Metrosexuals are “20-somethings” of the middle to upper class, urban dwellers, educated, working, young entrepreneurs who like to shop in the best shops, work out in sophisticated gyms, socialize in the hottest clubs and have a hairstylist do their hair.
While men do shell out cash for looks, the brand man spends more money on anti-aging skin care cosmetics and male vanity kits.
Metrosexual Male Grooming
Men fervent interest in personal grooming, shopping, fashion, and fitness implies acceptance of an atypical lifestyle.
In Tokyo, 23-year-old Yoshitomo Sango's daily morning routine includes a face scrub, a dab of toner and face cream before walking to a neighboring salon to get his hair pomaded and bobby-pinned into an elaborate pompadour. Sango is an urban male with a strong aesthetic sense who spends a lot of money and time to look good.
Metrosexuality came about with the coming out of hair-care, skin-care and cosmetics products for men. Then males started choosing parlors over barbershops for facials, foot scrubs, manicure, and pedicure including eyebrow trimming. The metrosexual male has also added mud baths, skin whitening, and herbal wraps in his beauty regimen.
Vanity is no longer exclusive to women. According to a survey carried out in June 2004 by international research company Synovate on style-conscious straight urban men, 53 percent of American men, 48 percent of Filipino males, 25 percent of Singaporean men, and 12 percent of Hong Kong males rate their looks as very important to them.
A perfect physique, clear complexion and branded wardrobe are mandatory to the new male model—the upgraded version of the pretty boy archetype embodied by the so-called SNAG or “sensitive new-age guy.”
Like women, metrosexuals have face, neck and eyelifts, forehead and brow lifts, lasers and peels to remove wrinkles. They want buffed, polished, plucked, tanned, and toned to perfection looks -skin color, body shape, and hair condition.
Metrosexuality Vanity in Style
Metrosexuality is the feminization of cosmopolitan men’s social practices and aesthetics. Their preferences have changed to products of high value, heavily advertised, and with prestigious brand names. A metrosexual have no reservations approaching cosmetics counter for an apricot exfoliating facial scrub or a colorizing hair mouse.
At the forefront of the metrosexual revolution are larger-than-life ads of David Beckham. Beckham’s metrosexsual image has encouraged men to linger longer in their mirrors and spend freely to enhance their looks. He is the metrosexual icon who gladly embraced his feminine side. In spite of this, his sexual orientation remains straight as an arrow.
In a world where looks always take the center stage, it is natural for men to want to look good in style. Metrosexuals are the trendy macho men in the mirror—confident with their tastes and comfortable with their style. Vanity is their middle name.
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