Jeff Bezos and the rise of the midlife style shift

It’s easy to have a makeover if you’re the world’s richest man, but should the average middle-aged man follow suit?

The New York Times has heralded Amazon boss Jeff Bezos a “style icon” to coincide with his ascension to the ranks of “world’s richest man”. Amidst the juice-sipping moguls of Palo Alto he stands out, apparently, for his “minimalist” attire that’s been likened more to a Hollywood action star than a technology giant and newspaper owner with a questionable approach to his warehouse staff’s welfare.

It’s particularly pertinent at a time when a new movie starring Rob Brydon, Swimming With Men, looks at the changes men undergo when they feel a midlife crisis looming. Should your average 50-something professional man look at himself under the microscope, style-wise, or settle into a happy sartorial lull now that he’s found what he’s comfortable wearing?

Evering jacket, ￡209, Oliver Spencer

Certainly Bezos seems to have opted for the former; he has morphed from a rather nondescript and geeky-looking computer enthusiast in bland chinos and sack-like shirts into buffed-up security-detail-come-Ted-talk-dynamo.

When he was photographed in Sun Valley with his receding hair shaved into a sharp bald trim, crisp polo shirt to showcase his newly #swole physique and an action-ready gilet (some complaining, sleep-deprived minions to take down, Jeff?); TheTelegraph crowned him the “biceps billionaire”. Other stylish outings have seen him don a sporty leather jacket and neatly tailored suits.

But does this make Bezos a “style icon”? I’m not sure there’s anything particularly “iconic” about it, but it does highlight how a man can re-examine his wardrobe at a particular age and refuse the path of slouchy sweaters and Dad chinos.

Brunello Cucinelli reversible suede padded gilet, ￡3,890, Harrods

Of course, it helps if you have the stratospheric wealth of Bezos and you're able to enlist a personal trainer, nutritionist et al., but forgoing baggy, slouchy shapes in favour of something more defined certainly helps as a man segues into middle age; a neat polo shirt is smart but at ease, and some of the best ones - John Smedley, Sunspel - are made in cottons that will sculpt around your frame.

And whilst we might question the Vin Diesel army styles that Bezos sports, a good gilet is the mainstay in the Italian art of sprezzatura, a halfway point between a jacket and waistcoat.

Riviera polo shirt, ￡85, Sunspel

Leathers for middle-aged men can enter into murky waters and look as if he’s desperately clinging on to his motor cycle youth, but a smart, minimalist shape - nothing love-worn that hints of biker - can look contemporary whilst at the same time age appropriate. 

While Bezos is fond of classic black and blue blazers with shirts, he’s been known to wear subtly hued versions with biscuit shaded chinos, all of which points to a less corporate, more contemporary stance. But icon? We’re reserving that style status to an other Jeff, the brilliantly eccentric Mr Goldblum. Sorry Bezos.

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