For someone who’s spent the better part of their career bouncing from retail brand to retail brand, the aspirational marketing force of a new clothing store opening in my local shopping mall still exhilarates me. Brings me back to my high school shopping extracurricular. Sartorial curiosity often get the best of me, but my dearest friend scoring a position at the Toronto flagship of Danish fashion brand GANNI genuinely piques curiosity.

At first glance, Copenhagen-based GANNI is heavily women’s ready to wear, leaning towards a youthful neon palette and general sense of upscale whimsy, recalling the playfulness of Copenhagen Fashion Weeks. Feminine, frilly and flouncy, the pieces could suit styles anywhere in between the suburban couture-hungry to the sensible, fashionable cosplayer. Imagine COS and Moschino jumping into a blender, with Kate Spade accessories in tow. I consider myself a more fashion-forward person, or at least more fashion-educated, than the typical, but many of these GANNI garments sit way out of my personal fashion philosophy (cozy boy, but make it luxe).

My personal style consists mostly of a tee or sweatshirt, with suitably baggy trousers and some luxury footwear that gives me blisters after extended wear. Sometimes I’ll layer a solid-coloured button down with a sweater vest, maybe with my reliable UNIQLO blazer for smarter occasions. My selection is practical and efficient enough for my day-to-day. But attempts at garnishing my essentially capsule wardrobe with GANNI spice wasn’t so difficult at all.

The immediate trend in the above photoset are cotton sweatshirts, specifically puffy ones. The Balloon Sleeve Sweatshirt in lilac is the most fashion-forward, reminding me of Ariana Grande’s thank u, next (2019) marketing era. A bit passe in 2022, but I’m hopeful on where the cultural zeitgeist will land with thank u, next in its legacy form (I imagine an even glossier post-Y2K echo of Cher Horowitz). The same goes for the sweatshirt – will it be relevant in five years time, a realistic window for my wardrobe’s life cycles?

The most practical would be the Software Isoli Puff Sleeve Sweatshirts; less puff (fashion trend) equals more wear (timelessness). I’d likely wear the black a ton, until I decide a more expensive upgrade is needed,. Designer black sweatshirts are a sub-industry on their own, and the FW runways post-pandemic are looking exceptionally chic, the trickle into fast fashion and streetwear begins. The heather grey will immediately become canvas to my dinner, evidenced by my stone UNIQLO Airism Oversized Shirt. Do I ever learn my lesson, to wear a bib? The UNIQLO debit in my online banking transactions as of two hours ago begs to differ. My online sleuthing reveals GANNI is not really just a womenswear brand, with fresh-faced guys modelling the Oversized Hooded Sweatshirts, which come in black, sky captain (navy) and merlot. The corporate website notes the #GANNIGirls hashtag is a plural, insisting everyone is welcome – pedantic cozy boy creatives like myself rejoice. Get back to me about what’s made it past the cart and into the checkout page.

Additional reading:

“A commentary on Yoshitaka Amano and fashion” for Windhill Journal

“A review of Charles Lu, collection [1.]” for Windhill Journal

“A review of Drakes, Menace in Venice” for Windhill Journal