A couple weeks ago I ventured down to Atlanta, GA on Super Bowl weekend, but it wasn’t for the Super Bowl. Well, actually it was. It was for a different kind of Super Bowl. It was for the Super Bowl of Men’s Fashion and Lifestyle – AKA Style Con 2017.
I had first heard of Style Con a couple months ago when a friend of mine had mentioned it to me as a possible networking event. Being an online business owner and podcaster can make it difficult to get out and actually do in-person networking. And when I say difficult I mean it puts me out of my comfort zone. When Style Con came on my radar – I immediately knew I had to go. But, I didn’t pull the trigger right away.
When you’re faced with an opportunity that you know will be worthwhile- it can be scary at first. We know we should do something, but we hesitate. This is exactly what happened with Style Con. Luckily, one of my friends Ryan Michler (who you’ll learn more about below) – urged me to attend. So I finally took action and booked my trip.
Needless to say – it was worth it. I wish I could tell you all the knowledge bombs that I picked up over the 48 hours I was there, but there were so many that it would take many blogs to cover them all. I was completely blown away at the value of both the speakers and the networking that took place. I was expecting it to be a Style and Fashion show, but in reality it was a personal growth and business acceleration event. The money spent to get there will be worth 10-20x in the next 4-6 months due to the relationships and connections I forged.
I figured I’d introduce you to the 30 men who spoke at the event. These legends are all worth following and learning from. This list will serve as a great resource for you in 2017 as you set out on a journey to become a better man and person.
As a final note…make sure to attend Style Con 2018 – now known as MenFluential 2018. You’ll be thankful you did!
1. I AM ALPHA M. (AARON MARINO)
Aaron Marin
o is a legend in men’s self improvement and online content marketing. Aaron’s brand I Am Alpha M simply dominates the online pace. In addition to being one of the co-founders of Men’s Style Con, he is the founder of Alpha M. Consulting which is an image consulting firm dedicated to helping men maximize their full potential. I actually knew of Aaron prior to Style Con through is incredible YouTube Channel – where he humbly has over 2 MILLION followers!!
I personally recommend you subscribe to his YouTube channel immediately. His videos will entertain and educate you with incredibly valuable advice on style, grooming, fitness, fashion and lifestyle.
All that being said, the most impressive thing that I experienced with Aaron was when he made it a point to come over to me and introduce himself in the midst of hundreds of people. He spent a few minutes chatting with me and also followed up with after Style Con. He’s a true master of his craft and his story is extremely inspiring.
For me, fitness is priority number one! I know that if I don’t take care of myself and do something physical EVERY day, I am not at my best. Fitness puts my world in focus… Without it, the path to success is blurry.-Aaron Marino
Never stop learning – it’ll make such a huge improvement in your life.-Antonio Centeno
He believes that most, if not all, of the world’s biggest problems could be solved if males everywhere learned how to be better husbands, fathers, friends, and leaders. He’s on a mission to help all men become the men they were meant to be.
Health is such a critical component to success. As leaders in the home, business, and community, we’re expected to serve others all the time. And while, any leadership opportunity is a noble endeavour, we aren’t capable of a sustained level of service without taking care of ourselves first.The ability to serve others is in direct proportion to our ability to take care of ourselves.-Ryan Michler
was huge fan of Art of Charm‘s Podcast. Ryan Michler invited me to lunch on Day 1 of Style Con and I got a chance to grab pizza and chat with AJ a bit about their business and their future. Needless to say these guys do incredible things!When it comes to making a first impression, your health is the absolute foundation.-AJ Harbinger
the reason why I’m creating my YouTube channel. After he was kind enough to chat with me for a few minutes about the day to day struggles we both face as business owners – I realized that it’s not every day you get to meet successful people who aren’t afraid to talk about their failures. Ryan is both confident and humble, plus his YouTube Channel gives you tips and tactics to land more dates, dress like a style pro, and other men’s fashion tips that you’ll find incredibly valuable.You know when you are just haven a shitty day?
The gym is always there for you…
When life throws you curve balls…
The gym is always there for you.
