WHEN YOU’RE A JET: As soon as the New York Jets drafted USC quarterback Mark Sanchez in 2009, he appeared ripe for a men’s wear endorsement. A handsome athlete with Mexican-American heritage and a bicoastal fan base — plenty of brands would love to have a spokesmodel like that. But Sanchez is said to be holding off on fashion contracts until he has sufficiently proven himself on the field. (He reportedly endured some ribbing from teammates for appearing in a GQ fashion spread early on.) Lately, Sanchez has developed a personal and totally unofficial tendency to wear Hugo Boss brands. He wore a Boss Black tuxedo as a presenter at the Tony Awards, donned a Boss Black suit for the press conference following the Jets vs. Giants matchup on “Monday Night Football” last week and this fall he will appear in a Toyota commercial, dressed in Boss Orange. A Hugo Boss spokesman confirmed the brand’s relationship with the athlete is strictly friendly.
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NEW BLOOD: Although issues with the timing and impact of New York Fashion Week have driven some major American men’s wear designers to show in Europe, New York clearly has no trouble attracting newcomers. At last count there were 42 men’s collections on the calendar, via 20 coed and 22 men’s-only shows (or presentations). That total seems to be a record high, even though it doesn’t happen to include Calvin Klein, John Varvatos or Thom Browne, which already showed in Europe in June. Apart from the megabrands with coed shows, the heaviest hitters planning men’s shows are Michael Bastian, Duckie Brown, Perry Ellis and Rag & Bone.
WELL SUITED: Editors who believed that three-martini lunches and free suits went out of fashion with the midi were in for a surprise on Wednesday, when Jones New York threw an event as part of its new Empowerment Campaign. The brand invited editors such as Style.com’s Nicole Phelps, Harper’s Bazaar’s Anne Monoky and Elle’s Jade Frampton to a “3 Martini Lunch” on the 25th floor of the Bryant Park Hotel. The editors viewed visuals from the Annie Leibovitz-shot campaign, and those still allowed to accept freebies were given an on-site fitting for a Jones New York suit. It will be custom made and delivered after fashion week, but those lacking the patience to wait for their Jones fix were given a teaser: an Easy Care white button-down shirt.
BEHIND THE SEAMS: From Valentino to Anna Wintour, fashion documentaries have become the rage. Most recently, it was Rag & Bone’s turn to let the camera in on some fashion secrets. R.J. Cutler, of “September Issue” fame, filmed designers Marcus Wainwright and David Neville as they were preparing for their fall 2010 show. The short documentary, which was sponsored by Starbucks, will premiere on Sept. 8 with a screening at the Crosby Hotel cinema room, which will be followed with a Q & A session with Cutler. After the screening, it will be available for viewing at rag-bone.com and Starbucks’ frappuccino.com Web site. And in the buildup to the shows, who doesn’t need caffeine?