Buzzy men's fashion brands are working with mass retailers to target younger customers who would otherwise be too expensive to purchase their upscale products.

Mass retail partnerships and designers have a long history of working collaboratively, but, in the past, these partnerships have typically been with premium labels that may give them an air of exclusivity. The collaborations between H&M and Heron Preston and Who Decides War are part of a growing trend of stores and independent small-scale designers reaching out to young menswear buyers interested in streetwear, skateboarding subcultures, and gorpcore movements.

Trending men's brands in 2024, Gap and London-based skate brand Palace collaborated to debut a capsule collection in March. PacSun and designer Reese Cooper debuted a new outdoor apparel collection in August. This month, Fast Retailing will launch the first American flagship for its GU brand, a menswear partnership with Undercover that is exclusive to the US.

Menswear, according to H&M menswear designer Ana Hernández, has done a better job of evoking a sense of community, culture, and those movements. He therefore believed that we both required and desired to be able to occupy that area.

These alliances have the potential to be more than just temporary sources of income for both parties. Partnering with a big retailer can give independent designers with high price points access to previously unattainable resources and new, previously priced-out clients. Retailers may benefit from these designer ties, which have the potential to develop into successful multi-season alliances that educate the brand's internal design team. The American clothing brand PacSun's largest source of revenue is its nearly ten-year association with Fear of God, according to Vogue.

Senior retail analyst Jessica Ramirez of Jane Hali & Associates stated that small partnerships can still be used to do this type of marketing to draw customers in with fresh ideas, particularly when the brand is in style.