Underwear

The most revealing thing about undergarments these days is that everyone wants in on the category. Both men's underwear and women's intimates have seen a lot of action lately. On the men's side, Fruit of the Loom re-launched BVD. Men's underwear has seen something of a revolution with guys today expressing strong preferences for garment styles and even colors and prints. Boxers came back in a big way. Just look at Joe Boxer, which took a basic product, added a smiley face, and made underwear more fun.

On the women's side, things, are even busier. Sara Lee--which owned 34% of the U.S. bra business by 1999, up from 25% in '94, and 37% of women's and girls' panty sales, up from 26% five years earlier--made a bid for even greater dominance. The company came out with a new Lovable bras and panties line just few weeks ago, and immediately began plastering its spokesmodel on bus stops all over Manhattan. L'Eggs is getting into the panty business with products set to hit drug outlets and grocery stores this year to be followed by a slightly different and more involved discount store roll-out to follow. Now Jockey International has jumped into the fray with FORMFIT, a new brand. The company throws in comfort as an additional criterion. The line is designed to combine fresh looks that reflect the various considerations of women today from the athletic with Formfit Sport to the feminine with Formfit Seamfree.

Bikinis