WELCOME TO ‘Bite-sized style news’, a monthly dispatch where we discuss the news, rumours and conversations that are dominating the men’s style discourse, and therefore, our Esquire water cooler chitchat.

Scroll on for this month’s edition

Dior opens its doors to its latest boutique in Chatswood Chase

From 30 Avenue Montaigne to 345 Victoria Avenue…

Today, Dior opens the doors to its first Chatswood boutique located within luxe shopping precinct Chatswood Chase, the latest phase in the French Maison’s ongoing expansion into Australian market.

The DNA of the brand is expressed throughout the interior: Versailles parquet flooring and luminous hues that set the tone room by room, through which Jonathan Anderson’s Fall 26 ready-to-wear for women and men is revealed alongside fine jewellery, timepieces and a considered selection of leather goods. The full Dior wardrobe, in other words, under a single roof.

What gives this particular address something the Paris flagship cannot claim is a work commissioned specifically for it: Australian artist Gregory Hodge has created an abstract piece whose refined motifs add a local dimension to what is, at its core, a very Parisian proposition.

345 Victoria Avenue Chatswood, Shop 1-021 Chatswood Chase

The House of Creed has a new home in Melbourne

Melbourne is quickly becoming one of the best-smelling cities with the number of stores dedicated to the art of perfumery opening up. In the last several weeks alone, Libertine Parfumerie have expanded their footprint into the city with a standalone store in Armadale. Now, the House of Creed have followed suit, opening their first Melbourne boutique inside the Royal Arcade.

The space marks the brand’s first standalone presence in the city, adding to its existing Sydney location at The Strand Arcade.

The store carries Creed’s full fragrance collection, alongside body care and home offerings. This includes Wild Vetiver, a recent release positioned around green, outdoors-driven notes, their iconic Aventus and this writer’s personal favourites Green Irish Tweed and Royal Mayfair (go check them out). In-store services extend beyond purchase, with options for engraving and ribbon personalisation, tying back to the brand’s focus on craftsmanship.

The brand has also made sure that the retail experience is one that makes you want to linger for as long as possible. The interior combines marble portal frames, a green stone consultation bar, walnut joinery, brass detailing and velvet seating, with soft, even lighting throughout. A central consultation bar anchors the space, designed for guided fragrance sessions, while separate areas are set aside for services like engraving and ribbon personalisation, shaping how customers move through and engage with the store.

The House of Creed boutique can be found at Royal Arcade, Shop 27, 331-339 Bourke Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000

Song for the Mute drops a Birkenstock collab

The ultimate crossover of classic comfort, Australian brand Song for the Mute and Birkenstock have dropped a capsule collaboration, ranging from footwear and clothing. Built around four clear looks – The Artist, The Rebel, The Gardener and The Collector – one pairs a specific outfit with a specific shoe, so you get a full idea of how it is meant to be worn.

The Artist comes with paint-splattered suede Londons and distressed denim. The Rebel is sharper, with a cotton jumpsuit and black pony hair Paris. The Gardener is more relaxed, built around the Super Birki 2.0 with grass-print insoles. The Collector is the cleanest, with felt tailoring and polished leather Amsterdams.

Everything is designed to look worn-in rather than new. Fabrics are textured, finishes are imperfect, and nothing feels overly styled.

Our pick of the collection is The Artist, without a doubt.

The collection is available online now.

Words by Benjamen Judd

Pedro Pascal is now (officially) a Chanel boy

It’s official. The Internet’s boyfriend, Pedro Pascal, is the newest ambassador for Chanel, joining A$AP Rocky and Nicole Kidman.

Truthfully, you didn’t require too much prophetic skill to predict this outcome. After attending Creative Director Matthieu Blazy’s ecstatic Spring Summer 2026 collection at the Grand Palais in Paris last October, the Chilean-American actor was spotted wearing the brand at the 98th Academy Awards this year.

It’s yet another push into the direction of more unisex mindset for the brand, if not an outright dedicated menswear line. And a practice that the late Karl Lagerfeld had also toyed with, with male muses like Brad Kroenig often walking Chanel shows in custom pieces

In an official statement regarding Pascal’s appointment to the Chanel clan, Blazy said that “Pedro is a wonderful man and an incredible actor. His kindness, talent and his vision of the world are both inviting and inspiring. We are thrilled to welcome him to the Chanel family and I’m happy to embark on this adventure together.”

Words Benjamen Judd

Celine ÉTÉ brings a never ending summer

One of the benefits of being in opposition to European seasons is that we get drip-fed summer-inspired collections throughout our winter. Virtually extending the summer vibes via fashion.

