Guy Style: Belk’s Most Wanted

Today I had the chance to meet with Arlene Goldstein, the Vice President of Trend Merchandising and Fashion Direction for Belk. She gave me a great preview of a lot of the fashions we’ll be seeing this fall. (Side note: It’s really hard when you get excited about things like sweater dresses, dark denim, and distressed leather boots—and then you walk back outside into the 85 degree Carolina July.)

However, the part of the presentation that most interested me was Belk’s “Most Wanted” list. These are the items that should definitely be present in your closet this fall. I’ll attend to the ladies list later, but for now, here are the men’s:

1) Denim Friendly Sportcoat
2) Vest
3) Darker Denim
4) Plaid and Check Shirts
5) Casual Jacket
6) Manstyle Scarf
7) Tartan Twist Ties
8) Hiker Boots

Charlotte, while a savvy city, sometimes tends to lean towards the conservative in the fashion scene. And if the women’s fashions here lean a little, the men’s lean a lot. Which is why I love this list. (The vest thing still strikes me as a little “Jonas Brother”-ish, but if you can pull it off, then by all means.) These aren’t anything crazy, they’re just easy-to-remember and easy-to-accomplish styles to update any guy’s wardrobe. Obviously they’ll all be available at Belk, but they’re something good to keep in mind for all your future fall shopping.