What Is Sizing Like at Martine Rose?

Martine Rose runs big — and that's completely deliberate. This is a label built on exaggerated, subversive proportions, so the roomy fit isn't a mistake, it's the whole point. The trick is knowing when to lean into it and when to quietly size down.

Let me tell you about the first Martine Rose piece I ever pulled for a shoot. It was a boxy panelled tee, and the stylist's assistant took one look at the model — a lean 38" chest — and reached straight for the medium. On the rail it looked enormous. On the body it looked exactly right: dropped shoulders sitting halfway down the upper arm, a long, loose body, that off-kilter silhouette Rose is famous for. My own early fail with the label was the opposite. I bought a shirt in my "safe" size to wear under a jacket, and it swamped me — sleeves past the knuckle, collar practically at my collarbone. Lesson learned: with this brand you have to decide what look you're actually after before you pick a size.

Does Martine Rose Run Big or Small?

It runs big, and it runs unconventional. Martine Rose has been shaping London menswear since 2007, and the house signature is distorted tailoring — elongated bodies, dropped or extended shoulders, exaggerated collars and generous, relaxed cuts. Nothing here is meant to sit close to the body like a classic slim-fit brand. Here's how it breaks down:

The overall verdict: most pieces are cut one size larger than a high-street equivalent. If you want the intended, designed-in volume, take your usual size. If you want a cleaner, less oversized shape, drop one down.
Sizing system: tailoring and knitwear use lettered sizes (XXS–XXL) mapped to Italian numbering (roughly 42–54), while jeans and some trousers are cut to waist inches (26–38). It's worth checking which system a given product uses.
Shoulders sit low on purpose. If a jacket feels like the shoulder seam is past your natural shoulder, that's the design — not a fault to "fix" by sizing down.

Tailoring, coats and blazers

This is the heart of the brand and where the exaggeration is most obvious. The double-breasted coats and relaxed-fit tailored trousers are engineered to look architectural and slightly "wrong" in the best way. For a coat, take your true size and enjoy the drama. For the tailored trousers — often high-waisted with a roomy leg — your usual waist works, but expect a fuller thigh and a longer rise than you're used to.

Jeans and denim

Rose's denim spans high-waisted, relaxed and zip-hem cuts, all with real volume through the leg. Buy to your natural waist measurement rather than your "vanity" size, because the waistbands are honest. If you're between waists, the relaxed cuts hold up fine sized down; the high-waisted styles are less forgiving, so stick to your true measurement.

T-shirts, sweatshirts and knitwear

The oversized tees, raglan sweatshirts and mohair knits are designed to drape. A medium here wears like an XL on the high street. My rule of thumb:

Want the full Martine Rose look? Take your normal size and let it billow.
Want something you can layer neatly under a coat? Size down one — you'll keep the relaxed feel without disappearing into the fabric.
Tall guys, take note: the long bodies actually work in your favour here, so you rarely need to go up for length.

How to Style Martine Rose Without Looking Like You're Wearing a Tent

The single biggest mistake I see is head-to-toe volume. Oversized on oversized just reads as "lost my shape." The whole craft of wearing subversive tailoring is balance:

Pair volume with a taper. A billowing tee or boxy shirt wants a trouser that pulls in somewhere — a cropped or tapered leg, or a hem that breaks cleanly on the shoe.
Anchor with footwear. Roomy trousers sit beautifully over a chunky trainer or a solid Derby. A dainty shoe under all that fabric looks off.
Let one piece do the shouting. If the coat is the statement, keep everything under it quiet and fitted. Restraint is what makes the exaggeration land.
Mind the shoulder line. Because shoulders drop by design, keep your layers underneath slim so the silhouette reads intentional rather than accidental.

Get the proportion right and Martine Rose is some of the most quietly confident menswear going. Get it wrong and you're swimming. Which is exactly why nailing the size before you buy matters more here than almost anywhere else.

Brands to Know if You Love Martine Rose

Whether you're building towards the real thing or want the relaxed, subversive spirit at a friendlier price, here's where I'd send you across three tiers — all chosen because they genuinely speak the same language.

High street & accessible

COS — the most obvious gateway. Architectural, oversized, minimal and cut with real intent. Their boxy shirts and relaxed trousers give you Rose-adjacent proportion for a fraction of the outlay.
Weekday — the Scandi label leans hard into loose, slightly off silhouettes and generous denim. Brilliant for experimenting with volume before you commit to designer money.

Independent & boutique

YMC (You Must Create) — a London institution doing relaxed, subtly subversive basics with a proper design point of view. Their trousers and overshirts sit in exactly the right easy register.
Wax London — considered, craft-led menswear with texture and a slightly artful cut. The Whiting overshirt is a modern classic and layers a treat.
Nicholas Daley — a British designer blending heritage tailoring with subcultural nods. If you love that Rose sits between the tailored and the streetwise, Daley works the same seam.

Designer & luxury

JW Anderson — Jonathan Anderson's playful, proportion-bending menswear is a natural neighbour. Expect the same appetite for distorting a familiar shape into something new.
Kiko Kostadinov — technical, sculptural and unmistakably contemporary. For the customer who wants the avant-garde cut turned up a notch, this is the pick.
Bianca Saunders — an award-winning London designer whose whole practice is about fit and the way fabric moves on the body. Deeply relevant if it's the tailoring innovation you're drawn to.

Stop Guessing Your Size — Match Your Body to 1,500+ Brands Instantly

Martine Rose is exactly the kind of label where a wrong guess is an expensive mistake. That's where Tellar comes in — the UK's leading sizing tool, matching your exact measurements to over 1,500 brands so you never squint at a size guide again.

Measure once — using your bust, waist, hip, or an existing brand size you already own.
Use the Store Size Lookup tool to get your precise size in any brand — COS, Reiss, Everlane, Arket and more.
Shop with confidence — no guesswork, fewer returns, better-fitting purchases.
Always free, no downloads — it works straight in your browser.

→ Find your size in any store→ Learn how to measure (men)

Plus the Tellar Fashion Hub — a growing library of free posts from our top stylists. Honest. Unbiased. Independent. Always free. Style advice, top picks and the best brands, all in one place.

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The Bottom Line

Martine Rose runs big by design, not by accident. Take your true size for the intended oversized silhouette, or drop one down for a cleaner, more layerable shape — and let one piece carry the volume while everything else stays fitted. Do that, and you'll wear one of the most interesting labels in British menswear like it was cut for you. And before you spend a penny, run your measurements through Tellar so the only surprise is how good it looks.

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Tellar is always honest, unbiased and unsponsored. We don't take payment from the brands we mention — recommendations are based purely on genuine stylist expertise and how these clothes actually fit and wear.