
When Complex asked us to put together a list of the top fifty menswear brands, we were hesitant at first. After all, Put This On is about practical advice and guidelines, not brands. And what the heck is "menswear," anyway? We thought about turning the assignment down.
Then, of course, we changed our minds.
After all, what's more fun than arbitrary ranking? And what a wonderful chance to spend some time with the history of menswear! So we took the gig.
We had to narrow our terms a bit. We decided that for our purposes, "menswear" meant tailored clothing and the accoutrements thereof. So no Levis and no aloha shirts. Magnum PI be damned. We'd include a few token shoemakers, but mostly focus on the clothes.
Once we got there, we had to address the issue of "classic" versus "designer" mens clothes. We decided to split the difference. Our focus would be classic (as it is at Put This On), but we'd include designers who'd influenced the broader movement of style. And we'd consider the past alongside the present, though perhaps with a little bit of bias towards the latter.
Here's our result. Fifty of the greatest menswear brands of all time—ranked on their significance, influence, beauty and quality. With a healthy dollop of the arbitrary. Presenting: The 50 Greatest Menswear Brands of All Time.
Nudie Cohn

Loro Piana

Abercrombie & Fitch

Knize

Sulka (Amos Sulka & Co.)

Thom Browne

Fruit of the Loom

Ascot Chang

Salvatore Ferragamo

Ermenegildo Zegna

Kiton

Florsheim

Cordings

Bill Blass

Hugo Boss

Tom Ford

J. Press

Alden

Gucci

Mackintosh

Aquascutum

Burberry

Borsalino

Versace

Lacoste

Barbour

Comme des Garçons

Issey Miyake

Yohji Yamamoto

Cluett, Peabody, & Co.

G.H. Bass & Co.

Tommy Nutter

Ozwald Boateng / Richard James

The Royal Navy / The US Navy

Harris Tweed

Turnbull & Asser

Huntsman

Chester Barrie

Rubinacci

Henry Poole

Anderson & Sheppard

Hedi Slimane for Dior Homme

Helmut Lang / Jil Sander / Prada

Calvin Klein

Brioni

Gieves & Hawkes

Pierre Cardin

Armani

Brooks Brothers

Ralph Lauren
