The New Rules of Menswear Influencing for 2026

“The [menswear influencer] space has undergone a real transformation. It’s broader, more self-assured and far more community-driven,” says Thomas Walters, chief innovation officer at London-based digital marketing agency Billion Dollar Boy. “Where womenswear thrives on reinvention, expression and rapid trend rotation, menswear centers more on confidence-building. Guys are no longer looking to creators solely for aspiration; they want guidance and cultural context.”

As men increasingly seek advice, attention is shifting from traditional influencers to people whose careers lend them authority. Stylists, in particular, are primed to capitalize on the blurred lines of what it means to be a creator in 2026, says Tal Chesed, director of management agency The Wall Group, which signed Troye Sivan’s stylist Marc Forné in September 2025. “The days of paying a stylist to post a new bag or pant are long gone,” he says. “Now, a stylist can curate a story with a brand, for example, working on-set to generate content for how to style the piece, posting that content, and showing it in their daily life or even on their clients.”

The expansion of the playing field has also brought much more opportunity for non-traditional collaborations, from NFL players dressing up for tunnel walks to menswear podcasters posing in campaigns or partnering on capsule collections. “There’s space for newness to really emerge. Where it was the traditional blogger before, we are now seeing new influential voices,” says Sofia Corti Maderna, senior digital director at communications agency KCD.

KCD recently worked on a linen suiting campaign for menswear brand Bonobos that featured Joe Santagato and Frank Alvarez, hosts of The Basement Yard podcast. This translates to hard sales: the campaign drove the most new customers the brand had seen to date, up 43% on the same month a year prior.

The reason it worked, says Maderna, is because it was timely. “I want to emphasize that the bread and butter of this is timing. It’s not just any [talent], it’s who’s trending right now, and why? What is the cultural conversation? You want to strike while the iron is hot,” she says.

Death of the OOTD

While the menswear influencers of yesteryear could coast along by just being handsome and getting dressed, today’s menswear consumers have much deeper expectations. Brands, too, now expect visual storytelling, saveable content and a clear path to purchase, all delivered with charm and charisma. “OOTDs and dressing well aren’t enough anymore, [menswear] creators need to integrate fashion into a broader narrative. Creators need a recognizable voice, a community and a clear cultural lane,” says Billion Dollar Boy’s Walters, adding that longer-form reviews and behind-the-scenes content drive trust in a way short-form can’t compete with.