The hero vs the metro

Image: Flikr Creative Commons @PaulCashPhotography

It’s no secret that the 21^st century man is one who likes to groom; the Guardian recently reported that the UK male skincare market is now worth a staggering £600 million, suggesting we are slowly but surely becoming as beauty savvy as our female counterparts.  Whilst a trip to the barbers and a dab of moisturiser may have once sufficed, the modern regime can now encompass everything from concealers, waxing (of all parts), and even the odd mani-pedi.

Now I for one am all for us gents looking after ourselves; I’m never without a decent face wash and moisturiser, and without my tweezers my eyebrow mid-section would be highly questionable.  But has male grooming gone too far? And what exactly do women prefer when it comes to their men; the rugged heterosexual, or the preened and polished metrosexual?

I never like to write an article without backing it up with the cold hard facts, and so I decided to carry out some in depth research into the matter. I selected two well-known faces that I felt most accurately represented each end of the hetro/metro spectrum; Hugh Jackman and Joey Essex.  Although one is arguably slightly more successful than the other, each certainly has his army of adoring fans. Clicking onto the most recent Hugh related article on the Mail-online, one comment (from Monica in Houston) reads ‘DAMN THAT MAN IS TOO FINE!! IT SHOULD BE A LAW THAT EVERY MAN HAS TO WORK OUT LIKE MR. JACKMAN’, whilst Joey has become a national treasure of sorts, appearing on Celebrity Juice at least 17 times, not once with a hair out of place.

Image: Flikr Creative Commons @AnthonyStanley

Next up was gathering up a focus group, consisting of my 4 female housemates and a couple coursemates for good measure.  Despite Joey winning the accolade of not coming last on this year’s ‘I’m a Celebrity’, unsurprisingly Hugh came out on top, with some comments all but mimicking that of Monica’s.

So why is it then, so many of us men are taking influence from the sun-kissed, veneer sporting Essex, as opposed to the un-kept rugged Jackman?  We can’t deny our tans are getting deeper, our skin getting softer and our facial hair getting sharper, but is it time we put down the trimmer, and resisted the urge to look as good as good as all those models do in the Clarin’s ads?  I urge you to give it a go; if anything you’ll at least have the support of my focus group.