After 28-year-old art director Jarryd Zankovic gave an interview to advertising and marketing industry publication B&T Magazine, his comments about personal style were posted and then widely criticised on social media sites.

"I get called a hipster, but I f..king hate that description. But you know... beard, no socks, drop crotch – which is really comfortable, especially for a dude who has a bit going on between this legs," Zankovic is quoted in the article titled "Industry Fashionista", which also featured Channel Ten's chief sales officer Louise Barrett.

"I come from a family of beauticians and they've been waxing my eyebrows from the age of 12 to make sure I have two eyebrows and not one. So you can imagine my hair and my beard follows a similar regimen. I get my beard trimmed on a weekly basis. Wow. That sounds so much worse than it actually is," he said.

A photo of the story featuring the acclaimed art director – dressed in low slung pants and a blazer accessorised with a pocket square – was uploaded to Reddit under the headline: "I think this guy just won 'Australia's Biggest Wanker'" and has attracted more than 570 comments, mostly negative, in less than 24-hours.

"We were surprised by the tone of the article, it certainly doesn't reflect Jarryd's nature at all, he's a great guy, who's both talented and grounded. Although he's always well groomed, more than anything he was having a laugh at himself and general stereotypes, some things have been taken out of context," a representative for Zankovic told Fairfax Media.

The spokesman declined to comment on which specific "things" were misconstrued.

B&T were quick to react to the negative commentary and published a follow up story explaining why Zankovic – who was named this year as a rising star on its 30 under 30 list – didn't deserve the moniker of "Australia's biggest wanker".

"The photo essay was a celebration of quirky dressers who spend a little more time than most on curating their own look and style," editor-in-chief David Hovenden said.

"As an industry that is driven by creativity we need to get behind those who wander from the straight and narrow. When a young man who's at the top of his game is flamed by such a bunch of jealous bastards, it is truly an indictment on society.

"Lend your support to him and tell the trolls to f..k off."

The magazine has since kicked off a social media campaign to combat the trolls with the hashtag #teamjarryd.