Thus, Celine… Their new ÉTÉ 2026 collection leans into the house’s Parisian codes but take it out of the city and down to the Riviera. Summer is framed through travel, with lightweight fabrics, sheer layers and prints that carry a sense of movement rather than occasion. Accessories do the work: silk scarves, oversized sunglasses, woven hats and raffia bags.

Michael Rider’s world building at Celine has been an absolute ride. Pun intended. He’s been principled in his approach to Celine’s DNA, but invigorating it with a playful American touch that has, ironically, get back in touch with its Parisian roots.

Lush.

Words Benjamen Judd

Loro Piana celebrates excellence of Australian Merino wool

We love a local champion.

Loro Piana has announced the winners of its 2025 Record Bale Award, presented at the Tokyo National Museum on April 1, marking the 27th edition of the annual prize recognising the finest Merino wool produced in Australia and New Zealand.

The Australian award was given to Pyrenees Park, operated by Pamela, Robert and Bradley Sandlant, for a 92-kilogram bale measuring 10.4 microns. The same farm set a world record in 2023 at 10.2 microns, underscoring a consistent focus on fibre refinement. In New Zealand, Earnscleugh, led by Alistair and Duncan Campbell, was recognised for producing 91 kilograms at 11.2 microns, marking its first win.

Established in 1997, the award was created to encourage breeders to push the limits of wool fineness, measured in microns, or one thousandth of a millimetre.

All participating bales are acquired by Loro Piana and transformed into its Gift of Kings line. Each garment carries full traceability, documenting origin, year of shearing and fibre micron count, reinforcing the link between raw material and finished product.

Song for the Mute hits the road with Adidas Running

And A Flock of Sparrows ‘Ran So Far Away’ plays softly in the background…

Song for the Mute’s latest release with adidas Running marks the brand’s first move into the performance space. For their SFTM x ADIRUN01 Spring Summer 2026 release, the Sydney-based label has shifted the focus of its ongoing collaboration with adidas into running. Titled The First Breath, the collection centres on clothing and footwear that can provide a high level of movement and comfort but retains SFTM’s aesthetic edge.

The Supernova Rise 3 sits at the core of the collection. Positioned as an everyday runner, it is designed for shorter distances and consistent use. Still perfect for the city stroller even if you’re not hitting the pavement at pace. Song for the Mute adjusts the silhouette through tone and surface, offering two colourways grounded in earth and off-white. A hand-drawn graphic runs across the midsole, softening the precision of the underlying geometry without disrupting it. The intervention is light, but it changes how the shoe reads on foot.

Apparel builds on adidas’ Adi365 framework, extending the same approach across tanks, tees and shorts. Seams and graphics appear sketched rather than fixed, with a palette that moves through chalk, coffee and carbon.

It is a collection built around access rather than performance. Running here is not a goal, but a way of moving through the day.

The new collection is available online now.

Words Benjamen Judd

Louis Vuitton launches their In My Bag campaign

If you’ve ever wanted to know what Jeremy Allen White or even Lebron James thought to pack for a day out, you’re in luck.

Louis Vuitton’s latest “In My Bag” campaign reframes their iconic Speedy P9 through a series of still-life portraits, each built around the personal effects of various friends of the brand. It’s a cute take on the intimacy of style – clothes are one thing, but what’s in the bag bruv? What’s in the bag!

For the most part, what celebrities carry are pretty standard items that we all might. In this case, just LV branded.

White’s is everything you imagine a Brooklyn native might have – a newspaper, a spiral notebook for some journaling, a comb to keep those famous locks in place, spare socks. The latest Tambour, no biggie.

Then we head on over to LeBron James, who has packed for an easy day on the green: golf balls and tees, and because he’s sunsmart, some sunscreen and a cap. Practical.

Words by Benjamen Judd

J.W. Anderson arrives at Uniqlo

It’s fairly hard to top my excitement for anything other than chocolate bunnies in the lead up to Easter but J.W. Anderson and Uniqlo succeeded. The new collab between the two fashion brands dropped in Australian stores on 2 April and the hype is worth it.

The new The Fall Winter 2025 collection leans into British fieldwear, reworked with Anderson’s offbeat touch and an eye for ease.

Utility jackets, ponchos and corduroy trousers set the tone, grounded but not stiff. PUFFTECH outerwear keeps things light, while lambswool knits and HEATTECH socks do the practical work.

Anderson describes it as playful. I describe it as crafted essentials with added personality. Pieces are easy to wear, slightly unexpected, and built to move between indoors and out without much thought. Consider it a wardrobe that travels well. Available online and instore at Uniqlo.

Words Benjamen Judd

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