Women and Underwear Brand want seduce Men

Christmas is coming and that means that you have to find gifts for your loved ones. A video game for your young brother, that bag that your sister asked you to buy and a thalassotherapy weekend for your parents… that’s very simple. But how about your girlfriend? You’re now a grown up man, you have already offered her a perfume, a funny tees and so on. You know there is a gift that will make her happy and you are the only one who can offer her it. Yes, UNDERWEAR.  She will appreciate it because she also wears underwear to seduce you, because this gift means something for your couple and it’s a serious act. The problem is that it’s not as simple as to buy a PlayStation to your brother. You want to make a nice gift and you clearly don’t know anything to women underwear. We have seen in a previous post about men and athletes that men are not looking for the same features concerning underwear as women. If you lazy you can ask your best girl friend or your sister to choose but this is not a good solution.  This intimate gift has to be chosen by you. The question is: how will you do to make best choice? And what will make you think that it is a good choice?
We will see on this post how men are influenced concerning women underwear and above all what brands do to influence men who want to buy lingerie.

          

  Some brands have gained such a notoriety that they are as known by women as by men.  The most obvious example is Victoria’s Secret (you can check the post about victoria secret brand on our blog). The brand has more than 23 millions likes on Facebook, 3 millions followers on Twitter and Instagram. We can be sure that there is a high number of men among these followers and may be most of them are men. Victoria’s Secret shows and models make us (men) dream and obviously more than them (ladies). When we watch the shows, we don’t even realize that we are watching a show from an underwear brand and we’re not able to remember one of the products we’ve seen during the show. Bad strategy from Victoria’s Secret? Let’s just think, you’re now looking for underwear to offer and you don’t know anything about it, you don’t know where to start, where you should look for, but if you have to think about one brand, what will be this brand! Yes you’ve got the answer, Victoria’s Secret! You have no idea of the type of product it sells, the quality of their product or if it’s the kind of product you can find at H&M. You check its website and online shop to get sure you’re not about to look for a cheap gift and with a quick look to the price you’ve got the answer.

Nice work from Victoria’s Secret team.

   Secondly there are brands with a wide range of products, which covers both women and men underwear, even if most of the brand in the underwear industry are specialized in either men or women or if it’s very rare that a brand succeed to be efficient in the both segments. You’ve affinity with one of these brands and you’re used to buy your men underwear from this brand. You will naturally check the women section of the website or of the shop and you will maybe find nice underwear’s for your girl, which match with your budget and your idea of what is a beautiful set of underwear for your girl. Moreover these feelings are emphasized by the affinity you already have with the brand. We can think about Bjorn Borg or Calvin Klein underwear.

Then everybody knows that brands like La Perla or Aubade represent glamor, luxury and women in its entire splendor. Of course the underwear sold by these two brands are quite expensive but most of women appreciates their product and you know as a man that you don’t take risk by choosing their product for your girl. How do these brands to represent these values? I think that the first thing is the legitimacy that they get over decades since the 50s. Furthermore, it was just before the emancipation of women all around the world during the 60s and the development of the lingerie is definitely a consequence of this phenomenon. Then the high prices of luxury lingerie make men think that it’s a quality product and it’s probably the case. At last, all the ad campaigns contribute to help these brands to keep a glamorous and luxury image.

Finally if you don’t give up the idea of offering a nice set to your girl, here are some tips:

•       Be sure you’ve got all the right information about her size.
•       Don’t hesitate to go to the shop instead of buying on the Internet. You can feel the different material and check the details. You won’t be seen as a perverse
•     Ask the expert in your surroundings and the salesperson of the shop.
•       Don’t try to innovate. Buy the kind of lingerie she wears not the one you’ve seen on movie.
•    Glamorous yes, but don’t forget her comfort!
•       Above all keep the receipt!

Romain Dive 

Today I feel silly and other moods that make my day...

My mum sent me the other day a present (along with a dress for the Ball/Prom this Saturday), and along with tobacco (sorry antismoking people). So, it kept me thinking and thinking. Is it? Isn’t it? Maybe if you consider it as… ?

In my family, it’s a tradition, between all women. My grandmother, called Granny, every Christmas would give us a dressing gown: blue, white, pink… it didn’t matter, you’d get one. But, when you reach a certain age (some when during your early twenties), they start giving you a silky nightdress with its dressing gown.

Maybe yes, maybe no… I do. I do consider nightdresses/nightgowns as part of the lingerie world. Okay, it isn’t like a bra, but it is. There are two types of nightdresses: the “cozy” style one and the silky one.

The cozy ones, which I call, are the ones that are really cotton-cozy, but for you to preferably wear in your intimacy, I guess. You have lovely ones like this one from Marks & Spencer.

But, also, you have the really good-looking ones. Yup, those silk made super sweet nightdresses! The ones you do want to wear with someone around (or for someone :P) Or maybe it’s just Rosie’s new campaign, which she could even sell them to a blind person… (She’s gorgeous and we are all jealous).

