?

TheTieGuy: After i graduate this upcoming summer, i have plans to live and travel in either Italy or Japan. Through traveling and living in one of these places I’ve always been inspired by, i hope to my expand upon my current love for food, red wine, coffee and most importantly, menswear. After I come back from traveling next January, i hope to live and work in either San Francisco or New York City and pursue my career goals of working as a Social Media Manager for a mens clothing company.

Tie-a-Tie.net: What about your tumblr page? Will you continue to run it? Would there be a way to turn your Tumblr page into a viable business?

TheTieGuy: I will continue to work and focus on my blog every day. I hope to continue to make some money from it and eventually turn it into a full time business.

Tie-a-Tie.net:Thanks for meeting with me today, and best of luck to you!

TheTieGuy: Thanks, Hendrik

Today is Valentine’s Day – a faux-holiday that get’s many of us men stressed out about finding something special for the woman in our life. Certainly, always appreciated are flowers and a sincerely written card, but what might be just as important is how you carry yourself and how you dress. In fact, there is hard scientific evidence that “dress for success” not only applies in your professional life, but in your love life as well. To convince you that dressing well does matter in your love life, we created a fun video titled “Love on Bow-Tie Island”. It shows you that women love men in bow ties.

Need some more hard evidence that dressing well can help your love life? Then, our friend Antonio of Real Men Real Style has written a great article covering this topic in detail. Here is a brief summary of his article:

1. If You Dress Like a Gentleman, You Will Behave Like a Gentleman
   Simply put: Dressing well will improve your self worth. There have been numerous studies showing that how we dress affects how we feel about ourselves. If you dress like a gentleman, you will subconsciously be more polite, more charming, and more debonair.
2. You Will be Perceived as a Gentleman
   Impressions are formed within the first few seconds of meeting someone. There is strong evidence that if you dress nicely, people will treat you better. They will treat you like a gentleman.  Your date will be impressed and flattered.
3. It Increases Your Sex Appeal
   Dressing well will make you look more successful and it will boost your confidence – both traits that the opposite sex is attracted to. Additionally, she will be flattered that you dressed up to take her out on a date.

Here you have it! There is no reason not to dress up outside of being lazy. Don’t let this be you. Do you have any examples how your attire had an affect on others, how you were treated, or how you felt about yourself? Then, please comment below and share!

For today’s interview I am excited to feature men’s style expert Antonio Centeno. I have personally known Antonio for several years now, and his passion for the industry is truly inspiring. He is not only a respected menswear blogger but also the founder of a custom tailoring business. Needless to say, I am excited to feature Antonio on my menswear insider series.

Tie-a-Tie: As a military veteran, you have quite an unusual background for a fashion blogger. What inspired you to get into the menswear industry and start a bespoke clothing business?

Antonio: My introduction to custom clothing came when I got married in Ukraine in 2004. Looking around the clothing shops there I could only find badly fitted off-the-rack suits made from cheap material or very high-end luxury Italian suits, with no middle ground. I wanted something good for my wedding, but didn’t need a $10,000 novelty! Finally, I found a traveling tailor from India who rotated between cities in Russia and Ukraine. He fixed me up with a custom suit and three custom shirts for $1200, and my interest was born.

Fast-forward two years to 2006, when I was in business school at the University of Texas and found myself needing a good interview suit. Remembering my experience in Ukraine, I looked around for a custom tailor and found Jack out of Hong Kong who made three suits ten shirts for me. Jack’s situation impressed me. Here was a guy with a pretty basic education who was making hundreds of thousands of dollars and only working six months out of the year, serving a client base that was mostly located right there in Texas (although he did have some customers further afield in the United States). That got me thinking that there was room in the tailoring industry for someone who could bring a business school education and some creativity to the market. I founded ATailoredSuit.com at a time when there were almost no custom tailoring businesses online, especially for men — looking back on it, I think I remember looking and finding exactly one other business trying it out around the time I was getting started.

