What do your sunglasses say about you? Accessories like watches, bags, subtle jewellery and handmade shoes have been integral to aspirational menswear for decades. But, more recently, finding the right pair of Japanese-made shades has become its own form of luxurious self-expression. As seen on red carpets – mostly on Jacob Elordi, who is practically everywhere – and dimly lit New York bars.

“We never entered this [market] thinking we were taking on the big boys,” says Willa Martire via Zoom. “Norda didn’t come from that at all, it just came from solving a problem.” For Willa and her husband, Nick Martire, that problem was a personal one before it became a commercial one. Long before launching their first shoe, the norda 001, in 2021, the brand’s cofounders were running trails together across Canada and finding the category lacking.

Oscar Piastri has people perplexed. While other racing drivers around him celebrate with champagne “shoeys” or slap each other’s helmets in frustration, he often appears to coast around in neutral, unmoved either way. Some have gone as far as to accuse him of being “emotionless”. In his presence, that’s not at all what you see.

Any stroll down London’s South Bank today is not complete without a gawp at the resident skaters at the concrete undercroft beneath Queen Elizabeth Hall – they have been there doing tricks and looking rad for half a century. This month, the Southbank Centre is paying tribute to this milestone. See Skate 50, an exhibition using photography and video to tell the story of the space, the skaters that occupy it and, of course, their style.

What do your sunglasses say about you? Accessories like watches, bags, subtle jewellery and handmade shoes have been integral to aspirational menswear for decades. But, more recently, finding the right pair of Japanese-made shades has become its own form of luxurious self-expression. As seen on red carpets – mostly on Jacob Elordi, who is practically everywhere – and dimly lit New York bars.

“We never entered this [market] thinking we were taking on the big boys,” says Willa Martire via Zoom. “Norda didn’t come from that at all, it just came from solving a problem.” For Willa and her husband, Nick Martire, that problem was a personal one before it became a commercial one. Long before launching their first shoe, the norda 001, in 2021, the brand’s cofounders were running trails together across Canada and finding the category lacking.