McLean Mashingaidze-Greaves

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Is this your day-to-day look? I’m usually more casual, but I’ll wear a suit to meetings. I think wearing a suit is pretty unoriginal in the business world, so when I do have to wear one, I like to compromise a little and not totally give in to the suit look. Where did you get this one? I bought it at Boomer, in Toronto, for $500. It’s made by 4 You and it’s linen. The hoodie is by Satori Movement. I got it for $85 on Commercial Drive. It’s hemp, which I like to wear because I’m one of those pro-green, environmentally conscious business guys. Your glasses kind of nail the geek-chic look. They’re my Henry Kissinger glasses. I bought them over the Internet from a retailer in Florida for $150. You have to go online to find good vintage frames. Favourite stores in town? I shop in Toronto. It’s really hard to find stylish men’s clothing in Vancouver. We have a huge gay population that, in my opinion, is pretty stylish, and I don’t know where they shop. Dreadlocks must take a bit of work to maintain. I use The Original Mane ’N Tail shampoo that’s made for horses. Somehow, it’s great for dreadlocks. But it’s hard riding a Vespa and having dreads. I had to order an XXXXXL helmet. You worked in New York for awhile. What’s fashion like there? You can wear anything you want in New York. Nobody cares. People don’t judge you by how you’re dressed. Someone wearing hip-hop clothing could be worth $100 million. Including P. Diddy, who was a client of yours. Did you pick up any fashion tips from him? He would take hip-hop fashion and give it a higher fashion touch. I was into the grunge look and quite the opposite of P. Diddy. But people would always tell me I had “a look.” How does your look help in business? It’s great because people tend to remember me. But that’s also because there’s, like, three or four African Canadians here.