Cheap versus luxury underwear, gentlemen, what's the difference?
In today's video, I'm going to discuss this because over the last five years I've tried
out twenty five different brands, different price points from really low to really high
and I can tell you there are key differences.
In fact, there are six key differences between the el cheapos and the luxury brands.
I want to start this video off by addressing the elephant in the room and that is does
it really matter.
Come on, you're talking about underwear here, I know a lot of you guys are in this camp,
I was in this camp with the el cheapos.
This is something I'm going to wear I'm going to throw away when it gets old and it just
really doesn't matter, it's underwear nobody sees it.
Then, there are other people that go into this camp and I'm in this camp now I have
to admit because you start to wear something that feels amazing next to your body, you
realized there is a difference.
Now, in this video, each of these points I'm going to get into I'm going to try to get
into a little bit more detail because I wanted maybe shift the mindset of some of you guys
that are over here as to why this may be a great choice why you may want to upgrade your
underwear.
Really quick guys, all the images all the samples of luxury underwear you're going to
see me talking about in this video come from Tani.
I'm going to link to them down in the description, I've got a discount code for you.
They're the paid sponsor of this video, but I've been with these guys for two years.
They are the real deal.
Why I love Tani is their attention to detail in the fabric choice that they use like micro
modal air, you're not going to find this anywhere else and I've tested this stuff.
Guys, for the last six months I've been traveling and I looked at the majority of the underwear
in my wardrobe, it came from Tani.
They don't just have underwear, by the way, they've got great undershirts, they've got
thermals, all types of lounge wear.
Go check out Tani, they're a great sponsor, a good company.
I've met the guys that are running it and I can't say enough great things about them.
Go check them out.
The first and most important difference between cheap underwear and luxury underwear gentlemen
is going to be fabric.
Let me say that again.
Fabric is king when it comes to underwear.
And there is a very particular reason why because this underwear has to be a work horse.
You want it luxurious, you want it to feel great, but it also has to be thrown into the
washer and washed potentially over a hundred if not more times.
And, when you go with cheaper underwear it just simply not going to be as durable, it's
never going to be as luxurious, and it's going to balance both.
So, the fine particular fabrics which are going to be luxurious, are going to touch
and are going to feel great, and are going to be able to stand up to the wash is very
difficult.
I mean think about it with a jacket.
So, a jacket can be luxurious, it can feel and look great, but it doesn't get thrown
into a washing machine and you actually take this very rarely to a cleaner.
Your underwear on the other hand after every wear you're throwing this into the laundry
and you want this to look good after twenty washes, after thirty washes, after fifty washes.
Now, the way that they do this is they choose very particular fabrics.
Let's just take cotton as an example.
So, cotton in lower-end cheap underwear is going to be made from a low strand cotton.
What this means is that the fiber that actually of the cotton fiber is going to be very short.
We see this in the United States coming out of like the West Texas area, those cottons
are oftentimes lower fiber.
They're all over the place, they're very inexpensive, and you know they're relatively good for t-shirts,
cheap underwear.
For the higher end underwear that use like Swiss cotton, they use Egyptian cotton, use
Sea Island cotton.
What they use is a longer strand.
This is going to be rare, so right there that drives the price.
Then, they're going to weave it into a very tight and thin yarn.
So, the yarns over here are not going to be as tight or not going to be as thin and so
you get actually a much rougher fabric.
Over here, you're going to be able to create fabrics which are more dense, they're softer,
they feel amazing and that's what the difference is.
Again, guys, fabric is king.
So, I know some of you guys have questions about man-made materials and their use in
underwear.
Let's talk about two of the most common ones out there; polyester and micro modal.
So, polyester, you'll see it in a lot of cheaper garments and some expensive ones, but basically
what polyester is is it's a if you can imagine a diluter.
You put it in with cotton, you put it in with wool, it allows you to maintain very similar
properties of the cotton while you mix in a cheaper material.
Micro modal on the other hand can actually underwear can be made fully from it and that's
why I really like it.
It's actually made from wood pulp so it's a cellulous-based material.
It's biodegradable it's something that's renewable resource, so that's great right there.
But micro modal in general oftentimes called it's called almost like a silk and that's
what it gives the feel of.
I love it because it's durable, it's tough, it's got a very nice feel.
Now, when you're looking at micro modals, understand there's micro modal and then there's
micro modal air.
Micro modal air, you're only going to see it like companies like Tani because it's a
very high-end luxury fabric.
But the difference is is that they take that individual yarn and it's one quarter to one-fifth
the size of the other micro modals.
So, if you can imagine that makes a huge difference in the overall feel and how long does micro
modal is going to stand up to wash and to everything else that you expose this to.
Now, this last part I want to talk about when it comes to fabric goes a bit more into the
build quality, but when they use higher end fabrics, you should expect to have a higher
build quality.
So, when I look at the stitching from a higher end brand, I'm going to go in here and I can
see, okay, it's all nicely put together they didn't miss any stitches, there's no excess
material versus on cheaper brands I'm going to see they've got excess material over here,
they may have actually missed some stitching points parts of it put together are not aligned
properly.
This can have a small effect on comfort.
For some of you guys it may not be something you care about, other people they care about
the attention to detail.
But, what this tells me deeper is, okay, what type of actual thread did they use to put
this together.
This one is key because if you use a low quality thread, this underwear is going to start to
come apart after twenty washes, ten washes maybe.