So the idea was novel, back then: you could take your own measurements, send them to me, and have a custom-tailored wardrobe delivered to your door within weeks! Realizing that my clients needed to trust my judgment and my understanding of style to make that investment (my suits are not cheap), I started putting some articles up on ATailoredSuit.com outlining the basic principles of menswear.

When I realized how much traffic those were drawing, I decided that there was a market hungry for information as well as for clothing, and that’s how I ended up creating RealMenRealStyle.com and getting into the business of fashion writing and style education. So it’s been a fun journey — but if I had to pin it down, it started with my wedding in Ukraine, and with a pair of traveling tailors making custom suits!

Tie-a-Tie: Since you founded A Tailored Suit we’ve seen lots of new companies emerge in the online bespoke menswear sector. Do you think there is still potential for new companies offering custom menswear online? Or is this now an oversaturated market?

Antonio: I do think it’s more saturated, but I don’t think it’s oversaturated. If you can bring in a unique offering, you can make it. What I don’t see is enough companies leveraging unique advantages to make their companies easy and tempting to use.

My twist on custom tailoring for ATailoredSuit.com, in addition to the online ordering, was to focus on complete wardrobes. The goal was to make it easy for a guy to come to me and to have all his dressing-up needs taken care of in one go, without much thought or effort on his part.

That has a lot of appeal to a section of men that wants to look good but doesn’t want to spend years building a painstakingly selected wardrobe from many sources. If I could convince customers that I was a reliable designer of menswear — which is what the style articles were originally for — I could become a one-stop shop, and that was my unique advantage.

So there’s still room for new companies. But they need to be looking for a specific customer base, and they need to be thinking about how they’re solving a specific problem for that customer base.

Tie-a-Tie: How would you describe your own personal style?

Antonio: Simple, understated, and functional. No need to go into too much more detail there — I stick to the classic look and let it speak for itself. A lot of suits and jackets, of course, but I do wear jeans and more casual sweaters and coats as well.

Tie-a-Tie: After launching ATailoredSuit.com you started a successful menswear blog at RealMenRealStyle.com, which offers style advice. What made you branch out from a business offering physical goods to one offering information?

Antonio: Once the site was up, I found myself receiving tons of phone calls and e-mails from people who wanted to pick my brain for style advice. And as much as I wanted to help people, I didn’t have time to answer them individually.

When I put a few basic style information articles on my website and saw traffic go way up, I realized that there was a lot of appetite for information, even from people who could never afford one of my suits or wardrobe packages. Around that time I was also approached by Brett McKay over at ArtOfManliness.com to be one of his first style writers, and I saw how successful and popular the business of information was for him.

That was when I started giving out a free e-book of my best writing to site visitors. From there I moved to setting up RealMenRealStyle.com, which started out offering nothing but free advice. Since then I’ve been slowly introducing new ways of delivering information, like online seminars and college-level courses in men’s style. And they’ve all proven popular — there’s still a huge demand out there for good fashion advice presented in an easily accessible manner.

Tie-a-Tie: What do you think is the biggest faux pas or style sin that men commit?

Antonio: Not caring. If they don’t understand why it’s relevant, they’re never going to make any other changes. I can tell when a guy doesn’t care. It’s very easy to spot. Most men you see look completely generic. They’re not making any effort to set themselves apart from the crowd.

My target customer isn’t a guy who wants to blend in. I sell my products to men who want to be great and do great things. Those are the men who can use the power of clothing and style to get what they want out of life. If you don’t care about something as basic as your own appearance, it’s like you’ve already given up on life.

Tie-a-Tie: Why do you think dressing well is important?

Antonio: I don’t think it — I know it. There’s tons of science that backs this up. Google “the halo effect” and you’ll see how a general positive opinion based on first impressions will color everything people think about you from that point on.

It doesn’t have to be a rational impression. Think about Steve Jobs and Bill Gates: everyone always loves to praise Steve Jobs as this huge innovator and creative genius. No one ever says that about Bill Gates, or at least no one outside the tech industry. When he’s not vilified, he’s made into a cartoon stereotype of a computer nerd.

