Alan is wearing: Black suit, €495 and shirt, €130, all by Tiger. Shoes, €395 by Geoffrey West

Alan Kelly

at Gentleman Please

Starting out with a part-time job in Zerep on Grafton Street in the early '80s, 38-year-old Alan Kelly rose fast through the ranks of men's fashion, first as footwear manager in Airwave and then ? at the age of 23 ? as a buyer for Penneys. He went on to Diffneys where he headed up and grew their then-fledgling corporate department. In 2002, he opened slick menswear boutique Gentlemen Please in Blackrock, Co Dublin and now has two more stores in Glasthule and Malahide.

You have been working in men's fashion for over 20 years. How has the landscape changed in Ireland in that time?

There are also a lot more big brand names and larger stores for men in Ireland now than there were for me growing up, although I am wary of too much of the shopping centre fashion. I wish there were more men's boutiques like mine. I love the idea of local shopping, and love that our stores are in villages, that is a big part of the ethos of my business. I would like people to support independents more. I am also disappointed that in a lot of shopes the staff are not trained to the high standards they used to be and customer service can be bad.

Who is your typical customer?

I have very personal relationships with all my good customers and some of them are really top end ? famous TV personalities, actors, high-powered businessmen. I shop for everything from the first date to the day in court to the business meeting in Milan. I do a lot of personal shopping and have about 50 customers whom I shop for each new season.

What makes for a well-dressed man and who gets it right?

I don't buy into any of that "can't wear this if you are tall/small" rule. It's all about confidence. That's what makes a good dresser. The actor Liam Cunningham, who was the face of our stores last year, gets it so right because it's not all about clothes that are cool. He is attractive to women and also liked by men. Craig Doyle (left) is also a really good dresser.

What brands and looks are popular now?

Francois Girbaud is a classical but quirky label which I love and Nicole Fahri is a clean brand with generous fits. John Smedley knits, de Champ ties and shirts and suiting by Gibson are all great. Oh and everyone should have a pair of David Bitton jeans as worn by Brad Pitt, Ewan McGregor and Ben Affleck.

Any tips for what's next in men's fashion?

Shirting has become more muted and there are more solid prints in shirts now rather than the brights we saw before.