INTERVIEW: Dan Trepanier on the future of men’s fashion

Dan Trepanier is a man who’s serious about fashion and wholly invested in menswear and making style accessible to the masses. Dan started his website, Articles of Style, as a personal style blog – documenting his own outfits and sartorial wisdom. Now, years later, it has transformed into a fully fledged business. Operating with a team of 5 others with the aim of inspiring their readers through bespoke fashion stories, by solving everyday style conundrums and above all, offering a full-service online tailor shop. Articles of Style comes together with the rare combination of editorial and commerce and it’s all done with so much passion and creativity that you can’t help but want to tap into it. We met the man behind it all to find out how he’s done it, what drives him and who he looks to for inspiration.

When did your love for fashion blossom?

When I moved from my family’s farm in Southern Ontario Canada to New York City. I was immediately blown away by the day-to-day fashion of the people in the streets, and more importantly, the psychological impact that this has on the perception of those people.

What inspired you to start you blog?

My college basketball teammates, mainly. They represented the burgeoning fashion-conscious millennial male who was just starting to care about investing in proper clothing for life as a adult. I was the go-to “style guy” on the basketball team and the blog was an extension of the informal ‘consultations’ that I was doing for my teammates.

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What inspires you to keep it going?

The team and I have a vision of something greater for menswear online. The future of Articles of Style is much more than a menswear blog, it’s a full-service online tailor shop and interactive styling platform. What drives us is the ideals of “slow fashion” and investment clothing – as opposed to “fast fashion” which we believe is ruining our planet.

How do you set yourself out from the crowd in the ever-competitive world of blogging and social media?

By making our content tangible and experiential. I think people are getting tired of blogs and social that pitch themselves as ‘inspiration’. For an influencer to become a successful brand, they have to offer something real – real value to their readers and followers. For us, that natural extension means becoming their personal clothiers – complete with one-on-one custom fittings, personal styling advice, and long-term wardrobe planning.

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How has social media helped your career as a blogger?

Social media is a marketing channel, an opportunity for a brand to interact with its fans and hopefully share a relatable story and voice. Honestly I think we’ve been under-utilising social media for the past few years – focusing most of our attention on the quality of our editorial work, garments and customer service. I’m always wary of brands spending too much time and effort to look like they are doing something innovative…

What is the most interesting thing you’ve ever done through your work as a blogger?

We’ve met some incredible people and some unbelievable characters through our ‘Profiles’ over the years. One guy that stands out is Jim Goldstein; the man, the myth, the legend. The site has given us access to people, parties and opportunities that we never could have had otherwise.

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Talk us through Articles of Style. Did that come off the back of your blog?

Articles of Style Tailoring, our new online custom tailor shop, is the natural progression and evolution of our brand. I started the blog very simply; at first it was just written style tips. Our readers wanted visuals, so we introduced photography to showcase what I was writing about. Then our readers wanted to purchase the looks we were shooting, so now we’re giving them the opportunity to participate and see us as their personal clothier, not just their personal stylist. We believe that men are looking for a full-service experience that allows them to purchase conveniently, but without sacrificing quality, service or expertise.

Who inspires you the most?

My team. Our Art Director Alex Crawford, our Director of Operations Will Howe, and our Director of Client Services Karyn Bailey (who is also my beautiful fiancé). I couldn’t have done any of this without their support, talents, and faith. We share the same goal; to be the next great American menswear brand.

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