Jeffrey Ampratwum is a creative director, stylist, and educator specialising in menswear. I met Jeffrey in March of this year and was immediately drawn to his abundance of energy. In his own words, Jeffrey is "the guy who will dance at all your parties (and drink all of your champagne)." Having got to know him better, this description fits.

Outside of his obligations as life of the party, Jeffrey is dutifully committed to his work. He is passionate, admirably so, and he approaches styling with a respect and ingenuity that is rare in an era of trend-mania and throw-away fashion.

I am unable to define Jeffrey's personal style—something I think he'll be pleased to hear. Jeffrey's outfits are spirited but always smart, influenced by tradition but never predictable. He certainly has style trademarks—"some people know me as ‘Babushka Boy’"—and his influences—"Renaissance art, Parisian art deco, and contemporary New York"—are evident in equal measures but still a definitive descriptor eludes me. I come to realise this is because there is far more to a Jeffrey-ensemble than the clothes. The context in which an outfit is seen in, is as important as the garments themselves. One must set the stage. "The surroundings, the look, the delivery, the conversation. For me, that is style."

Jeffrey is intriguing. His style turns heads. But, it is his understanding of fashion's pivotal role in how we interact with both ourselves and others that I am most fascinated by. I ask Jeffrey to dial in from across the pond to talk me through his perspective, his process, and the origins of his signature style.

Raised in New York

Jeffrey dials in from a park bench in the centre of his city, unfazed by the incessant traffic, ambling onlookers, and an inquisitive pooch that joins us mid-call—a true New Yorker. After all, New York is the city that raised him. And it is the city that continues to inspire him.

Jeffrey sets the scene. "I'm sitting here, my birthplace actually: the Bronx, New York. There is an extremely creative atmosphere." The Bronx is also the birthplace of hip-hop. Jeffrey grew up apace with the Hip Hop movement, his childhood soundtracked by new funk-inspired beats. "We wanted to emulate what we saw. So during our downtime, it was basketball or it was hip-hop music. [This is] before we had the phones. We were forced to come outside and do things!"

Jeffrey credits his environment growing up with nurturing his creativity. But perhaps the biggest influence of all came from even closer to home, his mother. Jeffrey's mother took pride in her appearance, despite being a single parent she would always find the time to make an effort. Jeffrey started paying closer attention to his mother's morning routine and realised that the ritual was about more than hygiene or habit. He realised she was creating a look. And that it was really important to her. Observing his mother allowed Jeffrey to draw the correlation between getting dressed up, and feeling good about yourself. "I knew that when my mother put on certain things, it made her feel better. I think that's where my first love for dressing women came from."

Jeffrey reflects, "I was melting into this creative being, but I didn't necessarily know it. As I started high school, I began to express my creativity in my wardrobe and by drawing on things." And yet, a career in fashion—or a creative career, full stop—never felt like an option to Jeffrey. "Being from West Africa, Ghana specifically, you're not encouraged to go into the arts. It's either you're going to be a lawyer, a doctor, an engineer, or… just go back into the womb!" When Jeffrey attempted to marry his innate creativity with a family-approved profession, he got dentistry. "I'm left-handed, but I think with the right side of my brain. I coordinate well. I'm artistic. I can draw. I need to appease my family. I love a great smile. I love to smile. I like to be around people who smile. It made sense." Jeffrey packed his bags and set course for dental school in Tennessee.

Jeffrey has never lost his love of a great smile but, as one may have already assumed, his dentistry career was short lived. After graduating, Jeffrey admitted that his heart was still elsewhere and so returned to New York and found work at a non-profit. After three years, Jeffrey came to the realisation that "the American passport is a thing of luxury" and decided it was time to take advantage of that. To figure out his destination, he looked back to his roots. "I'm nostalgic. I love my past and as such I have always loved vintage. I wanted to feel like I was living back in the '80s." He settled on Paris.

