As I have said in a post earlier this week that the shows are not what they used to be for men’s underwear/swimwear. February is the big show, and then in August, there are just a few brands present.

Here is a list of the brands I meet up with:
2EROS
Olaf Benz
ManStore
Cocksox
Wood Underwear
2(X)IST
Gregg Homme
Papi

There is one new one that isn’t in the US market yet that we will cover in the next month or so!

This is way down from 20-30 brands back in the day. The brands that were there do have some fantastic things coming. Two brand that I can’t wait to see is Cocksox and 2(X)IST. Also, I am looking forward to sharing Olaf Benz and Manstore more!

You may notice there aren’t many pictures for this post. That is because no one has models at the show anymore. This would be great content for us as out Brief Distractions and videos. However, those days at the show are gone. Which I think sucks because it makes the job of reporting on the show much harder. I mean, how many pictures of underwear booths can you see?

The show is moving out of its longtime home at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, and moving to the Las Vegas Convention Center. This is the largest convention center I have been attended a show. It’s Massive and one thing I hate about it. However, they want it all under one roof. This starts in August.

Look for our coverage of the awesome new stuff as soon as it’s released. I have been sworn to secrecy until then!

We shot Derek Yates back in 2012. This is the behind the scenes video we did for the shoot. We hope you enjoy this look back.

When I first started going to Magic/Project/Curve it was so much fun. There were over 30 brands at the shows, and I would be on the go for all three days of the shows. Luckily, the shows were staggered, and I would hit the last day or second day at Curve and then the last two days of Magic/Project. I would need this time just to get with everyone. And in 2010-2012 it wasn’t always enough time to see everyone.

Back at this time there would be brands that would be in hotel suites. It would be walking from the Mandalay Bay Convention Center to the Hotel and back. These made for super long days. But I really enjoyed it because it was like I was seeing a lot of my favorite people. At the end of the show, I would be sad because I would have to wait another six months to see everyone.

Flash forward to 2016/2017, and I had to miss the shows due to financial reasons. For a full year, I missed the shows. In this time I really noticed how small the shows have gotten. Since 2013, fewer brands have been attending shows. Now the February show has the most people around 10-15, and the August show had about 4-5 brands.

The size of the overall show has gotten smaller as well. Project was both floors of the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, but now it’s only the lower level. Attendance is not just the underwear brands but all brands. Next, it’s expensive to get a booth. You have the cost to attend, travel, hotel and more. It can be 7 figures easy.

So where does this leave shows for Underwear in the future? I think in two more years very few brands will attend trade shows. It’s so much easier with the internet to connect with customers. There is video chat, PDF Catalogs, and video that can help buyers make decisions. While this sucks for me trying to report on the industry, it makes it more cost efficient for brands.

In the future, we may not have Magic/Project, but I will still work hard to find new brands for you guys.

The last Videos in our series is the last overview video of the shows. It was in 2013 and gives you a great overview of both shows. This year I’m working on some new videos that don’t focus on shows but still shows you some of the beat undies and gear.

We asked you guys about what you wear to the gym in spandex and swim briefs. We had a great turn out and here is what you guys like to wear and sometimes want to wear.

We asked what you guys wear to the gym. I will say that I was expecting that briefs and thongs would be popular but Jockstraps took the top spot. Guys were only allowed to choose one answer so this is good news but shocking news to me.

This is more of what I expected the first answer to be. The briefs are top and then jocks and thongs. In this question, you guys could answer which you wore to the gym.

I was curious as to what gear you wear to the gym. Most guys don’t wear spandex to the gym. But if they do it’s more runners/tights over other kinds of gear. Spandex is growing but not mainstream yet.

This made me smile. The majority of guys who answered wear swim briefs when they swim at the gym. More than double the second choice. Now we need to transfer these to the beach and pool!!!

I asked would you wear them if you don’t wear them? Swim briefs and spandex that is. One thing we have to change is that most guys want to wear swim briefs and spandex but don’t feel comfy. I hope we can change that over the next year.

If you want to share your gear story let us know!

As we enter our 10th year I’m looking at the way we do things and looking for a few good men. Actually some specific good men who love underwear and love to write about their underwear passion. We are looking for a workout guy, college guy, professional (suit & tie) guy and a beefy guy. Regardless of your type we want a guy who’s passionate about underwear, open to try new things, social media savvy, great communicator, and talk underwear with other guys on the site.

The Workout Guy

We are looking for a guy who works out 3+ times a week. You love underwear as much as you love underwear as much as the gym. Your gym gear is all about supporting your work out. However outside of the gym you still wear awesome undies. It could be different or similar brands.

• You want to share the best underwear for the gym.
• Specific underwear for different activities (running, biking, cross fit and more)
• If you have different underwear tastes for work and out of the gym, why you like it.
•  Report on issues and trends with working out and underwear.
• Including gym gear such as runners, tights and spandex gear
• Be open to all kinds of swimwear, including swim briefs
• Work as part of a team

The College Guy

We are looking for a guy 18-25 who’s a college student or recent grad. You love underwear but due to your budget you don’t get a lot of pairs. Your wish list is larger than your underwear collection. You want to branch out and share your exploration of underwear as you try new styles and brands.