What do women really think when buying them? What could we consider as their insight?

Asking  some of my girl friends, I got to the conclusion that: Yes, we buy sexy ones for our “man”. To feel like a beautiful, attractive and delicate woman. To feel more than desirable.

 

But it really depends on the mood of the day… maybe if you just broke up with your boyfriend, and you only want to stay home eating Ben and Jerry’s and watching Bridget Jones’ Diary, you should go for one like this. it isn't as fancy as any other, I know that.

But, if you haven’t broken up with him, and you want to look stunning, you definitely should go for one like this one from Etam’s new collection.

So, here’s my question… Bridget Jones or Doutzen Kroes?

CRISTINA MEDINA MORATIEL

Trends in underwear, are there any?

Yes, I would say so! A lot of outerwear fashion trends are able to make underwear a part of your outerwear. I do have my own image in mind of the different trends we went through in the latest, let’s say 13 years, since I started to bother what I was wearing under my clothes.. And actually, relatively speaking, not a lot went on in those years. As there are new trends popping up every season in the world of fashion, the fast paced changes seems to be way behind in the underwear industry.

It seems underwear is only sensitive for trends when it is part of the outerwear? So when outerwear fashion has room for underwear, the underwear can jump on the wagon.

And so I started to do some online research on trends and underwear.

Surprisingly, a lot of men’s underwear trends pop up. I did not see that coming because in my thoughts guys just buy shorts, tight or wide, colored or plain with the occasional briefs (In Dutch often called ‘balls squeezer’). Because how many options do they really have?

The ‘underwear expert’ advises me about all kinds of trends that have passed the last months, I clearly haven’t paid any attention! Or was I even able to know about them? 

There is the wine colored underwear, not that surprising: this color, which I truly love! Is the color of this season, smart to anticipate on that! Then the ‘Long Johns’, real winter underwear.. I must confess; the hipster kind off print Long Johns are pretty darn cute! But other are just horrifying!

A third trend I come across is a bit disturbing me, Football season started in September and some of the big (but for me totally unknown) men’s underwear brands in the USA like Timoteo, Cell Block 13, Jack Adams, Pistol Pete and Andrew Christian, designed some ‘Football Jock’ briefs. See the picture.. Please don’t wear these! 

Then to finish of the men’s trends department I’ll show you what reached the London Fashion week in the spring 2013 collection (showed by Shaun Samson): No comments!

Finding out what the ‘official trends’ in woman lingerie are, is not easy! There is no clear answer given to me. Therefore I decided to write down my own findings.

The ‘whale tail’, I don’t know if I am aloud to call this a trend. It happens on and off. But I am pretty sure that somewhere in the early 21^st century this happened a bit more then the on-purposely occasional thong exposure. 

Then at a certain point Marlies Dekkers popped up, Dutch, but seen worldwide. Stars like Britney Spears and Lady Gaga where spotted in her underwear and her designs where copied by others. The bra’s where designed to be flaunted and women felt secure enough to do so. It was a real hate it or love it trend in my opinion. 

Then my favorite trend, we are now in a period where girls are allowed to dress a bit rocky and tough. We may wear shirts that are oversized and show your bra, there where sleeves normally have to be tight fit, there now is room for some sexy bra showing. Preferably a lace bra with a bandeau model. Girls have to stay girls, and therefore this rocky look has to stay sexy. Bra’s may be showed! The fashionable crop top is in some cases more a bra with a tiny bit more fabric.

Fashion designer Jason Wu even collaborated with La Perla. I would say the best statement to show that underwear may be outerwear again. And I would say in a more classy and sexy way then the wail tail or the Marlies Dekkers. Big down side of this trend: It’s only for those who are in great shape..  

A quite recent (but no new phenomenon) and probably lasting trend is shape-wear. I must say, a great invention, woman look so much better when no unwilling curves are shown! But I know, probably kind of a turn off when you bring someone home and there first has to be a struggle to get that super tight fitting shape-wear off. 

Then one of the newest trends in underwear, stay ups! From over knee socks to pantyhose with lace bands, based on the (sexy) schoolgirl look I would say, it’s all allowed again. A category of underwear we haven’t mentioned before, but  I could not let pass. 

 I will finish this post with a Japanese ‘trend’ I could not withhold from you: ‘Deoest’ woman’s odor eliminating underwear. “especially designed to kill 95% of gas, sweat and other unwanted odors.. 80% of bad odors are eliminated in the first 30 seconds”  

It makes me wonder.. Is underwear a category in fashion or is it just some side product that can be used whenever its convenient combined with fashion. There are labels walking the runways though. It seems like underwear is too underground for the big outer-world to become a true statement like clothing can. Could Victoria’s Secret survive without hot famous models and angel wings? Would Christy Turlington be shown on billboards in her CK underwear if CK wasn’t on it? I suddenly get more respect for Sloggie.. how did they get so big without the sexiest underwear on the most hottest bodies..