Paris, the city of dreams

Many become enamoured by tales of Parisian romance but complain that Paris never lives up to expectations. For Jeffrey, the beauty of Paris never became an illusion. "The imagination of Paris made me feel like I was living in another life. Or, even living a life that I had lived before. Paris is very different after dark. A lot of the characters start to come out when the sun goes down, you get to experience the great and the raw of Paris."

In Paris, Jeffrey was finally able to pursue fashion, and he took no hesitation in doing so. Almost immediately after touching down in this foreign city, Jeffrey slid into the DMs of an art curator and built a partnership that allowed him to find his feet as a stylist. The pair collaborated on a fashion editorial shoot outside of the Louvre—Jeffrey acting as stylist, art director, and production manager. I note that many aspire to this level of proactivity, but Jeffrey does not indulge in self-praise. He shrugs, "My attitude has always been, I'm gonna get up and go do it." Simple.

Paris was just the beginning. Jeffrey also nestled his way into the fashion scene in Stockholm, and then London. He recalls his travels by the outfits that defined them, his style evolving and adapting based on the vibe of his surroundings. For Jeffrey, fashion became a way to document the stories he encountered along the way. He tells me of his collection of lace dresses that became a travelling canvas. Jeffrey dressed models across Europe in the same dresses and after painted each individual's story upon the dress in red wine and acrylic. Each dress a documentation of the people he had met and the stories they had told. More than just a keepsake of his travels, the dresses helped Jeffrey to recognise himself as a 'real' stylist, "It was a confirmation of my ode to fashion. I realised I was good at what I was attempting to do and people appreciated it." Upon reflection, Jeffrey, pinpoints this experiment as the catalyst to his becoming a creative director.

Jeffrey's rite of passage into the industry was not an easy journey. He explains that there was a time when Paris really beat him up. "You can't be a poser in the arts. The French are tough. When you come in from the outside saying you're an artist, they say 'prove it'." Jeffrey rose to the challenge.

The student becomes the master

Jeffrey returned from Europe armed with a new found self-belief and a clear sense of direction. He enrolled at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) and completed a fashion styling programme. At college, Jeffrey set up a mentoring programme for younger students. In his own words, "I made it cool to be smart, I made it cool to get all As. And I offered a new perspective on how to obtain information." Jeffrey speaks the language of menswear, but more importantly he knows how to convey it to others. His evident enthusiasm for education, accompanied by his command of the subject set him on a path which culminated in landing the role as lead educator on the menswear programme at FIT.

Jeffrey continues to teach Menswear Styling at The Fashion Institute of Technology, a role in which he takes great pride. "I think I'm really good at what I do. I'm probably one of the best in the menswear teaching space, in the way that I teach it." And that is because Jeffrey's criteria for success deviates from the traditional A-F grading system. Jeffrey sees his course, and fashion more generally, as a vehicle for young people to explore their strengths, express themselves, and find their true calling. "I've always been big into education. I think that stems from my childhood, being the only child and always feeling like I needed mentorship. We all have some form of innate creativity. My job is to help my students tap into that and then find out where they can excel best. By doing that, we can find the best you. I have a lot of students who are now in PR, design, hair and makeup—nothing to do with styling at all." Jeffrey's own tough journey into the industry means he is committed to not letting other young people walk in blind. He explains, "As we all know, most of the time we go to school and we come out doing something totally different from what we thought. My students are no exception. Logistically, I think it's good to talk about industry practices and where you can have a career in other areas. It's important that they know they have options. I want the next generation to enter the industry with accurate expectations."

Jeffrey is teaching the future of the fashion industry, but his syllabus is rooted in history. "I go through the whole history of menswear in my class. An understanding of that history has been important to me as a personal reference, and I think it is a great checkpoint for all." By teaching students to appreciate the value of dress through time, Jeffrey hopes his students can find their own respect for dress. "My dad's generation would never go to a dinner without a jacket. Think about your dad, granddad, great grandad in their overcoats and their ties." To Jeffrey, inheriting a generational hand-me-down is a great honour. "Not only are these quality pieces, but they also tell a great story." The idea of storytelling through dress is integral to Jeffrey's teachings at FIT.

