After helping to launch the influential online men’s fashion retailer in 2011, Toby Bateman returned to the company last year as CEO. In a new edition of Off The Clock, the fashion veteran answers 30 of our most pressing questions.
Welcome to Off The Clock
Forget talking points. ‘Off The Clock’ is all about the little gems our interviewees share once the cameras stop rolling and the keynote ends. Each edition, we nail down individuals of exceptional intrigue – from the worlds of culture, commerce, and spaces in-between – for a casual, yet far-reaching convo.
Think of it as a portrait drawn from 30 unrehearsed, quickdraw questions: always over a coffee or (several) excellent cocktails.
Sitting down to lunch in some subterranean pasta den beneath Sydney’s CBD, I’m struck by the total ease in Toby Bateman’s attire. The CEO of Mr Porter, who has had to contend with jet lag and a pitstop in Singapore 24 hours prior, is the quintessential 21st-century gentleman: clad in a vintage Rolex Explorer, Japanese designer outerwear and shirting from the company’s eponymous Mr. P range.
The totality of his look lands dramatically, not least because style writers like myself – in the elder millennial cohort – recall a time when Mr Porter was synonymous with Italian tailoring, natty English brogues and an aesthetic grounded more generally in formal dress codes. That was the look when Bateman, along with such contemporaries as Jeremy Langmead, first launched Mr Porter.
Initially an e-commerce platform specialising in what is termed ‘craft menswear’ by enthusiasts, it was sold, along with womenswear business Net-a-Porter, to the Richemont group in 2010. Bateman was instrumental in establishing Mr Porter’s reputation in its early years – championing an editorial approach to marketing, and introducing the brand’s dedicated luxury watch business.
He resigned in 2019, but was eventually convinced by Michael Kliger, CEO of LuxExperience, to mount something of a homecoming. The Dutch luxury group acquired both Net-a-Porter and Mr Porter from Richemont in 2024.
Evidently, for Bateman, the challenge of evolving a men’s fashion business he had helped create, now gripped by a much different commercial and cultural climate, was too intriguing to pass up.
Over a searingly cold martini and platefuls of tajarin, I learn he is in Sydney in his newish official capacity as CEO for the very first time. A small delegation of Mr Porter communications and client relations execs in tow, Bateman’s personal presence down under is confirmation of the promise Australia holds.
In the last 18 months, the market has become one of Mr Porter’s 10 best-performing regions globally – finding favour with male shoppers, many in their forties, who gravitate toward the company’s fast shipping, robust customer support and deep roster of more than 300 brands.
“Fifteen years on, what’s refreshing is that we continue to be a product-focused business,” says Bateman. “Our job is to bring the world’s best menswear to our customers, so product is always front and centre. Of course, it’s how we position brands, alongside storytelling, that sets us apart.”
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A compelling line-up of designers ranging from Rubinacci to Graphpaper, and the right communications context, are two of “three pillars”, as Bateman calls them, powering Mr Porter. But it is ‘service’ – a deceptively all-encompassing idea – where the opportunities to futureproof the company’s business are at their most strategic.
“We work off a model, to be transparent, where roughly 4 per cent of our customers deliver 40 per cent of the revenue,” says Bateman. “So it’s very important that we look after them: often through our personal shopping teams in London, Hong Kong and New York.”
Beyond the daily work of providing early access to coveted stock and round-the-clock consultation, Mr Porter’s personal shoppers are frequently on the frontline of the company’s efforts to offer the highest possible calibre of clienteling.
As affluent consumers become ever more immune to brands’ attempts to pry open their wallets, online fashion retailers have doubled down on experiences that enable them to leverage diverse brand portfolios and deep relationships in a range of complementary industries.
This can take the form, as Bateman explains, of a short summer escape to Porto Cervo in the company of the Zegna family. And one Mads Mikkelsen.
Citing another example, Bateman and a handful of notable clients were in Piedmont during truffle season several weeks ago – celebrating the launch of a new Canali capsule that “takes its colours from the Langhe”, made expressly for Mr Porter.
Having previously also worked in luxury watches and top-end department stores, Bateman is cognisant that events of this scope are now virtually a prerequisite for securing VIP loyalty. “We’re talking about men with considerable means at their disposal. If they want to go skiing in St Moritz, they can easily afford to do so,” he says.
“For us, it’s not necessarily a question of money, but rather, relationships. Last summer, we had six guys lunching with Paul Smith in his office, because that’s literally all the space would accommodate. These are the kinds of experiences you can’t simply pick up the phone and pay for.”
Below, Bateman takes a break from his frenetic schedule to tell Forbes Australia about the memories, tips and wisdom he’s accrued while running the world’s most famous online menswear retailer.
- The first thing you notice upon entering a room?
The smell. - A scent that transports you back to your childhood?
Petrol and mechanic’s oil. My dad was always tinkering with his old MG. - One item of clothing you’ll wear until the seams unravel?
Correction: ‘worn’. I had a knitted Missoni blazer in navy blue, more akin to a cardigan. I wore it until it literally did unravel. - An accessory you never leave home without?
My watch. - Your morning ‘ritual’ to kickstart the day?
Press-ups. - The last thing you do before you go to bed?
Take magnesium glycinate tablets. - Your desert island album – you can only pick one.
Highway 61 Revisited. - The most enjoyable meal you’ve ever had?
A classic Sunday roast at home. - For your go-to beverage – wine or cocktail?
Vodka martini. Filthy. - What to order, when somebody else is paying?
Lobster.
- The most important meeting in your daily/weekly calendar?
Our weekly global trade meeting. - The biggest productivity killer?
Prevarication. - The last thing you splurged on (and don’t regret)?
A suede jacket from Zegna. - A ‘guilty pleasure’ you’ll never give up?
Dark chocolate in the evening, preferably while watching TV. - Night owl or morning person?
Previously a night owl, now a morning person. - The quality you look for in colleagues and collaborators?
A good sense of humour. - One rule – in life or work – you absolutely swear by?
Work hard. Be nice. - The most significant risk you’ve ever taken?
Taking my first job at Mr Porter before we launched. - The best piece of writing you’ve read – whether fiction or nonfiction – in the past year?
Open, Andre Agassi’s memoir. - A city you keep returning to. Why?
Vienna. It’s beautiful, and also close to where my wife’s family live.
- The last great holiday you went on?
Sailing in Greece this past summer. - A film to watch over and over again?
Anything from the original Jason Bourne trilogy. - The thing most people get wrong about your profession/industry?
That we basically just choose clothes. - A talent you wish you had?
Piano playing. - Dinner guest – living or deceased – you’d most want at your table?
Stephen Fry. To my mind, he must be the smartest, funniest and most interesting person alive. - The most memorable moment of your career?
Taking the Mr Porter gig. Twice. - The most pressing challenge facing your industry?
Discounting. - The mentor who taught you the most?
Paul Kelly, former CEO of Selfridges. - One thing you believed in 25 years ago that you’ve since abandoned?
That it matters what people think. - Three words you’d want to hear at your eulogy?
“A good man.”
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