Image courtesy of Notting Hill

A lack of strict rules means local Chinese menswear fashion designers face a unique opportunity to create stylish, or awful, clothing.

Creating a successful menswear label is both easier and harder than creating a female line, and for the same reason: the rigid guidelines that usually govern male dress. Menswear is rarely as atrocious as the worst women's clothing and never as brilliant as the best.

Chinese male fashion consumers mimic other aspects of their country in being a tad paradoxical. They may follow the herd when it comes to brand names and acceptable ......ions of "correctness" preventing experimentation with progressive styles are less deeply held - and a challenge due to reluctance to risk brands not widely associated with status or acceptability.

There are no established "traditional" menswear brands coming from China. This means that even if not particularly innovative, the majority of local brands are able to be fashion-forward: with no strong tradition, Chinese menswear designers and clothing wearers are not chained to retro.