• Be a young guy starting his underwear journey
• Willing to try any style and brand and see how you like it.
• Discuss how you are growing your underwear collection
• What issues younger guys are facing in underwear
• Be open to all kinds of swimwear, including swim briefs
• Learn from other guys on the site

The Suit & Tie Guy

You are a professional guy that wears a suit to work every day. You take pride in your appearance and think your underwear should match that feeling. You don’t have to be a classic lover but think picking a pair of underwear is as important as picking your time. You want to share your advice for other professional guys

• You are a lawyer, C-suite, architect, or CPA and suited every day
• Talk about underwear for work – Classic or fun pairs and when you wear them
• Mix in talk about socks as well since they are integral to suit
• Work as part of a team

The Beefy Guy

Underwear is for the gym guy and the ones with 32 waist. NOT, underwear is for everyone. Guys of all sizes should be able to get underwear that makes them feel super sexy. Bigger guys are becoming a new norm in the fashion world. Beefy guys have a bit more problems finding undies from design, cut and sizing .

• Be over 36 inch waist
• You could have been smaller or always the same size
• Share the struggles of being a bigger guy and not finding underwear in your size or a style you want.
• Be open to all kinds of swimwear, including swim briefs
• Work as part of a team

All guys should have the following qualities:

• A love of underwear and all styles (especially Bikinis, briefs, and boxer briefs)
• Be computer savy and familiar word processing, Google docs and WordPress
• Willing to help promote UNB on social sites and be socially active about your love (on your own social networks or UNB’s)
• Be a self starter and come up with post ideas, but also work as part of a team to help in group posts, brainstorming and more

DOWNLOAD the application and send back to us!!! Down load the writers appliaction.

Tell our readers about you: Jockstrap Junkie just living here in the Great Lakes area and I’m a mid-forties bi-guy working in marketing of an automotive supply chain company. I would say most people wouldn’t think of me as an underwear addict, as I’m usually talking about lifting, throwing heavy objects in Scottish Heavy Athletics competitions, horses, and you can’t be in the Great Lakes area and not like Euchre. Side note, when throwing in Scottish games, the naughty bits are covered, otherwise it’s regimental under the kilt and the boys swing free. Forgot to mention, I like jockstraps.

When did you first discover underwear? The more I think back, I remember looking at my brother’s Sports Illustrated after he was done. Not only did I like reading about the sports, but I also liked the Jockey underwear ads. This would’ve been the era that Bart Conner and Jim Palmer were the main models for Jockey in the late 80s and early 90s. This was also when I would make sure to wander thru the men’s underwear section of department stores looking at the different styles of the day, and the pictures, too. I also liked it when the JC Penney and Sears catalogs would come out.

What was the first pair of good underwear you bought? What made you buy that pair? I truly hated tightey whiteys as they had a tendency to pinch, bind, and wedge themselves. So, I finally got the nerve to try Jockey’s Elance® bikini briefs. There were a few other guys wearing bikini and low-rise briefs, so it wasn’t that big of a deal in the locker room. I was a lot more comfortable in the bikini briefs than those old Hanes tightey whities.

How did this first pair influence your journey into the world of men’s underwear? After high school and moving into my own place, my underwear journey started to expand quickly. Especially, when I went to the newsstand and found the Undergear catalog. During my early 20s, I tried a bit of everything from thongs to boxers, all thanks to Undergear.

What are your current favorite styles? What style do you wear most? Today, I’m mostly a jockstrap guy; however, I do occasionally like to wear boxers, thongs, or boxer briefs. Yup, that’s right, boxers are still in my collection.

Most of the time, I choose my underwear for what I’m going to be doing. If I’m going to the gym, it’s mostly a jockstrap but occasionally a thong. For the days I’m going to be outside working in the spring or fall, it’s usually boxers. If the situation requires a lot of sitting, either a jock or my trusty Under Armour BoxerJock boxer briefs. And for those date nights, usually a jockstrap.

What are some of your favorite pairs in your underwear drawer? Since my collection is pretty large, I’ll just share a few favorites. Andrew Christian Almost Naked jockstrap, C-IN2 C-Theory & Tackle jockstraps, AussieBum WonderJock jockstrap, and Pump Cruise jock.

Are you open to friends or partners about your love of underwear? If you have a partner do they encourage your love of underwear? I have a couple of buddies who have seen the collection and they have collections of their own; otherwise, underwear doesn’t come up in conversation. When it comes to partners, some are ok, others shake their head, and I’ve had to use the comment “you collect shoes, I’ll collect jocks.”

Has wearing great underwear boosted your confidence? Definitely a confidence booster. Who wants to be the guy who is trying to un-bunch their underwear? Underwear is functional and sexy at the same time. I think it’s fun when in the foreplay stages of making whoopie to see the reaction of the other person when I drop trou when I’m wearing a neon colored jockstrap. Life is too short for life to be dull. It’s never been a deal breaker, and I even enjoy a bit of laughter.Where can our readers find you on social media? If you want to see more of my jockstrap journey, you can follow me on Twitter @the_Jockstrap or on Reddit u/the_Jockstrap.