Good to see things are slowly getting back to normal...

The Survey of Affluence and Wealth, conducted by American Express Publishing and Harrison Group, has found that spending on luxuries is set to rise by about eight percent this year, reaching $359 billion in 2011.   The survey did not include travel and vehicles, and polled only the wealthiest ten percent of American families; those who enjoy a discretionary income of six figures or more.  Those ten percent account for about fifty percent of all consumer spending in the country.  

For more details, head over to Pursuitist.

Meet Nick Wooster: The most awesome man in fashion.

Racked has a great interview with Nick Wooster, men's fashion director for Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman, that you can check out after the jump.  Or, if you prefer, you could always go straight to the source...but I have pictures. 

Great article by the Wall Street Journal on the death of "dressing up".

In a recent article, Steve Garbarino over at the Wall Street Journal laments the fact that "the dress codes abided and enforced at those ceremonies of formality and occasion, at everywhere from fine-dining restaurants to evening soirées, have become mostly unspoken, unwritten or loosened like so many Hermès ties."  It's a great piece, and I think a very sad and accurate statement on the little something that is lost when casual Friday creeps into our social lives.  Garbarino ends on a hopeful note, although I do not see the silver lining he does.  There have always been men who dress a little 'better' than those around them; it is the declining quality of those around them (us?) who we need to worry about, and the establishments that are forced, through economic reality, to normalize this decline.  Check it out here.

Arrogant Male Photograph of the Day: April 15, 2011 - Laren Bacall: the shot that changed her life

The cover that got her noticed by the wife of Howard Hawkes, who then cast her in To Have and Have Not, the film that made her famous (and, of course, introduced her to Bogart).

Arrogant Male Quote of the Day - April 15, 2011

"More men are killed by overwork than the importance of the world justifies."

~ Rudyard Kipling

Brioni, Ferragamo, and Zegna ranked as top 3 luxury brands for men.

The 2011 Luxury Brand Status Index (LBSI), conducted by the Luxury Institute, surveyed men in the U.S. who earn over $150,000 a year on their opinions regarding dozens of high-end fashion and shoe designers.  The average household net worth of those surveyed was $2.4 million.

The LBSI is the 'only unbiased measure of the reputation of leading brands provided by direct insights from wealthy U.S. consumers.'

"Dolce Vita Style": Photos from the Canali S/S 2011 campaign

 

Shit Worth Checking Out: Kid Cudi doc "The Journey of Mr. Rager".

I'm a big Kid Cudi fan.  While I was slightly disappointed by the album itself, this documentary on the making of Kid Cudi's Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager is well worth twenty minutes of your time, if not for the content, then for the highly stylized direction and editing.

"Such a pleasure to see such a unique beauty": Haunting debut trailer for Sleeping Beauty

Another film set to debut at this year's Cannes Film Festival is Julia Leigh's Sleeping Beauty, starring Emily Browning as a high-end prostitute.  This looks very dark, and very intriguing. The trailer has an almost Kubrick-esque vibe to it.

I've been waiting for this one for awhile, and it doesn't disappoint.  Check it out!

Combining Fashion and Finance: Salvatore Ferragamo planning IPO by end of 2011

Salvatore Ferragamo, the Italian luxury fashion group that is best known for its beautiful shoes and other high-end leather goods, announced yesterday that they are planning an IPO by the end of this year, and possibly as early as July.  The company, based in Florence, has already lined up JP Morgan and Mediobanca as joint lead-managers and global coordinators.  

At least thirty percent of the total offering would be issued in the United States and Japan.  Investors will likely be eager to get their hands on a piece of Ferragamo, which enjoyed a 26% earnings increase last year, giving the company 786 million euros in revenue and 61 million euros in net profit (113 million euros EBITDA).  The value of the company is estimated at between 1 billion and 1.7 billion euros. 

source: Reuters