Rebranding is just part of the roar of the revved-up engine that is Simkhai. Not only has the company opened four stores this year, but it’s also debuting menswear for resort 2024. Jonathan Simkhai has “lifestyle” on his mind, a total experience that speaks to all customers across categories. When people “love a brand,” he said on a walk-through, “they want to learn so much more. ‘What else can you show me?’ [When] men come into the store with their girlfriends or wives [and we say] we’re doing men’s—you should see their faces. They’re like, ‘Where is it? When is it?’ because they also want to be a part of the brand.”
Simkhai knows that feeling well, having longed to wear designs that bear his name. (He chose an S-logo denim set for our meeting.) “I’ve spent the last 13 years developing the women’s, designing selflessly and just making clothes for women and people that I love,” said the designer. “This collection was really easy to design because I thought if I wouldn’t wear it, I wouldn’t put it in the collection.”
Curiously, the lineup felt more broad than personal, likely because Simkhai was trying to please a wide customer base by carving out a path that’s not extreme. “I really feel there’s a void in the market for menswear that focuses on classics but still feels sexy and polished and sophisticated,” he noted. One way he filled that void was with printed viscose pajama-y/track sets, which felt very Cali, hanging close to preppier takes on shirting. There were sports fabrics too, but not a sort of critical mass that announced a Simkhai look.
On the other hand, the designer’s knit T-shirt was a smart iteration of a wardrobe essential, and maybe that’s how men will shop the collection, at least to start with. Certainly that makes sense in a retail setting. Also of interest was the blending of elements from Simkhai women’s (see the tailored green jacket with inverted darts and, one of his specialties, the trench coats). This is in keeping with what we saw during the fall 2023 menswear season. With a new round of shows coming up, we’ll soon see if that kind of exchange continues to trend.