-Ryan Magin
For some reason we grow up thinking you can either be strong or smart, not both. It’s as if the two goals are mutually exclusive and, as you make progress towards one, it comes at the detriment of the other. The Greeks understood that the mind and body are interdependent and improving one benefits the other. So on top of the physical and social benefits that come from being in shape, there are intellectual and psychological payoffs as well.-Tanner Guzy
I love Rafael’s company mission. “We help men be gentlemen and look the part – classic men’s style, not fast fashion. Backed by history, not trends. Quality, not quantity.” That’s a powerful mission statement and Rafael comes across as a man with a real plan.Wearing the right clothes can communicate status, wealth, competency, respect, attitude, character… and when you look at clothes that way, the are one of the puzzle pieces of success, especially when it comes to sales. And whether you sell your company, your product or yourself, you always sell.-Rafael Schneider
is from the same area that I live in (Northern VA) and I’ve been a fan of his message for quite some time. His Sparta Strength program is phenomenal and teaches guys valuable body transformation tips and tricks. Plus, his videos are super creative and entertaining.Health and Fitness is vital to your success because once you instill the discipline to transform your body you realize you can conquer anything-Ryan Masters
the men’s facial hair world. He’s inspired many guys to start growing bears and he’s led the charge in changing the perception around facial hair.These changes take time, but progress is being made. Recently Disney eased their policy on beards and other companies are joining suit. We can’t do this alone, and we need you to help us change society. Connect with us by joining the mailing list below, and most importantly – beard on!
Make sure to check out Eric and Beardbrand!
10. TEACHING MEN’S FASHION (JOSE ZUNIGA)
J
ose is probably the most successful (yet humble) 22 year old I’ve ever met. His YouTube channel went from 50k followers to 500k followers in a single year! He puts out incredibly valuable fashion and lifestyle advice that every guy can benefit from.
In his own words…
We are a gentlemen’s lifestyle brand, reaching hundreds of thousands of men and women every month through our social media efforts and website. We cover topics including Mens Style, Mens grooming, gear & tech, and mens lifestyle and living! Our founders are two brothers Jose Zuniga, a finance student, business owner and winner of GQ’s HGQRU Style competition and Juan Zuniga, a lawyer, father, and husband.
ance to chat with Thomas over lunch and I was really intrigued by his business. His mission is to help others study, learn and implement at a high level. We chatted briefly about “speed reading” and why he believes its a myth. I also was highly interested in his business due to my oldest boy being an advanced student.I primarily create content about how to be more productive, which means I’m constantly exploring new techniques for working more effectively. However, I always keep a reminder in the back of my mind… all of these techniques are like small modifications on a car. They can help if everything is working properly, but they’re useless if the engine is gunked up or broken down. My mind – and, by extension, my body – is the engine that allows me to do my work. Thinking this way helps when I’m tempted to skip a workout (or stay up late) in order to “get more work done”. The effectiveness of that work goes down if I don’t keep my health in check.-Thomas Frank
ch closed out Style Con and it was truly incredible. He spoke of his father’s battle with depression and how it ultimately ended in his father taking his own life. Paul’s story truly hit home for me as I’ve lost a very close family member to suicide myself. Paul spoke of his fear of following the same path as his father did and the struggle’s he’s been through to overcome that fear.
It’s better to be really good at one thing than average at a bunch of things-Dan Lok
It would be nice if we all had successful older brothers who were happily married, the life of every party, and made VP by 35. They could offer incalculable career advice, financial and investing tips, and key points to keeping your knockout girlfriend. While we all can’t be that lucky, Primer may be the next best thing. With writers contributing from all walks of life, we can learn from their experiences as if they were our own and apply them moving forward.
As a young man leaving college, one must be ready to take on the world. Armed with an education, a sense of self, and toting a diploma, the world quickly reminds you – there’s more to living as an adult than is covered in ‘Comparative Politics’ and ‘A History of the Renaissance.’
Young men rejoice, you no longer need to stumble into the gate of adulthood.
15. EFFORTLESS GENT (BARRON CUADRO)
I hav
e a confession to make. The Effortless Gent happens to be my favorite fashion resource simply because it makes looking good EASY and EFFORTLESS. Plus, Barron shows you how to use a few pieces to make tons of outfits. As someone who doesn’t want to have to hit the mall for every new event that pops up – Effortless Gent is a huge resource!
I highly recommend checking out Barron’s blog – where recently he shows you how to rock the Crewneck sweater all sorts of different ways – trust me its worth bookmarking this blog!
16. THE MODEST MAN (BROCK MCGOFF)
Brock runs The Modest Ma
n – a fashion and men’s lifestyle resource for shorter guys. I love how Brock has true niche and has grown his business tremendously over the past year.
Whether we like it or not, our physical appearance affects how we are perceived and treated by others. Our color, shape, size, clothing, style, body language and hygiene all impact what people think about us – and what we think about ourselves.
ino partnered together to build Menfluential which helps online brands in the men’s self-improvement space.
18. THE DISTILLED MAN (KYLE INGHAM)
The Dist
illed Man has a mission of making you a better man in areas guys are expected to be good at. Whether you want to learn about cocktails, grooming, grilling, or even social confidence, Kyle’s in-depth articles and videos help you become a better version of yourself.