None of us actually know these guys. But we have emotional impressions from their products that we associate with them: Apple is sleek and futuristic-looking; Windows is colorful and cartoony. Steve Jobs wore minimalist black; Bill Gates had big glasses and frumpy pants. So those impressions spill over into how people talk about the men and their personalities, even though the visuals don’t have much to do with how the men’s brains worked.

Clothes do the same thing. Strangers look at our clothes and think of them as either “good” or “bad” looking. Then they associate those good or bad qualities with us, and their minds are very resistant to changing that impression. Well-dressed men get the benefit of the doubt where the rest of their character is concerned. Poorly dressed men just get the doubt.A good style lets you say great things about yourself before you even open your mouth. That’s very important.

Tie-a-Tie: What are your favorite clothing stores, either online or brick and mortar?

Antonio: Well, when you manufacture your own clothing, you don’t do as much shopping as other people. I wear a lot of my own suits, jackets, and dress trousers. Shirts I also mostly make for myself, but I do have some from 5th & Lamar, out of Austin, TX. I wear Lee and Levi jeans, and I highly recommend the company Brown, Diem for guys that can afford custom denim.

For shoes I like Paul Evans, and I have an amazing pair of winter boots from ShoePassion.com — a great company for men who can afford some serious footwear.I like the look of the guayabera shirt, which is a Cuban / Mexican style, and I get mine from DaccordInc.com.

Luggage and bags I mostly get from Blue Claw Co. and Saddleback Leather Co., and smaller leather items I like to get from handcrafter Kenton Sorensen. I also like Rogue Wallets for their slim, RFID-shielded wallets. And lately I’ve been keeping an eye on Satya Twena of New York for headgear and classic men’s hats. Finally, it should go without saying that I like Bows ‘N Ties for neckwear!

Tie-a-Tie: What are your plans and goals for RealMenRealStyle.com in 2014?

Antonio: The big thing will be putting out more videos and starting a podcast. There will also be more online courses and other ways of packaging information — I’m all about finding new ways to get information out there, since every man has his own preferred learning style.

Tie-a-Tie: Where do you see yourself ten years from now?

Antonio: I’ll probably be focused more on military issues and working with veterans. I’ve really enjoyed building High Speed Low Drag with John Dumas of Entrepreneur On Fire. HighSpeedLowDrag.org is a website that focuses on the transition from military to civilian life. It’s a great project that we’re going to give more love and care to really get things rolling. That’s an issue I care a lot about, and helping other veterans succeed is definitely something I’m going to be working on over the years to come.

Tie-a-Tie: That’s great! Thanks again for joining me here today, and best of luck to you.

Antonio: Thank you as well!

It has been over a month since I have started my “Menswear Interview Series“. So far, I have interviewed several entrepreneurs and bloggers that are shaking up the menswear industry. Today’s feature is no different. I was able to spend some time with NYC based model, stylist and blogger Marcel Floruss who is literally the face of OneDapperStreet.com.

Over the past year Marcel’s eye for style has gotten quite the attention. He has appeared on dozens of well-known menswear blogs, accumulated tens of thousands of followers on Facebook and Instagram, and is on his way to become the face of a well-known men’s clothing brand. I was able to spend some time with Marcel to ask him questions about his style influencers, what his plans are, and what tips he has for other men wanting to break into the industry.

Tie-a-Tie: Hi Marcel, thanks for joining me today for my Menswear Insider series. Over the past year or so you have made quite the name for yourself – something that is especially surprising since you grew up in Germany and just relatively recently moved to NYC. What brought you to the United States?

Marcel: Frankly, I had this random fascination with New York City, probably since I was about 13, without ever having been there or knowing much about about it. The first thing that physically got me here was dance. I came here one summer with my best friend to take classes, fell in love with the city, and discovered FIT, the school I now go to.


