ShortList asked seven influential high-street retailers to exclusively preview their new season trends
Military precision
William Woodhams, French Connection marketing director: “Along with camouflage patterns, we will also be offering a mix of army greens and uniform detailing, giving a gentle nod to the big trend.”
Camouflage parka £175, khaki T-shirt £35, canvas trousers £75 and black brogue boots all by FRENCH CONNECTION;
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Holloway Road
Andrew Grant, River Island head of menswear design: “We mined the archives, clashing vintage workwear, sportswear classics and traditional British heritage and drenching it in a mixture of texture, print and pattern. The result is a collection that’s durable and desirable.”
Coat £155 and polo shirt £35 both by RIVER ISLAND HOLLOWAY ROAD; riverisland.com
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Refining and reinventing
Martin Andersson, head of Cos menswear design: “For autumn/winter 2012 we paid a lot of attention to the surface of our fabrics, using rustic and tactile options to create a clean silhouette with minimal detailing.”
Green knit £79, polo-neck £69 and trousers £79 all by COS; cosstores.com
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Modern heritage
Tony O’Connor, Marks & Spencer’s head of design, menswear: “The unstructured blazer in soft jersey gives a new twist on this classic British look.”
Blazer £39.50 and shirt £25 both by MARKS & SPENCER LIMITED COLLECTION; marksandspencer.com
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English eccentric
Jonathan Lovett, Burton head of design: “Our heritage smart/casual collection introduces traditional-inspired blazers cut in a modern way that look great with dark-wash jeans, a patterned crew neck jumper and brogues.” Jacket £70, Fair-Isle knit £35, shirt £20 and jeans £25 all by BURTON; burton.co.uk
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Tinker
Gordon Richardson, Topman design director: “This season’s key trends favour straightforward clothes that have been modernised through an injection of colour, print and texture.”
Pea coat £95, shirt £36 and trousers £50 all by TOPMAN LTD. Brogue boots £65 by TOPMAN; topman.com
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Contrast colour block
Jonathan Jeeps, Uniqlo senior menswear merchandise planner, Europe: “This nods toward a utilitarian focus this season. Using colours in complimentary shades highlights both colours, moving the trend forward from previous seasons’ monotone austerity.”
Shirt £39.90 by UNIQLO UNDERCOVER, chinos £34.90 by UNIQLO; uniqlo.com. Shoes: model’s own
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