WHEN it comes to office wear, men in Singapore are eschewing dowdy and boring in favour of cool and contemporary clothing. Which is why, three years ago, department store CK Tang decided to launch its answer to fashion forward office wear in the form of a label called Library that was developed by its in-house creative team.

'Then, we had identified a gap in the market with regards to working menswear,' says a spokesman for the store. 'There was a shortage of contemporary and modern looking clothing on offer for the urban professional men that we were hoping to cater to.'

Since then, Library has been a huge hit, particularly with working professional men in their late 20s to 30s.

Boasting a sharp and understated look with its signature lean and well-cut silhouette for all suits and shirts, Library boasts all the sartorial elements reminiscent of bespoke tailoring a la Saville Row but at more attractive prices: Shirts range from $119 to $219 while pants go from $119 to $169.

And to keep the gentlemen polished and sleek at all times, the collection also offers essential quality leather accessories from Italy such as shoes, small leather goods as well as cufflinks and ties to match. Shoes cost from $269 to $349 while accessories and small leather goods range from $89 to $329.

The current Library collection for Spring/Summer '09 boasts good examples of the versatility of brand's offerings. Must-haves include slim-fit long-sleeved shirts with contrast collars and plackets that are made in Italy, leather dress shoes with embossed floral pattern soles and lustrous narrow silk ties.

And come October, expect to see from Library's new Autumn/Winter '09 collection, the same slim-fit long-sleeved shirts but this time with single-tone contrast collars and plackets in black, blue and pink checkered prints. Also watch out for leather dress shoes with embossed floral pattern soles and lustrous narrow silk ties and small leather goods such as cardholders and iPhone covers on embossed lizard skin in black/brown and Library's signature red inner lining.

'We positioned Library as a brand that is competitive even on an international level. The fabrics are all high-quality European fabrics and most of the items are made abroad in countries like Italy,' adds the spokesman.

'A library customer could easily wear his library outfit, get on a plane to New York and immediately wear that outfit to a meeting straightaway and still feel confident in what he is wearing.

Library is exclusively available at Tangs Orchard, Level 3 and Tangs VivoCity, Level 1

This article was first published in The Business Times