Tie-a-Tie: Do you think you will ever move back to Germany?

Marcel: I’m not planning on it. Even though, as the fashion industry in Berlin grows, I hope to travel there a lot.


Tie-a-Tie: Now, prior to modeling you were a hip hop dancer. What was it that got you into modeling?

Marcel: Modeling actually started with dancing, as I had my first photo shoot for dance. But it was actually in New York that I was just surrounded with fashion and photographers and I always wanted to do it – and then I kind of just made it happen. In the end, it didn’t work out on a longer term and I am perfectly happy just modeling for my blog right now!


Tie-a-Tie: In the past year or so you have made quite the name for yourself. Besides a certain look, what do you think an aspiring male fashion model needs to be successful in this industry?

Marcel: I wouldn’t go as far as calling myself a model, but instead a style blogger. Modeling is a major part of what I do, but to me one of the less important ones. To be successful in blogging, you need a solid sense of fashion, have social media skills, have an understanding of photography and design, and be persistent and eager to get where you want to go.


Tie-a-Tie: Speaking of “Social Media Skill”, you are quite popular with close to 40,000 followers on Instagram and 15,000+ fans on Facebook. How did you became so popular? Of all the social media channels out there, which one is most important to you and why?

Marcel: I don’t know exactly. All I know is that I do all of the above (and some extras) passionately, with heart and soul. Definitely Instagram, since it is the most visual. The big draw-back is that you don’t have active links though, which makes it hard to drive traffic to the actual blog…


Tie-a-Tie: Tell me about your own personal style? What inspires you?

Marcel: Nothing in particular comes to mind but everything all around me every day. In terms of my own wardrobe, I get most of my inspirations from the streets of New York, either directly or through street style and blogger’s Instagram accounts. That’s probably why my style is very versatile and changes a lot. Inspiration just comes from many directions. That’s also what inspired the name of my blog, combining both “Dapper” & “Street-Style”.


Tie-a-Tie: Featuring street-style goes back quite some time now with the works of Bill Cunningham for the NY Times, or the more recent Scott Schuman – aka the Sartorialist. Which street-style blogger/photographer do you follow? Are there any newer, lesser known ones which you think might become the next Schuman?

Marcel: Two blogs I really like in terms of street style photography are Le-21eme.com by Adam Katz Sinding, and Jak & Jil by Tommy Ton. I think their eye for art, and talent for photography will go far!


Tie-a-Tie: If you have $100 to be spend on a certain clothing store, which one would you walk into? What do you think you would buy?

Marcel: Right now: a sneaker shop, and I’d spend it on a pair if dope new running shoes that you can also rock casually once the weather gets less … Arctic.


Tie-a-Tie: What about $1,000? Different store? Different pieces?

Marcel: Definitely a different scenario. I am a shoe geek though. So probably some Ann Demeulemeesters found on Mr. Porter. Or Common Projects. Or a J. Lindeberg suit. Anything upscale. Been yearning to climb up that ladder.


Tie-a-Tie: Lastly, a question I commonly ask, where do you see yourself 10 years from now?

Marcel: Ha! Hmmm, 10 years from now I see myself high up in a global fashion corporation, with my blog running on the side. I hope I’ll be on the verge of going my own way around that time – meaning starting another company, aside from my blog.


Tie-a-Tie: That is a great goal. You certainly don’t lack ambition. Thanks again for joining me here today, and best of luck to you!

Marcel: Thanks for having me!

Since I started my Menswear Insider series, I have enjoyed interviewing several entrepreneurs that have launched either a menswear clothing brand, or online retailer. While it is fun, interesting, and inspiring to hear their stories, I am equally excited to branch out a little with today’s interview feature. Today I am interviewing one of the most notorious thrifter in the country, Guiseppe Timore, founder of An Affordable Wardrobe. For the past several years he has shared his passion for finding bargain deals on elegant, high-end clothing pieces via his blog, and later on also opened a brick-and-mortar thrift shop in Massachusets.

