Gitman Bros. Vintage president Chris Olberding has made an empire out of gloriously made shirts that scream fun and outfit a significant portion of the oxford wearing population. Don’t know what I’m talking about? You can google Gitman Bros. Vintage then. I’m not here to bore you about why Gitman shirts are so superior or show you some beautifully made video that takes you through his factory and his art making process that is manufacturing, because GQ have already done that for me. I’m talking about Chris to persuade you why personality is such an ENOURMOUS aspect of style, and that people time and time over forget about that. It’s why the internet is flooded with good looking people who have an army following but you don’t quite know what they do, and eventually get bored of them. The thing you can thank those people for, is that they reminded you to scan through your bookmarks or ‘following’ list and un-do the snore-worthy mistakes that your past, ignorant self made in the first place. People who stink of style have so much more than a sweet outfit on. These people are energising to be around, and don’t care about what the rest of the crowd are doing. They walk to their own tune, they are inspired by life, and never so scared of it that they have to copy the creative output of others. This is the Ponytail Journal definition of style, and that’s why we feature great people around the world who inspire us with their rawness and radness. Chris defines personal style much like we do. He told Details magazine that, “Your personal style should be as unique as the way you sign your name. Develop a look that works for and is reflective of who you are. Don’t wear what’s fashionable—unless that does the trick. Wear what works for your body and is comfortable, but don’t forget the importance of proper fit.” A similar song that we sing every style instalment we do here, or over at Vogue. Proof is in the pudding that a great life choice is to pick things that make you happy and keep you comfortable in your skin. This is why I believe that Gitman is such a prolific and successful brand, because it’s held up by great life principles. No bullshit needed. So here are ten necessary life questions we posed to Chris. 1. What did you have for breakfast this morning? Mueslix [Me: Mueslix?] Yeah, like granola, but mixed… With a fresh squeezed orange juice and a macchiato.2. What do you usually smell like? Well today hopefully it’s Molecule because that’s my scent I usually wear, and probably a little bit like Nigel because I just shook his hand [laughs].3. Where would you escape to during a zombie apocalypse? A zombie apocalypse… Where would I escape to? [Me: You gotta have an exit plan…] Ah an exit plan. Well let’s see, we’re in a fort right now, the Fortezza Basso so I would shut the door right? I mean it has a moat. [Me: But what if all the people just turned into zombies? Where would you run to?] Oh gosh, the top of the Campinale right? There we are.4. What’s the best thing about what you’re wearing today? No collar, because it’s warm so it’s very comfortable.5. Tea or Coffee? Coffee6. Winter or Summer? Summer7. What’s the most special vintage piece you own? Ah I have a beautiful 1952 Rolex Tudor [me: Holy Moly!] California dial piece that I bought in Hong Kong.8. What is your ultimate jacket button made of? Horn Bone9. What would you cook for your dream man/woman? That’s a good one since I’m a terrible cook. But, I can make an amazing calf’s liver sauteed with golden apples and shallots. [Me: and you say you’re a bad cook?] It’s two dishes, that’s one of two but I won’t tell you the other!10. But do you even lift bro? Tennis. Yes, I travel with my rackets everywhere. [Me: Have you ever thought of doing a Gitman tennis thing?] Oh yeah almost last season we did wooden racket print, tennis cans, I’ve done cork surfaces, chambrays, yeah so quite a bit. I took a break because I think people got tired of it [laughs]. The feature image above is Chris modelling Gitman’s latest member to the family, the cut-off shirt. Because why not?? Duh.