All geek and no chic: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg tops GQ magazine's list of worst-dressed men

By Daisy Dumas


Ctrl, Alt, DELETE: Mark Zuckerberg tops GQ's list of worst-dressed men

Consummate nerd and Harvard drop-out he may be, Mark Zuckerberg also happens to be one of the most powerful men in the world.

But for all of his billions of dollars, technological genius and philanthropoligical leanings, the co-founder of Facebook remains a very, very bad dresser.

So bad, in fact, that GQ magazine has just voted 27-year-old Zuckerberg the 'worst dressed man in Silicon Valley.'

Califiornia's technological enclave is, of course, no Milan runway, but to top the list at so young an age and ahead of so many other fashion culprits, is impressive to say the least.

No stranger to lists, Zuckerberg was named Time magazine's Person of the Year in 2010, but this time, the onus is on the entrepreneur to sharpen up his sartorial acumen.

GQ says: 'Nerds run the world. But with their notoriously horrid fashion choices, some dotcom entrepreneurs could use a style IQ boost. While their tech innovations deserve kudos, their outfits are one giant leap back for mankind.'

But Zuckerberg takes the crown, his poorly-fitting jeans, penchant for flip-flops, old-fashioned ties and badly-cut blazers, as immortalised in the Oscar-winning movie, The Social Network, all contributing to the position.

GQ says of the young man's dubious style: 'Oblivious to the fact that jeans and ties come in skinny sizes — or that suits exist — the father of Facebook (and we do mean father) loves to recycle the fresh-from-Stats-class look.'

Flop flop: Multibillionaire and Harvard drop-out Zuckerberg loves a baggy jean, an Adidas flip flop and teenage fabourite, hoodies


Sean Fennessey, editor of GQ.com, told MailOnline: 'It's not necessarily the casual nature of his look - wealth doesn't insist on suits and opulence. Look where that got the Winklevoss twins. It's the fit and the form that put him at the top of our list.

His advice for the Zuck? 'Tailor. Tailor. Tailor. The man has an estimated worth close $18 billion. He could buy Savile Row if he wanted.'

Their '15 worst offenders' also include Howard Stringer, Chairman of Sony Corp - who is mocked for looking like he is a amateur angler - and Microsoft's Bill Gates, whom GQ believes resembles an aged Harry Potter, channelling 'lazy preppy.'

Steve Jobs also makes it onto the rollcall, his offence being the 'self-inflicted uniform' of 'black turtleneck, dad jeans and Seinfeld kicks.'

It is not just GQ who have judged Zuckerberg. So risible is his style that it has inspired the creation of a spoof fashion label, Mark by Mark Zuckerberg. The label's site, a tongue-in-cheek nod to Marc by Marc Jacobs' eponymous spin-off, is a treasure trove of all things geek.

Anything Mark can do: Zuckerberg's bad taste has inspired mock fashion label and style site, Mark by Mark Zuckerberg


The online shop features a range of Zuckerberg-esque garments, all of which are very much within the price range of the Palo Alto local, who is worth an estimated $13.5billion.

There is a $32 bathrobe, $6 Hanes socks - 'both Mark and his chosen socks are characteristically plain and lumpy,' - $46 elasticated jeans and his favourite Adidas flip-flops. There is even a motif-emblazoned tote bag, aka 'The Goldman Sack.'

Thankfully, says GQ, the mock site doesn't actually sell any clothing.

Now, there's nothing wrong with a dash of geek chic - just ask the drifts of celebrities who cannot stop themselves from buying into the heavy-rimmed specs look. David Beckham, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears are all sudden converts to bespectacled cool, seemingly take a lead from the hipsters in London's East End and New York's Williamsburg areas.

Whether they pull it off or not is another question.

Celebri-geek: David Beckham, left, and Britney Spears are two of many celebs who have both bought into geek cool, though their true nerdiness is in doubt


Where edgy stylists, notably Grace Woodward, have years led the pack in geek chic, the hordes joining them have catapulted the erstwhile nerd's staples - heavy-rimmed black spectacles, shirts buttoned to the neck, high jeans, rolled-up trouser pegs - onto the high street.

Granted, Zuckerberg is a very busy man. But there is a distinct lack of chicness - not so much a hint of elevatory irony - about Zuckerberg's wardrobe choices that land him squarely in geekdom.

Only time will tell, but could grandpa-style flip-flops, dressing gowns and white socks become the new word in urban cool?

Mr Fennessey is hopeful we'll all be spared: 'Safe to say, the Zuck isn't birthing any style trends. We're thankful for that.'

TECH ENTREPRENEUR BECOMES A MALE MODEL

Elsewhere in the world of geek chic, Tumblr founder David Karp has just become a new model for Japanese fashion brand, Uniqlo.

The shaggy-haired, blue-eyed pin-up of fashionable nerdiness's new role as a male model is squarely at odds with the tech geek style we've seen in the GQ list.

Not just a prety face: David Karp is the founder of Tumblr and leads the way in making technology model-worthy


The 25-year-old New Yorker, reportedly worth an estimated $10million, is refreshingly white-sneakers and flip-flop free.

In a Uniqlo video, the blogging entrepreneur speaks about the success of Tumblr as a platform for creativity, while wearing a Uniqlo outfit. And pulls it off without pair of ubiquitous heavy-rimmed specs in sight.

Unique geek: Karp is one tech nerd who really can claim the title geek chic as he models for Uniqlo


source:dailymail