Tie-a-Tie: Hi Giuseppe, thanks for joining me on my Menswear Insider column. You have a very Italian name. Tell me about your heritage?

Giuseppe: I come from a 100% Italian family. I used to joke with my friends about being a “pure bred”. Both my mother’s parents and my father’s father were born there. Growing, we lived with my mother’s parents, and the neighborhood was full of native Italians. We all attended Catholic schools and went to church, and heard as much Italian spoken as we did English. I think my mother, though born here, may have spoken Italian before she spoke English.

Tie-a-Tie: Now, Italians are often stereotyped as being stylish and well dressed. You being a well dressed man of Italian decent, do you think that being stylish is nature or nurture?

Giuseppe: I think that having style is somewhat inherent in one’s personality, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to learn. Style is an ever evolving thing, and the most truly stylish among us never stop learning and changing. I don’t think being Italian necessarily guarantees that one is stylish, though I suppose it can’t does’t hurt.

Tie-a-Tie: Have you always cared about dressing well? What inspired you to start your An Affordable Wardrobe?

Giuseppe: I guess I have. From a very young age, I was always interested in “dressing up”. I liked to wear jacket and tie, and would relish any excuse to do so. The older I got, the less I cared what people thought of it.

I started an Affordable Wardrobe to fill what I saw as a gap at the time in menswear writing and commentary. Being interested in clothing, I had always read the magazines, and later the blogs. While many of them served as a source of ideas and inspiration, none of them showed anything but very expensive stuff at full price, stuff that was way out of my reach.

Over the years, I had developed quite a knack for sourcing those very same things on nearly no money. I knew it could be done, and I wanted to be a voice for all the elegant, stylish men who just might not have that much money.

Tie-a-Tie: You are infamous for being a savvy thrift shop buyer. Tell me about your most memorable thrift shop experience.

Giuseppe: I get that question a lot, but it’s not an easy one to answer. One of the things about thrift shopping is that you come across so many great things that picking a “favorite” can be impossible. There’s always something new, and the element of surprise keeps it fresh. I once found a Barbour jacket new with tags for $10. Just recently I picked up a bespoke Chesterfield coat made in Boston in 1935. Even as we speak, I’m wearing a handmade flannel suit from the Andover Shop and an Italian tie from Barney’s New York. All great finds, but who knows what I might run into tomorrow?

Tie-a-Tie: How do you find these kind of pieces, and what tips do you have for our readers interested in finding great deals on designer menswear items?

Giuseppe: Firstly, you really have to know what the good stuff is. Educate yourself about quality, fabric and construction. Knowing good labels helps, but learning to recognize quality itself, regardless of brand, is infinitely more helpful It like the proverb giving a man a fish or teaching him to fish.

Secondly, be persistent, and don’t get discouraged when you strike out. Truthfully, when you shop this way, constantly hunting for bargains or digging in thrift shops, you’re ten times more likely to walk away empty handed as you are to “score”. You can’t let it discourage you, you just have to keep coming back.

Tie-a-Tie: Now, if there was no budget, what designer/brand do you value most and why?

Giuseppe: My own personal style derives mostly from a traditional East Coast look, so I like Brooks Brothers and J. Press quite a lot. Polo is a favorite too. But if I could only wear one “brand” and had unlimited money, I would get everything at the Andover Shop in Harvard Square. Not only is the place steeped in “cool” history as a result of its endless list of storied customers, but it’s distinctive in just the right way. Mostly, they do East Coast traditional, with its attendant “go to hell” pants and ribbon belts. But there is an extra level of quality and taste to everything there. Fabrics are gorgeous, and the house style combines just the right British details into the mix in a way that no other shop or “brand” does. It’s perfect.

Tie-a-Tie: Speaking of “no budget”, what is your most expensive clothing piece that you didn’t buy at a thrift shop? Was it worth the price?

