'Men come in looking for new clothes after weight loss drugs': Yorkshire menswear brand Brook Taverner has this style advice

With 2.4 million Brits now trying medications such as Mounjaro and Wegovy, fashion is feeling the effects. Keighley-based Brook Taverner says its XL clothing sales have fallen by 13 per cent, while sales of smaller sizes garments are up nine per cent year-on-year. Demand for fitting appointments has increased by 15 per cent, and fit-related returns have risen by 14 per cent.

Weight-loss jabs are becoming part of everyday life, says Oliver Campbell, Brook Taverner’s retail director. “We are seeing more men coming into our stores who have lost a significant amount of weight, and suddenly the clothes they have relied on for years don’t fit them anymore. Trousers are hanging off them, jackets feel too big and suits they have spent good money on can end up gathering dust.”

Research from PwC3 found 42 per cent of GLP-1 users increased their spending on clothes. “We monitor size on a regular basis, because we make sure that we are buying better and smarter,” says Oliver. “Fit is critical. When a guy finds a brand that fits them perfectly, they tend to come back.”

Style is also paramount, and some men who have lost weight feel they would like to try slimmer fits. “Our customers, in general, are quite unconfident,” says Oliver. “They rely very much on the opinion not only of their wife or partner, but also our store staff - who are very attentive, very knowledgeable and they support our customers in not only how things fit, but also how to put outfits together.

“It's about the silhouette and the shape, which is really important because you want it to be flattering as well as fitted and comfortable. And comfort is a massive factor. Don't get me wrong, we still sell a lot of regular-fit garments, especially in trousers. But silhouettes have definitely become neater, more tailored and look more elegant when they are put together.”

Brook Taverner fosters relationships with tailors local to their stores, so that clothes can be altered to fit when customers lose, or gain, weight. “And, if someone's buying online, certainly trousers, we have an in-house tailoring department in our warehouses, which means that we can adapt leg length and things like that.”

The Brook Taverner story began on a boat to Kolkata in 1912, when Frank Brook met Walter Taverner, and they decided to go into business selling buttons to tailors, then linings and cloth, building up one of the largest stocks of menswear fabrics in the country between the wars.

In 1967, with traditional tailors’ shops disappearing, it launched a “cut, make and trim" service, followed by a ready-to-wear range. Yorkshireman Jason Scott bought the company with Ben Jones and Andrew Booth in 2004.

In 2006, it launched its direct-to-customer website - brooktaverner.co.uk - which sells its ready-to-wear jackets and suits, knits, shirts and outerwear. The brand now has 19 stores, including ones in Northallerton and Beverley.

The company is also Europe's largest corporate tailoring supplier (at brooktaverner.com), offering clothes for hospitality, transport, retail and more.

Back to smart-casual, and the autumn/winter and Christmas 2026 collections launched with a fashion shoot near Keswick.

Simon Clark, also the face of Montblanc, has been modelling for Brook Taverner for many years. “We want to have some consistency,” Oliver says. "Our loyal customers can relate to him and be familiar with him throughout our brand journey.”

Oliver worked for M&S before joining Brook Taverner three years ago. “For autumn winter, it's very much around layering. The overshirts do a great job in that respect,” he says. “The overall scope of the range is about texture and attention to detail, so a lot of interest in fabric, especially on knitwear. We see it on the overshirts, but also in trousers.”

Cords are popular. “There's a huge heritage preppy trend across menswear and that falls right into our lap because it's part of our DNA, being a British Heritage brand. Shows like The Gentleman, for example - this series, it's very heritage focused with your wax jackets, your tattersall shirts, your cords, and that exploded the whole trend.

“We also did a smart performance range, which I like in terms of that functionality of the work wardrobe.

“When people are starting to get back to the office, it's very much more smart-casual rather than specific suiting. Suiting has become prevalent for occasionwear now. ‘I'm going to the races’, ‘I'm going to a wedding’. Also mixers in terms of jackets and trousers.

“This whole smart-performance hybrid becomes about fully non-ironed shirts, bi-stretch fabrics in trousers, crease-resistant suits with natural fibres but also stretch in them, water-resistant outerwear, windproof, that kind of thing. So you look great but it's also functional in terms of your everyday life, and it could be going to the office or going out for drinks after it and it's still relevant as an outfit all the way through.”

For him, the ideal working outfit starts with chinos. “Preferably with stretch. Most chinos do have stretch so they are functional and comfortable, a really elegant, tailored fit.

“I wear a lot of knitted polos so cotton-merino or merino knitwear, or crew necks with a non-iron shirt, and then I do tend to wear blazers. But outerwear as well, so a nice sort of formal outerwear piece works really well for the office, as well as the classic gilet, which I also live in. It's a bit like a comfort blanket. It goes with me everywhere. It's just that perfect layering piece.”

For working footwear, he opts for trainers and suede loafers. “Dark brown leather trainers are very popular because they're quite smart but also comfortable so they have that kind of smart-casual feel without being too casual.”

Brook Taverner is at brooktaverner.co.uk, and has Yorkshire stores in Northallerton and Beverley.