New underwear designs put squeeze on men's midsections
By Ellen Warren
Chicago Tribune
(MCT)
When it comes to underwear, men are the new women.
Guys are experimenting with color and styles. In fact, bucking a dismal retail trend, men's underwear sales are up.
And — get this — men are starting to discover "body shapers" to smooth their love handles, lift their posteriors and knock off a few pounds without dieting. In short, men are discovering the benefits of the male equivalent of Spanx.
For the most basic needs, it's not just boxers or briefs anymore. Sure, the classic "tighty whitey" is here to stay as an underwear staple, but there's all sorts of fashion lurking beneath a man's boring khakis these days.
"The waistband has become almost the primary selling feature," says Cohen, especially among young men who wear their pants low to show off the "Hugo Boss" or "Calvin Klein" emblazoned at the hip.
The latest and most startling development down under, however, is what some are calling the "mirdle" — as in men's girdle.
NPD statistics for the first eight months of 2009 show sales down in every apparel category except men's underwear, where sales are up 3.2 percent over the same period last year.
"Men's underwear is a very, very good indication of the state of the economy," says Cohen.
Because the underpants index is in positive territory, it shows consumers are not cutting back on all spending.
That, says Cohen, indicates that the recession is winding down and recovery is closer than many economists are predicting.
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HE'S MAN ENOUGH TO TEST THE MIRDLE
Women are accustomed to suffering for beauty: stilettos, eyebrow tweezing, underwire bras, pantyhose, bikini waxing — the list of indignities goes on and on.
His report: "At 38, I still fret about looking fat, but I'm now more willing to publicly humiliate myself. Besides, what if it worked?
"It felt tight, like I was putting on a shirt a size or two too small. Once the chest was in place, I grabbed ahold of each side of the shirt and yanked the stretchy part over my stomach.
"Oooomph. I felt like I was making sausage of myself. I imagined a video of this process would go viral in seconds. I'd never felt less sexy.
"Not surprisingly, I suppose, it felt like what I'd always imagined a girdle must feel like. My gut was definitely pressed in from all sides. There was no jiggling going on. While it didn't make me look like I had rock-hard abs, it definitely gave my stomach and the rest of me better definition.
"I never could get used to it. The shirt flexed well and didn't impede any movements, but I always knew it was there. ... It actually made me feel fatter, as I was hyper-aware of my stomach being held back."
Sewn with a sense of fun:
The combo: