If you consider yourself a pretty knowledgeable person of the fashion world, then you know that Mercedes-Benz ended its partnership with New York Fashion Week this past year. So far, the event organizers haven’t been able to find a new automobile sponsorship for the shows that are held annually in September. And with this year’s shows no longer being held at Lincoln Center, either, the future of NYFW is up in the air.

Because of this news, it was quite surprising when the debut of New York Fashion Week: Men’s was announced to be held next month. Cadillac marked its territory as one of the head sponsors. So while regular fashion week is still trying to figure everything out, men’s fashion week is falling into place.

For a long time, Milan and Paris were the only two global fashion centers to hold separate fashion weeks for men and women. Then, in 2012, London launched London Collections: Men, a menswear-only showcase that has become quite successful. London’s move to create a week just for men left NYC as the only one of the four powerhouse fashion capitals — New York City, Paris, Milan and London — without a men’s week of its own.

So now, it’s time to play a little game of catch-up. And quick.

NYFW: Men’s is exactly what it sounds like — a week of fashion devoted solely to menswear design. To the average person, it may not seem like a big deal. But New York having its own men’s fashion week is huge news. Plus, watching male models walk around in perfectly tailored clothes? Sign me up.

The menswear industry has been growing in strength over the past several years, with a 4.5 percent growth in 2014, according to Euromonitor International. More stores are increasing the amount of menswear they carry, and brands are opening secondary menswear stores to complement their female counterparts.

With men becoming more interested in what they’re putting on, it’s important to have a wide variety of designers to select from. And since men will now have their own week of fashion, it will truly allow menswear designers to shine.

Men’s and women’s fashion markets have cycles whose timing doesn’t often align, with women’s buying season generally falling a month or two after men’s.

“So men’s fashion shows that happen during women’s fashion week are irrelevant in that the designer has already sold that collection to whoever buys it,” Steven Kolb, CEO of the Council of Fashion Designers of America said in an interview with complex.com. “The value of showing during women’s is just really a PR and marketing thing. So by creating a standalone men’s fashion week in July, it aligns with that [men’s] market.”

Having their own fashion week will leave all of the focus on what the week is really all about: men’s fashion. This means that some key U.S. menswear designers who have previously had shows in Europe (John Varvatos, just as an example) will be returning to their roots, confirming the idea that New York is a dynamic global men’s fashion center. It also means that domestic labels that either can’t afford or choose not to leave the States for fashion weeks will get more well-deserved attention.

While men’s fashion won’t be overshadowing women’s fashion anytime soon, NYFW: Men’s is clearly a step in the right direction. American men’s fashion is stepping into the spotlight and getting the credit that it truly deserves.

Alexis McDonell is a junior magazine journalism major. Her column appears weekly in Pulp. You can email her at admcdone@syr.edu or reach her on Twitter @AlexisMickD.

Published on June 9, 2015 at 8:00 pm