Jeffrey is conscious that his classes are equal measures challenge and fun. Jeffrey talks me through a go-to exercise in his curriculum: a pile of random garments is laid out on a table and Jeffrey gives his students 3 minutes to rummage through and piece together "the key look". Once the students have presented their outfits of choice, Jeffrey will announce that nobody made the grade and instead show them the look he would have compiled. At that moment—and this is his favourite part—he can guarantee a flurry of objections. I can see Jeffrey's genuine delight as he narrates the scene that follows. Naturally, the students begin to defend and justify their looks and Jeffrey is often forced to admit that they have a good point. "Fashion is subjective and it's open to interpretation. So I often leave the classroom thinking, 'You know what? That person was kind of right.'"

These teachings then move with Jeffrey into his work in the industry. When someone offers up an idea he hasn't yet considered, he is conditioned to respond with, “Let's try it!” Jeffrey also credits his students with helping him keep pace in today's ever-evolving digital landscape, "My students are utilising platforms like Pinterest and TikTok more and more. I can't continue to use PDFs and PowerPoint presentations and gradually become outdated. I'm always welcoming new technologies and new conversations from the students. It helps us all to grow. It's always good to get different perspectives, and I get that from my students."

Building a brand

Jeffrey is always searching for the new approach. In his work as a fashion director, he is keen to pioneer new visual narratives. With his own fashion brand, he is pushing the possibilities of what it means for fashion to be an experience.

Jeffrey is the co-founder of luxury goods brand Ken Jeffreys. "A buddy that I met in college and I made a vow to both become dentists. He saw it through, I didn’t. But more importantly, we stayed friends. He's Kenny, and I'm Jeffrey—KenJeffreys. The brand is built on the idea of appreciating and elevating the experience of travel—undoubtedly informed by Jeffrey's own experience travelling at the start of his career. Now, the KenJeffreys product range includes a unisex fragrance, bespoke shoes for women and men, and a collection of handbags. All is made to order, in line with Jeffrey's commitment to sustainable practices.

Ever a connoisseur of trends and culture, Jeffrey set out to build a luxury brand with lifestyle at its core. The products are not simply practical accessories for use when travelling; they are emblems of the beauty of travel itself. Jeffrey explains, "The act of arriving at the airport and settling into your business class seat, what does that feel like? When you get to the hotel, what are you wearing? When you open the door to your room, what is the fragrance? What is your experience getting ready for dinner? Foggy bathroom mirrors wiped with a fresh cotton towel—these are the moments that we want to capture. That for us is a luxury travel brand."

The journey with Ken Jeffrey's has just begun. Bottling the essence of travel and capturing the mood of exploration has endless possibilities. Jeffrey envisions it as so, "I believe in the near future I will be incorporating more bespoke wear and suits to my collection. The levels of customisation will be endless and allow me to play in various areas of menswear aesthetics on the highest level. I’m excited for that!"

Ken Jeffreys exemplifies the same simple principle that has guided Jeffrey's interest in fashion to date. In his own words, "We want to look good and smell good. Because if you do, then you feel good. And then you perform well. All these things are important."

Put on your best shoes

Teaching the next generation of fashion enthusiasts and heading a new-wave lifestyle brand are mammoth tasks in themselves. But what about conveying the value of style to a seemingly fashion-averse generation?

Many emerged from the pandemic happy to roam the streets in their sweatpants, but Jeffrey is not too keen on the trend. "There's been a shift in dress culture. The pandemic and the rise of working from home have been taken by some as an excuse not to groom, not to get dressed up." Flip-flops have become a staple at cocktail bars and sports shorts have found entry into jazz clubs.

