CREATOR NEWSLETTER
Issue #330 | April 8, 2025
This past weekend, it appeared, for a brief moment, that menswear influencer Derek Guy, aka Dieworkwear, was going to physically fight someone outside the Uniqlo Store in San Francisco.
“Yesterday, someone who follows me told her husband about my tweet,” he tweeted. “He came into my replies and asked me to fight him. I told him to meet me outside Uniqlo. He said he would drive 2.5 hrs, upsetting his wife. His account then got suspended. So I want to apologize to this follower.” The apology was presumably only for the man’s account getting suspended.
Word of the fight quickly spread. Fans even made a countdown pageannouncing the time and location. A Tweet explaining the situation received over 5 million views and over 900 comments. It appeared that initially Guy was going to allow the man to show up at Uniqlo, only to end up disappointed that Guy was not there. Here’s where it gets interesting.
Someone else was apparently interested in fighting Guy. It’s unclear if his conversation with the second man has been deleted or happened over DMs. However, on Saturday, two men, neither of whom were Guy, showed up at Uniqlo and brawled.
“I got into an argument with a couple of ppl here a few days ago,” Guy tweeted. “I told one guy I’m asian; I told the other guy I’m white. I told them both to meet me outside Uniqlo.” You can find the fight here.
For those unfamiliar, “meet me outside Uniqlo” is an obscure men’s fashion meme that dates back to a men’s fashion Tumblr beef from thirteen years ago. Which is to say, even when Derek Guy is trolling his haters, he remembers to stay focused on the brand of his content. He truly is a poster’s poster.
As silly as this interaction was, it’s a powerful example for creators about the importance of not taking your haters so seriously.
Trolls are not people paying for your newsletter. They’re not people who buy your merch or leave positive comments or likes that help your numbers. Trolls are an invading force who show up to your content to distract and annoy you. To that end, creators can take a valuable lesson from Guy: engage with trolls only when it benefits you.
Guy has been one of the rare rising stars of X since the takeover by Elon Musk in October of 2022. In 2022, Guy had 50,000 followers. Blending acerbic wit and a deep understanding of men’s fashion, his account has ballooned to 1.3 million followers.
Part of Guy’s rise has been his hilarious decimation of his trolls. Rather than getting lost in hours-long arguments, he’s turned these sparring sessions into a selling point. People follow him for the fashion tips, and stay for the roasting.
You can get an idea of the long list of his defeated enemies by searching his profile for the term “a murder.” Whether he’s arguing with wrestling promotersabout the cost of t-shirts or right-wing proponents of “traditional masculinity,” Guy stays on topic while delivering fashion-based insults.
Guy uses his trolls as an opportunity to show off his expertise as a historian of menswear. And because he’s so well read on the subject, each interaction reinforces his knowledge and his wit, making him a draw for fans of fashion and roasting alike.
That said, there’s plenty to learn from Guy’s interactions with his trolls. First, know when to step away. Secondly, meet them on your terms. Don’t simply get into a sanctimonious argument with someone wasting your time. If you’re going to clap back, dig into your expertise. Fight in a way that shows your knowledge. Guy makes people laugh while reinforcing his authority on men’s wear.
Don’t feed the trolls unless you can do it in a way that will feed you and your work as well. If you’re sharp enough with your wit and expertise, like Derek Guy, you might be able to get other people to use their fists for you. Even if they think it’s you they’re punching.
– John-Michael Bond, Deputy Editor
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