Amanda van den Hoven

Brand Culture – Why Do We Need It?

“A company must figure out its core values and understand why, beyond the profit motive, it exists. This means that, essentially, a company must develop (or unearth) an ethos and a worldview that it absolutely believes in, and then perpetually act in accordance with that ethos and worldview. Everything the company does—every product or service it offers; every public statement, advertisement, and website it generates; every internal policy, memo, and business decision it makes—must be congruent with that ethos and worldview.” This is how brand culture is described in the article Give Them Something to Believe In: The Value of Brand Culture.

So why do we need brand cultures? Anthony Giddens talk about self-identity and he determine that in today’s market place consumption is an arena of choices, and although Giddens sees it as a generally positive phenomenon, he emphasizes that consumption may profoundly affect self-identity.

Consumers get confused by all the choices they have to make, for example when they go grocery shopping. By creating a brand culture organizations can help consumers identifying which brands they can identify themselves with and thereby which brands they want to buy. “In a consumer culture people no longer consume for merely functional satisfaction, but consumption becomes meaning-based, and brands are often used as symbolic resources for the construction and maintenance of identity.” –Elliott & Davies. Looking at Victoria’s secret, woman will buy their underwear because they feel that Victoria’s secret’s brand culture fit with their own values. Women will buy Victoria’s secret underwear because they hope to be perceived as someone who cares about sexiness, luxury and good quality. Looking at a brand like Sloggi, it is a completely different type of women who can identify themselves with their brand culture. This type of consumer will care about good value for money, and at some extend, sustainability.
  

Furthermore in the globalized world we live in – where we get bombarded with different brands both at home but especially when we travel the consumers tend to choose the brands they trust – the brands that have a culture, which they can identify themselves with. For example when I have travelled in countries, which are less developed, I tend to look after brands that I know. I will choose Starbucks over a local coffee shop because I know what I get buying a Starbucks coffee and I can identify myself with their brand culture. Looking at Victoria’s secret in this context consumers will choose to buy their underwear from Victoria’s secret because they know that they will get underwear of a standardized quality which will make them feel sexy every time they go shopping at Victoria’s secret. They trust that the brand will provide them the same quality, feeling, price and service no matter when – and no matter where in the world. The same is for women who buys Sloggi whenever and wherever they go, they will expect to get the same product of the same quality and they will choose this product compared to a subsidized product because they know exactly  what they get.

Therefore it is really important for a brand to create a good brand culture in order for them to create value for the brand by differentiating themselves from other companies. And to create a high switching cost for the consumer – make them “addicted” to their brand.

Written by Josephine Kruuse Eriksen

Santa is coming to town!

So, Christmas is coming, and so is SANTA! What are you going to ask him to bring you? Maybe some underwear? What do you think are this year’s must when talking about undies? Does it really make any difference from the rest of the year?

La vie en Rose isn’t a brand like Agent Provocateur, it’s much cheaper. That doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have nice things, “au contraire mon amie”! They are focused in young women, offering all we want. Lingerie, undies, PJS, dressing gowns, beachwear… everything!

This is a $40 strapless bra, but all of them are in the same price range.  It is similar to Victoria’s Secret, but I’d rather buy one from La vie en Rose though. I find them a bit more conventional. I’m not the kind of girl who would wear a floral one or one with orange and purple stripes, if you know what I mean.

One thing I have really liked about this brand is that it offers a really wide spectrum of things. For example, when opening its web page, you can choose between many things. If you click on bras there are many options: memory foam, push up, lightly lined, demi cup, wireless, full coverage, strapless, front closure, seamless, bustiers, shapewear, post mastectomy, sports and nursing. Meanwhile, in brands like Victoria’s, you get to choose between push up, strapless, demi, sports and full coverage. Quite a difference!

 

Another difference between these two brands is that La vie en Rose, Canadian lingerie multinational, has its own section of Christmas underwear, which they call: Santa’s favourites.  In the other hand, we have Victoria’s Secret with the Holiday Lingerie part.

But the most exciting thing of this post (and hilarious) is what happens when Christmas REALLY comes… Some brands just tend to go for reds and blacks, spicy though, glittery and beautiful. But, in the other hand, we have those kinds of brands, which are far more original than any. They approach the market in a fun way. Those that make you look like a sexy Mrs Claus. I mean, La vie en Rose.

I’m not pretty sure every girl would be brave enough to buy this, but the World is full of options! This is something that we are not, at least not I, accustomed to. I, seriously, find it unbelievably astonishing! Dressing sexily as Santa might be someone’s secret fantasy, that is why they created this kind of outfits. I truly find it more like a sexy Halloween outfit.

What do you think? Are you dressing up as sexy Mrs Claus in New Year’s Eve? Or are you just going for a “normal” sexy red outfit?

MERRY CHRISTMAS! And good luck to get what you asked Santa for!

CRISTINA MEDINA MORATIEL