August 2019 - The Normal Company

Why #MenWithxHM Is The New Standard of Collaboration For Brands

“A design collaboration with style inspiration from the 10M+ followers of the MenWith Instagram accounts. This has resulted in a collection of updated key items for supreme style, every day.”

Nowadays, every brand who is striving for success and growth has an influencer strategy. Actively seeking the fashionpreneurs, latest hyped individuals, reality TV stars and best models of which closely align to select core values of the brand.

This strategy is tried and true, with influencers obviously playing a core part in driving bucket loads of traffic to a store, with a simple endorsement of a branded product.

This is something that we at The Normal Company, are 100% in agreement with for brands to do. However, this is becoming more and more saturated as each year goes by, and the influencer craze is becoming a blood bath that as consumers get wiser, and the #ad hashtag gets used more frequently than a Valencia filter, brands have to show a little more innovation when it comes to collaboration, in order to step up their game and step up their brand impact in competitive markets such as fashion.

Please step onto the stage, #MenWithxHM.

A TRUE collaboration, fit for the current influencer-saturated world we live in today.

@menwithclass have collaborated with H&M for their latest HMx collection. With an instagram account following of just shy of 5 million, and 10 million accumulatively across all of the ‘men with’ accounts such as @menwithstreetstyle, the Men with Class accounts are a brand in themselves. Embodying the very latest trends of the modern man, and encouraging gents worldwide to adopt the top trends in which they showcase.

@menwithclass owners Erik & Daniel have amassed a cult following of men all seeking to get inspiration from their content, and H&M knows it. The collection embodies this and their exact style preferences in a capsule collection of basics and subtly branded #MenWith garments that portray the style aspired to be achieved by their following.

This, is a power collaboration.

A collaboration which asks a ready and waiting crowd the question ‘What do you want?’ built from the exact needs of a follower base, and the fashion inspiration in which millions of men worldwide are looking for, and actively seeking whenever they hop onto Instagram.

By looking at the posts with most views, comments and general engagement, H&M collaborated with MenWith to create a capsule collection which looked at this data, and provided the exact styles and items. The collaboration includes a knitted roller neck, two soft hoodies, plain t-shirts, sunglasses, suede caps and the statement biker jacket.

The saying goes ‘place a burger van where there is a starving crowd’ and it’s safe to say that the #MenWithxHM collection does this to mass effect.

Our Top 3 Remote Getaways Every CEO & Entrepreneur Has To Check Into

If you’re running a company, time out is just as important as time in. Getting away from the grind can be equally beneficial to the growth of your company, and ultimately the growth of you as a busy entrepreneur.

Head space, a place to recharge batteries, a zone where you can get creative without distraction, being at one with your goals and reflections are all reasons why getting away into the right place can do wonders for the business minded individual.

Bill Gates credits his massive success to being alone. Two times a year, for seven straight days, Bill Gates will spend time all by himself in the forest with no cell phone and no computer. He just totally disconnects from the outside world. He calls that “thinking time” the Think Week.

We, are all about this too.

This temporary change in lifestyle is the secret to his massive success he claims. He’s a business powerhouse worth 92.8 billion today, holding the top spot on the list of The World’s Billionaires for 18 out of the past 23 years. And he’s donated $35.8 billion worth of Microsoft stock to the Gates Foundation.

Clearly, Thinking Time is a top component to Bill Gates’ incredible wealth story. During his Thinking Time, he does a lot of reading and journaling about what he has done, is doing, and will accomplish. He also comes up with new ideas and innovations for his company.

So, we took on the challenge to find some V2.0 getaways, that may actually trump a forest and allow you to do the same, with an innovative touch.

Shipwreck Lodge, Namibia

Jetting off to Namibia may not be the first port of call for most, however at Shipwreck Lodge, there are a few hundred shipwreck style cabins scattered along Namibia’s Skeleton Coast. It’s serene & idyllic, the perfect place to reflect and gaze into the sunset to gather your thoughts.

Each of the 10 bedrooms feature a large horizontal window where guests can look out across the surrounding sand dunes and spot wildlife including brown hyenas and desert lions.

Al Faya Lodge, UAE

Architecture studio Anarchitect has turned a couple of stone buildings in the UAE into Al Faya Lodge, a hotel and saltwater spa in the remote Sharjah desert.

A complex of architecturally sleek, clean cut buildings now forms the Al Faya Lodge, which sits in the red sands at the foot of Mount Alvaah in the Emirate of Sharjah.

The rooms here are all equipped with stargazing skylights, and if you are to choose the Master Suite, this has a private roof terrace to enhance your experience as you appreciate the solitude, and be at one with your thoughts on expansion and creative endeavours.

Al Faya Lodge is a top pick because it is actually designed to be booked out all as one, so the entire complex can be experienced to your full privacy. Or, bring the entire team along to channel some focus.

This Arabian complex also has a tidy reception area, a dining room where chefs can be hired, and an outdoor terrace with a fire pit.

Punta Caliza, Mexico

When you can only arrive to a destination by boat, you know you’re somewhere remote and away from it all.

Our version of entrepreneur bliss.

The boutique hotel Punta Caliza, which is situated on Isla Holbox – a zero cars allowed fishing village north of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula.

This epic destination is made up of 12 whitewashed guest suites each boast their own plunge pool and have thatched roofs intended to mimic traditional Mayan structures.