The barbers started sharpening their blades last spring. According to Robert Brooks, a researcher at the University of New South Wales in Australia, that was when we reached “Peak Beard”. Beards had been thriving for several seasons, reaching ever more biblical – and comical – proportions, but with Brooks’ suggestion that something so ubiquitous must inevitably lose its appeal, the trend’s days were numbered.

Its fate was sealed at the autumn/winter menswear shows in June. Baby-soft skin was everywhere: skins were so smooth at Louis Vuitton, Saint Laurent and Prada that the models appeared almost waxen; there wasn’t a whisker of stubble in sight.

Ironically, the beard’s demise has also been ascribed to its surprisingly time-consuming maintenance. “Men are definitely starting to shave again,” says Mark Tranter, beauty buyer at Selfridges. “They are moving away from the upkeep that comes with a beard and going for a clean shave, which is surprisingly low maintenance. I had a beard but ended up getting rid of it because of the upkeep.”