Blog: A competitor for grey - finally

How wonderful! What joy! Finally, after the men's catwalks in Milan and Paris, it is with great happiness I can report that grey has a serious contender in the world of menswear.

At almost every show with a commercial angle an inky, often metallic, blue was used on outerwear, knits and tailoring.

Like the grey shades that have been the centre of menswear gravity over the last four seasons this colour works perfectly on both casual and formalwear. This blue lends itself to the technical, tonic and chintzed shines just as easily as it does to the matt textures of knits and wool. It looks fresh without being unruly outrageous and is weight enough to look masculine.

It is not the only trend to emerge. Other commercial elements to pop up are the down filled jackets, reinterpreted in slim silhouettes; longer-line coats swinging to the knee; a host of berry shades; plenty of leather and a healthy dose of highland checks and plaids. Add in the return of the fine gauge knit and you have a great recipe full of commercial ingredients.

So why is it that I still think grey will be the key trend for yet another season?

What about you – have you followed the catwalks? Do you think any of these play-safe trends will have quite the impact that grey has had on menswear?