Written by Craig Landale in Business on the 31st October 2016

Looking back on my career I often think that I’ve been incredibly lucky. But I also wonder how much was down to luck and how much was down to doing the right thing and having the correct work ethos. Did I have the right ingredients, the right blend of collaborative ideas? When I first started MenswearStyle it was just me, myself and I. I tried to write everything, go to every meeting, attend every event and handle all the commercial business. This is like having one bartender manning a packed out cocktail bar. 

'I soon realised that I needed to play to my skills, strengths and be collaborative.'

I am not a writer for one, but my background was in digital marketing – which is where I decided to focus my efforts. I simply employed people to work within the areas which I wanted freeing up from. I employed freelance writers which was a simple decision that has had a huge effect on my business. Collaborating with other companies and individuals ensures that each part of the publication is being managed by someone who is an expert in that area. This in return stops the brand from looking amateur and keeps high standards at all times.

Getting the blend right also relates to the things I stopped doing at the company. I stopped going to face-to-face meetings and instead kept all correspondence to email. However, I still attend exclusive press trips which allows me to travel and experience great conversation, food, drink and places. Stopping the everyday meetings meant that I could speak to more people in a working day. This is a method advised by Tim Ferris in his book ‘The 4-Hour Work Week' which truly inspired me. I also focused on only using the social media mediums which benefited MenswearStyle. Imagine a cocktail bar selling 300 cocktails - it’s just not going to work, is it? By only selling 20 signature cocktails it would be giving the customer a better experience and it'll certainly be producing better quality drinks.

During my career it’s also been important that I look to new innovative ways of working, whether that is new income streams, topics and branches for the company. You’ve got to cover the most popular menswear news e.g. a classic whisky sour cocktail, and you’ve also got to be innovative by doing something different to what everyone else is doing in your industry e.g. the Aspire to Shanghai cocktail. This mix of usual blogging features and new methods such as our fortnightly Podcast, keeps people coming back regularly whilst also capturing entirely new audiences at the same time. Today MenswearStyle is a leading independent men’s digital lifestyle magazine which is regularly nominated for awards and achieves a loyal readership of over 100k monthly.

Chivas Regal are celebrating the Art of Blending at their London space at the Truman Brewery; The Blend, a unique space where consumers can delve into the fascinating world of whisky and discover the ‘Art of Blending’. Over the next 5 weeks the brand will be hosting several ‘Art of Blending’ sessions, where people will be able to book tickets online. The Art of Blending sessions gives guests the opportunity to taste a variety of single malts from The Highlands, Lowlands, Speyside and Islay, and be tutored in the craftsmanship of a master whisky blender. Pick up your tickets from chivas.com today.

Our Editor-in-Chief shares his fashion business success story in collaboration with Chivas Regal's The Blend London 2016.