Stuart Marsh is a denim expert. In the past 20 years, he has worked on brands like Levi's and Guess and recently joined Polo South Africa as Creative Brand Director. He shares his expertise on the denim consumer market with usChanges in the local marketThe novelty of the brand has become slightly more diluted than when I started. Brands were very niche at that time, so there was a big hype around wearing Levi's and Guess, for example.Now H&M, Topshop, Zara and Cotton On, with their entry-level prices, have challenged the premium brands who have had to up their game, manage their price points better, and play in different arenas.Local spending habitsIn my opinion, men tend to spend more on jeans than women. Women aren't particularly brand loyal; there are some who may buy top-end and niche, but I think they are more price sensitive than men. Men tend to show more brand loyalty.Material and fabricationEverything has become about stretch in the past two years. There is very little being made in 100% cotton or in rigid fabrics. As a brand, it's important for us to continue with rigid fabric because it gives us authenticity. But we definitely have more stretches in the range than we've had over the past three or four years.Trends that didn't work on the local marketI remember launching Levi's Massive Fit in 1999. It was directed at male and female consumers and Lebo Mathosa and Thembi Seete of Boom Shaka were our brand ambassadors. But the market was not ready for it.It had a very wide leg from the top thigh to the base, and was not very sexy. Although it trended across Europe, people here did not respond well. Coloured jeans have also been disastrous in SA.Trends that work for South AfricansFive years ago, the skinny for men was not big business, but now it is. From Polo's point of view, with the proper launch of women's jeans, we're focusing on a low rise and an ankle crop in the skinny silhouette. We're also focusing on a kick flare and on the girlfriend, not the boyfriend. In the men's jeans, we're about to reposition our fit and we have three new fits for winter 2017...