19. UNKEPT GENTLEMAN (TRAVIS WHITE)
Travis White r
uns the website Unkept Gentleman where he teaches men how to discover their personal style, build a personal brand, and get what they want out of life with confidence.
Travis was also the first guy who I shook hands with at Style Con and he was super friendly and down to earth. It made the start of the event really relaxed and less pressure packed.
20. MODERN MANNERS GUY (RICHIE FRIEMAN)
Richie is The Modern Manners Guy for QuickAndDirtyTips.com – a fun and humorous weekly column and podcast about manners and etiquette. It is as a Top Educational Podcast on iTunes that has helped millions of people.
21. FRAGRANCE BROS (DAVE JOHNSON)
Founder of Fragrance Bros, Dave gives great recommendations when it comes to anything and everything about fragrance. Check out Dave’s page for his fun and honest recommendations.
22. ELITE MENS MAGAZINE (JUSTIN STENSTROM)
Justin created E
lite Man Magazine as a way to help men master their personal, social, and business lives. Once anxious, insecure, depressed, and unhappy, Justin’s overcome many of life’s greatest obstacles and loves nothing more than helping others do the same.
Make sure you check out Justin and Elite Men’s magazine!
23. DIYPETE.COM (PETE SVEEN)
Pete is a c
ontent creator in the DIY and Home Improvement industry who helps and inspires DIY’ers to build and create. His passion for teaching on Youtube has helped people around the world build furniture and accomplish “honey do lists” with ease. Pete is an active outdoorsman and private pilot living in Bozeman, Montana.
This is a phenomenal resource for guys!
24. HIGH FASHION MEN (EVAN MARSHALL)
The source for q
uality brands to expose themselves to a global clientele interested in the world of fashion. With 2.5 million followers, we strive to influence individuals who are seeking fashion innovation. Our goal is to become your personal style coach and to share all the tips, tricks, and tools you will need to live a more eye-catching life.
25. GENT’S LOUNGE (GEORGE LABODA)
George is a master of his cr
aft – his Instagram account is a must-see for anyone looking to grow their following on social media.
George is a television editor turned menswear influencer based in Los Angeles, CA. He co-founded Gent’s Lounge, a menswear education and lifestyle platform in 2013. Using his film background to produce high quality visuals, Gent’s Lounge has gone on to become one of the premiere pages for menswear inspiration and education.
26. REDOLESSENCE (STEVEN GAVRIELATOS)
Steven c
reated Redolessence to shed light on the many functionalities of fragrance. His reviews of a diverse range of fragrances have helped men and women find their perfect olfactory accessory. Whether you’re looking for your signature scent or the perfect cologne for that special occasion, Redolessence can help.
27. GENT’S LOUNGE (BLAKE SCOTT)
Blake is a b
east on Instagram! If you want someone to model your own IG account after – this is your guy!
Blake Scott is a LA native and a digital influencer. His goal with social media is to educate the everyday guy on ways to simply dress better, feel better, and learn more about the world around us.
28. A GENTLEMAN’S JOURNEY (CHAD MCCHESNEY)
A Gentleman’s Journey is catered to the everyday gent looking to expand his knowledge of fragrances, as they go through their own fragrance journey. His channel is about helping men who wants smell good, without breaking their bank account. Chad is relatable to the common man as he is a common man himself.
29. ARIAN NEY
Arian co
mes from my wife’s childhood country of Germany and I really liked that Arian brought his significant other to the Style Con event – he definitely had some major swag points for that!
Arian is a top influencer who proudly presents the best of Instagram from Germany.
He has worked with over 20 prestigious brands and clients on the market such as LVMH (Dom Pérignon), Montblanc, Tissot, and Francesco Maglia.
30. THETRUETRANSFORMATION.COM and FITMANPODCAST.COM (JOSIAH NOVAK)
Shameless plug…
However, I strongly believe my online health and fitness coaching program is the go-to for anyone looking to learn how to implement sustainable and healthy health and fitness habits into their lifestyle.
Being fit is a huge advantage in this world where we are constantly being asked to exceed expectations and deliver quality results in every area of our life.
My specialty is helping busy, successful men transform their entire image – starting with their mindset around health and fitness and then implementing a nutrition and workout strategy that can be executed with ease in their day to day lives.
My podcast – The Fit Man Project – is centered around learning the stories, habits and routines of the most successful people on the planet. Make sure to subscribe on iTunes!
Being Great Starts with Being Fit
-Josiah Novak