This one right here because of the quality of the thread used, this should be able to
I don't know go through fifty to a hundred washes.
So, you can see how all of these things play together in the durability, the life, and
why fabric is so important when it comes to your underwear.
Difference number two between cheap and luxury underwear is going to be the fit.
So, you've got think with luxury underwear brands, they're actually going for a smaller
demographic.
If you buy underwear at Walmart or Target, they're going for a wide range of guys.
You're going to get a pair of underwear that's made to fit a wide variety of body types and
usually a wider range in the waist.
For higher end brands, they're usually narrow that down make it a bit smaller, they're going
to say, hey, we target the fit individual, we target the thin individual.
And they're not going to maybe say that in their marketing, but what they will say that
with is the sizes that they actually available and how small and the incremental differences.
This makes a big difference in how it feels, how it goes onto your body.
You're also going to see differences in stretch.
So, with a lot of cottons out there, you're simply going to see a two-way stretch.
Two-way stretch is fine and it's what many of us are used to, but whenever you try a
four-way stretch, you're going to be amazed.
And a four-way stretched as it sound stretches in four different ways and this just makes
it so you avoid hotspots in and around your crotch area.
And for some guys who are really sensitive there, this can make a huge difference.
Difference number three between cheap underwear and luxury underwear gentlemen is going to
be that underwear's function, so let me explain.
So, cheap underwear is going to basically be a jack of all trades.
This is something that you can get away with wearing in most situations, but for extreme
situations for sporting events, for if you're a line cook and you're going to be standing
up for sixteen hours a day in a hot kitchen, if you need underwear with special support
needs, then that's when luxury underwear is going to shine and you're going to need to
pay a premium for it.
So, let's look at this design right here, this has been around for a long time.
This pair of cheap underwear, yeah, it gets the job done for many situations.
If you're a student, probably work for you.
But, this underwear right here has actually a front pouch design.
Notice there's I mean right here if you want to have your package taken care of, you would
go for a brand like this.
And think about where that's important in sports, the jock strap.
How many guys have worn this?
Think about that.
Maybe you wouldn't have considered that, a luxury underwear, but it was a specialty type
of underwear that did its job and had a specific function.
So, if you're in sports and athletics, you want to find a brand that wicks away moisture
from the body.
If you're going to be running a marathon and as anyone that's ever run a long distance
race knows a small irritation can lead to a big irritation ten miles and an hour or
two down the road and it can lead to just, yeah, a lot of pain, bleeding, chaffing.
So, these particular things luxury underwear specific ones you want to make sure that it
serves that purpose because no luxury underwear is going to be able to do everything, but
in the luxury market you're going to be able to find specific underwear that better wicks
away moisture that just has a better feel that when you wear it it feels like you're
wearing nothing at all at the same time provide support.
Difference number four is company size.
Difference number five is customer service.
I'm going to bring them together because I think they go hand in hand.
Now, with the cheaper underwear manufacturers, oftentimes they're a mass play they're making
millions of pieces and they're larger companies.
They've been around for awhile, they've got, you know, they've got their they're great
at efficiency, but they're bad at customer service oftentimes.
If you ever tried calling some of these companies and getting a hold of somebody that can alleviate
your problem.
You've got an issue you've been wearing the underwear, but you have an outbreak.
Your doc you're trying to figure out what is in this underwear, was there some type
of chemical I was exposed to that could be causing me to get this rash.
Versus a smaller company.
You can get a hold of a decision-maker, you can speak with them about, hey, I saw you're
doing this design, but I've got this issue, have you ever thought of moving this.
You actually will have people that you can talk and bounce ideas off of if you've got
a customer service issue.
You oftentimes will speak to the CEO to the president to the founder or to a customer
service rep who has decision-making ability to either refund you your money or to maybe
send you out a new pair.
Good luck with the larger manufacturers.
Now, I'm not against larger manufacturers, I think there's a lot of great things a lot
of good people that work for these companies, but oftentimes you're just not able to get
the same type of response you can from a smaller company.
Difference number six between cheap underwear and luxury underwear is going to be options.
I find that in the luxury brands, I've got a lot more options when it comes to materials
when it comes to fabrics when it comes to design when it comes to particular styles.
With the larger manufacturers I oftentimes find, again, it's a mass manufacture play.
They are coming out with a few different colors, maybe a few different designs.
But, some of you guys may want to have something that no one else has something that when you
look at this and you wear it you're like I know that I'm getting the best, I know that
I'm going with some of the best fabrics, I'm going with a really cool design.
I like it with a luxury brands that they've got more options quite a few more than than
the other guys.
All right, gentlemen now it's your turn.
I want to hear from you down in the comments.
What do you think of this video?
Did you learn anything new?
And what side of the isle are you one?
Are you a luxury underwear kind of guy or you could be with the el cheapo or are you
going to switch sides that I put enough information out there that you're going to go try a luxury
brand.
And if you're going to do it, guys, in the description, I'm linking over to Tani with
a great discount code.
Guys, I've been using it.
I mean this particular pair of underwear, I have worn I don't know how many times.
It has to be able the last eight months at least fifty times I've worn this underwear
and I've washed them fifty times of course and I could tell you they're beautiful, they're
durable, they're still standing up, and they are incredibly soft.
I love my Tani.
And I hope that you guys go over and you check them out a great company, great brand, look
at the fabrics, you'll be blown away at the detail that they go into into their fabrics.
Gentlemen, that's it.
Take care.
I'll see you in the next video.