By Claire Rosemberg
Paris - This year's buzzword in the new and potentially ever-so-big market of renewable men's goods - such as clothes, cosmetics and razor blades - is "metrosexual".
Being a metrosexual has nothing explicitly to do with sex.
It is the latest concept of the modern man (read male consumer) to have emerged from the wow world of trend-spotting and marketing research, itself a burgeoning billions business.
Metrosexual men, according to a study by Euro RSCG Worldwide, a New York based marketing communications agency owned by Havas, are "straight men who know and care about fashion, food, and good grooming, and don't care who knows it."
They are "metro" because they tend to be concentrated in and around big cities, and the "sexual" part is possibly because they are described as being more in touch and comfortable with their feminine sides but "aren't wimps or effeminate in any way", according to the agency.
Ultimate pinup metrosexual is British football star and fashion icon David Beckham, typical of the new class of men aged between 25 and 40, with flat stomachs and thick wallets who enjoy shopping, watch their weight and look after their skin. Beckham wears pink nail-polish, loves diamonds and is fond of his-and-hers outfits when seen with wife, Victoria "Posh Spice".
Interestingly, the word itself was first coined almost a decade ago by British writer Mark Simpson in a slightly tongue-in-cheek description of the effects of consumerism on the then evolving masculine identity.
Commenting on the resurfacing of the term this year, Simpson said in The Independent on Sunday: "It was clear however even in the early 1990s that old-fasioned (re) productive, repressed, unmoisturised masculinity was being given the pink slip by consumer capitalism. The stoic, self-denying, modest straight male didn't shop enough."
The latest definition of the new man, he said, "one less certain of his identity and much more interested in his image ... is an advertiser's walking wet dream."
Marian Salzman, chief strategy officer at Euro RSCG Worldwide, provided a much more flattering portrait of the metrosexual.
"In the 1990s, women had to struggle to win parity with men. In this new century, men - still the dominant gender - are finding the courage to explore the female domain without fear of losing their status as 'real' men."
These men are donkeys' years different from the macho stereotypes crucified by the 90s feminists and are better groomed than the "new-age new-man", also of the 90s.
They want love, family and friendship above fame and glory, "to grow old with a woman I love" and to have happy healthy kids. They are increasingly at ease with their emotions and recognise the need for good grooming.
So here are the men who'll pay for the facials, buy the best suits, choose wine over beer, sculpt their hair and manicure their nails.
They might soon too be seen roaming the new men's jewellery counters, checking out the just-launched lines of lip-gloss and anti-wrinkle cream, and trying out the matching underwear and boxer briefs on offer from the world's top designers.