There was a time when relatively little beyond the basic tenets of hygiene was expected of men. The occasional shave and an odd splash of something that smelled like whisky and floor cleaner was considered extravagant in the late Seventies. The male icons of yesteryear, unenlightened to the ways of moisturiser let alone manscaping, were generally brutish, unapologetically unkempt and rugged.
And then, as if from nowhere, a new generation of men began to exfoliate en masse, creating an industry that was last estimated to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
It would appear there’s more to men’s grooming than the frivolity of vanity. The journey from carbolic soap to cosmetic serums — from Neanderthal to narcissist — has been a long one, influenced by fashion, economics, sociology and the malleability of modern masculinity.
Contrary to popular belief, it was not the ‘metrosexual’ boom that marked a turning point. Fifteen years ago, when journalist Mark Simpson penned that term in The Independent, he was referring to a minority of high-networth City boys. The label was then misappropriated and became a marketing device to flog moisturiser to the masses. The only problem was that few men actually knew what moisturiser was. In 1994, the metrosexual was little more than an urban myth and the fact that men instinctively equated metrosexuality with emasculation made grooming even more of a culturally fraught concept.
The gradual shedding of the cultural taboo surrounding men’s grooming ties in perfectly with an ongoing redefinition of gendered roles in society. For the first time in history, men are being given permission to confront their self-image, expectations, goals, fears and faults in a way that does not undermine their masculinity. And, after all, the motivation to groom is grounded first and foremost in a desire to gain confidence, according to 72 per cent of men.
The increasing efficacy of products is hugely important when you consider that most men only start grooming when hair is lost or goes grey, when that paunch begins to grow or you spot your first wrinkle. Fear and confidence aren’t mutually exclusive states when it comes to understanding why men have begun to preen.
Another driving force behind men’s grooming is the desire to succeed in the workplace. In a recent survey of 1,013 men by L’Oréal, 47 per cent of men claimed their well-managed appearance helped them climb the corporate ladder. Successful men need to give the impression of being young, dynamic and full of energy. And with CEOs getting younger by the year, looking like Rumpole of the Bailey just isn’t acceptable any more.
It’s no surprise that guys would sooner simply pinch their girlfriend’s products or turn to Google to help them find the right items. It stands to reason, then, that the most popular products are ones that can be grabbed from the shelf without the help of a skincare consultant.
There is, of course, the kind of men with a more acquired sense of aesthetics. When Cristiano Ronaldo (arguably the most questionable barometer of nouveau masculinity since David Beckham) appears in ad campaigns expertly waxed, seemingly spray-tanned and sporting an eyebrow arch that would put Joan Crawford to shame, there is a contingent of men who will inevitably emulate him. These high-maintenance men now make up 40 per cent of the customers at Debenhams brow bars, they get their six packs sprayed on by professional tan artists and de-forest their bodies by way of a regular ‘boyzilian’.
More extreme yet is the growing penchant for plastic surgery among men.
How far would men keep going to achive that perfect look...
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