Jeffrey attributes this to a lack of understanding of and appreciation for dress culture. "I think some men are using it as an excuse; not knowing how to dress for an occasion, versus not knowing how to dress at all."

In an attempt to combat this style epidemic, Jeffrey compiled his style philosophy into a Menswear style guide—a ‘how-to’ on dressing for a metropolis: New York, London, Stockholm, Paris etc. A physical style guide could be deemed superfluous in an age where a majority seek quick style inspo on social media but it aligns perfectly with Jeffrey's appreciation for presentation, quality, and story. The guide is certainly not a rule book—Jeffrey doesn't abide by fashion rules—but it does enforce just one: enjoy it. "I love to have good fun with fashion. That's my thing. The most important questions: Is it fun? Is it enjoyable?"

What Jeffrey teaches in his book is more than the intricacies of matching a tie to a blazer. Instead, Jeffrey repositions the act of getting dressed as a manifestation of your attitude to life. It is not so much about the shirt you choose, as it is the fact you consciously chose it. In doing so, you have displayed a willingness to put in effort for yourself and others, and will find more fruitful connection and opportunities as a result. Jeffrey explains, "You don't have to be in a three-piece suit every time you leave your house. But certain events are important: dinners, weddings, galas." Jeffrey reasons that that if we lose the art of, or care for, dressing for these events, then we lose our chance for allure, enchantment and sexiness. Without that, what do we have to look forward to? How do we as individuals feel about ourselves? And how are we being perceived by others?

Jeffrey doles out a harsh truth: "Whether we like it or not, people judge you based on your appearance." As a society, we spend a lot of time trying to deny that fact. But in doing so, are we leaving young people ill-equipped to navigate the world of work?

Jeffrey is very aware of the barriers to entry imparted across all industries—"I look back now and think, 'Hey, I'm from the Bronx, how does this even work?'"—but he is determined to not let appearance be yet another barrier to entry for young people who grew up in the same place he did. So, he has made it his mission to educate the young men of New York on the importance of style. "You can't be sloppy if you're going for the interview. You have to put in some effort in order to get to a certain place in your life, and that can start with getting dressed."

Jeffrey and his partner, Ken, set up a social programme to help young people understand the value of being well-groomed—and how to do it. The pair visit colleges across the US and deliver a taste of the KenJeffreys experience, including style assessments, dressing for work tutorials, lessons on general grooming, and even a dental screening. Because, as Jeffrey explains, "It's an entire package. Think about it; you can't be dressed smart and looking great but chatting with food in your teeth—oh God!" Jeffrey's outburst is both a nod to his dentistry days and evidence of his understanding of style as a whole package, not just a choice of clothing.

With his teaching, his book, and his social programme, Jeffrey wants to offer young people a helping hand in making their way in the world. Style holds the same value today as it always has. Jeffrey explains, "Things change. Music, beauty, communication, everything changes. But we cannot go outside naked. That's never gonna change. Well, maybe we might come to that one day…" But for now, putting on your best suit still goes a long way.

After an hour chatting to Jeffrey I am left with a renewed energy, a new found pride in my appearance, and a reluctance to slip back into my hoodie. I have just one question final question before we part ways, one that is over-worn but interesting when posed to the right person: Does fashion change lives? Jeffrey smiles, nods, and says, "I'll start with me. Fashion gives me both the energy to want to create and the physical space to do so. Fashion also gives you the capacity to leave a mark, a legacy, if you will. Creating something that continues to give. When both your passion and your purpose marry, I think you've satisfied your hunger. That is where I am now, and that is what I am trying to build for the students. My leadership role is about helping them find their passion and then seeing where it fits into the lexicon of fashion because there are a plethora of roles that they can apply their greatness to. Fashion gives me an outlet to continue to create. They say when you love what you do, you don't work a day in your life."

Connect with Jeffrey on Instagram. Learn more about his work on his website.