Giuseppe: I think the Brabour jacket I have now might be the most expensive single piece of clothing I ever bought new, but I even got that o deep sale at an outlet store for $150. It was worth it, though. I wear that jacket to death, sometimes to shovel snow, and sometimes over coat and tie.

Tie-a-Tie: You have since opened your own thrift store. What do you like more, buying or selling menswear pieces?

Giuseppe: The hunt can be the most fun part of all this once you get into it, and obviously selling things and making money is nice too. But the best part about doing this kind of work is how happy you can make people by helping them get something top quality that they never thought they would be able to own. It’s really gratifying.

Tie-a-Tie: As someone owning your own men’s clothing business, what advice would you give someone interested in opening a brick and mortar store in the menswear industry?

Giuseppe: You have to be willing to work crazy hours for terrible pay, but I guess that’s true for any dedicated small business owner these days. If you don’t love what you’re doing, it’s not going to work, simple as that.

Tie-a-Tie: What are your plans and goals for your business in 2014?

Giuseppe: To stay in business! (joking, kind of…). Seriously, though, I would love to get to the point with my own business where I could quit the other job I have and do this full time.

Tie-a-Tie: The word about your business is certainly spreading… Now, where do you see yourself 10 years from now?

Giuseppe: In a thrift shop, pulling a bespoke suit out of a dirty bin from under a heap of old sweatpants and tee shirts.

Tie-a-Tie: Great answer. You certainly love what you do and turned your passion into your every day job. Thanks for meeting with me today.

Giuseppe: Thanks you as well.

Interviewed by tie aficionado and Tie-a-Tie founder Hendrik.

This week’s menswear insider interview features yet another necktie company, one that has created quite the excitement amoung necktie aficionados and menswear enterpreneurs over the past year. I am referring to a necktie subscription service called Tie Society, a Washington DC based start up that has become known as the “Netflix of Ties”. Today I am interviewing Tie Society’s co-founder Jake Kuczeruk:

Tie-a-Tie: Hi Jake, thank for meeting with me today. You started Tie Society together with Zachary Gittens. Chances are that many of our readers already know about your business, but for those who are not familiar with it yet, please explain to them in one sentence what you guys do.

Jake: Hey Hendrik, happy to be here! Needless to say, I’m a big fan of what you’ve been doing with the Menswear Insider series and am honored to be featured on behalf of Tie Society. Tie Society is a monthly subscription service, similar to Netflix, that gives guys the opportunity to rent ties and other menswear accessories from our growing collection. Bow ties, cufflinks, pocket squares, tie bars- there has never been an easier and more affordable way to do accessories.

Tie-a-Tie: As a tie aficionado myself, I love the idea. What inspired this?

Jake: Alcohol. Just kidding- though we did actually conceive the original concept for Tie Society while at bar.

In the early days, we were just a couple of recent college graduates looking to dress to impress around the office and in our everyday lives. Ties, as you certainly know, can get to be very expensive. When you’re primarily eating ramen for most of your meals, you can’t really afford to drop $60 on a new Brooks Brothers tie every few weeks. Then, on one fateful Sunday afternoon (over beers and football), inspiration hit. We could trade our ties amongst each other to keep our collections fresh. Zac Gittens, Tie Society Co-Founder and CEO, would bring his J.Crew ties to the bar and trade for another friend’s Original Penguin. As more and more began to steadily take notice of what we were doing, we decided to take our service online to address the demand.

Tie-a-Tie: Talking to you makes it quite clear that you love men’s neckwear. Have you always been a tie aficionado or did this evolve through the launch of Tie Society?

Jake: Yes, I’ve spoken with my mother about this and she distinctly remembers me emerging from the womb sporting a double windsor. Ties are an essential part of life. Even when I was first getting into menswear, it was clear that the tie is really the main thing people tend to notice when you’re well dressed. You can wear the same two suits everyday of the week- it’s the tie that gets all the compliments.

Tie-a-Tie: What is your role with the company and what is Zach’s?

Jake: I am our CMO and Co-Founder. I primarily handle our marketing efforts, fundraising and investment outreach, style advice, intern coordination, social, events, press, B2B partnerships, and international expansion (we’ve now taken Tie Society to Japan).

Zac, our CEO and Co-Founder, works from our Washington DC base of operations and is responsible for the branding and logistics behind our service. All elements of the process- from shipping, packaging, cleaning, and inventory acquisition, are overseen by Zac. In addition to this, we work closely together on strategic planning, fundraising, and customer service.

Tie-a-Tie: If you two ever disagree on a certain business aspect. How do you come to an agreement? Are there any tips you could give to other aspiring entrepreneur teams regarding internal communication between the founders?

Jake: Since Zac and I are located on opposite sides of the country, keeping a steady flow of communication flowing has been essential to our success. Since we are both well keyed-in on what the other is doing, disagreement tends to be rare. If ever we do share opposing viewpoints, we take the classic strategy and both present a list of pros and cons to support our case. If that doesn’t work, I’ll play him for it on Call of Duty.

Tie-a-Tie: Sounds like you guys are working well together. That is great to hear. You guys have received lots of press including features on NPR, USA Today, Thrillist.com and more. Besides having an interesting business idea, what do you contribute to your publicity success? What advise would you give young entrepreneurs in the menswear industry, that are looking to spread the word about their idea?

Jake: Hard work from each and every member of our team and the efforts of a few select PR specialists that we’ve worked with in the past (shoutout to Suzie Chase of Orca PR).

We’ve become experts at getting our name out there because that’s what it takes to survive in the competitive E-Commerce space. We’re the guys at each event walking around and connecting with everyone else in the room. A lot of our wins have come in through friendships we’ve made with others in the industry. For instance, I often discuss style and new music recommendations with Adam Lehman, a Chicago-based blogger for his site Wide Eyes, Tight Wallets. Our friendship began before he started his blog, and as he’s continued to expand, he was able to help us out by getting our Black Friday offer mentioned on the front page of the Details Network this season.

Tie-a-Tie: What has your biggest success been to date?

Jake: While we have seen our fair share of wins (acceptance into our 500 Startups batch, the Japanese expansion, and achieving profitability), the biggest success for Tie Society has been the reward of running a business that we’re proud of. Zac and I both wake up thankful each morning that we’re able to do something that we truly love.

Tie-a-Tie: How about the biggest failure or downfall, and what did you learn from it?

Jake: Hmm, that would certainly be the service issues we experienced this last Spring when our postal carrier neglected to inform us that our PO Box was full and started storing our member’s return orders in a locked back room. When we repeatedly attempted to track down these packages, no one at the shipping office was able to locate them. The manager who had stored them back there left for a new job, and didn’t tell his replacement about the hundreds of ties he had locked in the back. Understandably so, we witnessed a high level of frustration amongst our members until we were able to fully resolve the issue. Fortunately, this helped us to practice and improve our customer service abilities. We became better at communicating with our members and those who we do business with.

Tie-a-Tie: What plans do you have for Tie Society in 2014?

Jake: Total world domination. In the mean time, 2014 will bring a dedicated store for the direct sale of items that aren’t as well suited for the rental model. This will include vintage ties and items we maintain limited quantities of, along with venturing into new territory by offering high-end leather goods. You can also expect a crop of around 100-150 new ties to arrive on Tie Society within the next month, with regular updates to our collection added each Friday. We’ve stepped our game up this year.

Tie-a-Tie: Last but not least, where do you see Tie Society in 10 years from now?

Jake: In ten years, I see a Tie Society operating in every country that has a demand for it. The online rental model just makes more sense financially and in terms of convenience to the user. Hopefully, we will have made first contact by then and I will have the opportunity to bring our service to Martian civilizations…assuming they have necks.

Tie-a-Tie: Who knows, maybe they even have two, three, or a dozen necks. Thanks for joining me here today.

Jake: Thanks for having me.

Other Recent “Menswear Insider Interviews:
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