A brief retrospective on men\'s legwear down through the years, and how it is growing into an emerging trend with men for a variety of practical purposes.

1. PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Men’s Pantyhose: A Little Background
Men are taking to wearing tights and sheer hosiery, just as women
seem to be abandoning the style. This emerging trend is inexorably
moving well beyond the cultural fringe toward the mainstream.
GRANVILLE/OHIO, USA – July, 2009 —Although men were the original wearers
of tights, in the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Colonial eras, the custom
eventually gave way to women, who adopted them as their own—so much so that
it actually became socially suspect for men to wear full-length hosiery. It had
become firmly associated with women’s wear and therefore off limits to men.
That has changed considerably over the past 10 years or so. Not only have women abandoned sheer
pantyhose to a large extent in favor of the bare leg look, men have re-discovered the benefits of legwear and
constitute a small but vigorous market that shows signs of breaking out into the mainstream. The tide began to
turn with the advent of the Internet and the instant communities that grew up around various interest groups. One
of these included men who had been wearing women's tights and pantyhose to ease the discomfort of varicose
veins and other venous insufficiencies, and for warmth without bulk in various outdoor applications. Discovering
that they were far from alone emboldened some trailblazing men to create online discussion groups to help others
overcome their fear of ridicule.
In this were the origins of ACTIVSKIN (www.activskin.com) Legwear for Men, which sells tights and pantyhose
designed exclusively for men. In 2000, Steve Katz, an heir to a defunct hosiery company, launched the company
with his wife Constance. Early growth was spurred by positive media attention from such institutions as the Wall
Street Journal and Financial Times of London, both of which took note of the emerging trend in 2002.
Since that time media attention has ebbed and flowed, ranging from sarcastic ridicule to enthusiastic acclaim.
One notable characteristic of the media timeline over these past 10 years is an evolution of public perception.
Initially, men's legwear labored under the unfair and misleading stereotype of fetishism or cross-dressing. Some
may have also associated it with homosexuality, but many gays who posting comments on those early discussion
boards pointed out they had no more use for hosiery than did women. Over time, these unwarranted stereotypes
have been peeled away to reveal that the vast majority of men who are wearing nylon legwear these days do so
for fairly utilitarian, mainstream reasons.
Sales of men’s legwear have grown from year to year, despite the severe economic conditions of 2008-09. This
is an early indicator that the shedding of cultural obstacles will lead to a tipping point in the not-too-distant future.
Had such societal forces not hobbled the trend, who knows, where the market would be today?
Why are men wearing legwear? There are many motives, but most do so for a handful of reasons. Our aging
population is experiencing many of the problems associated with it, including varicose veins and venous
insufficiency (poor circulation). While the support styles of hosiery sold by ACTIVSKIN does not provide medical-
grade leg compression, it can ease the discomfort associated with milder forms of these conditions. In the past,
men whose problems are not so advanced as to require medical-grade compression hosie ry were limited in their
options. Now, they can wear a product designed specifically for a man’s body proportions and need not feel self-
www.activskin.com www.nylongene.com

2. conscious about wearing ‘women’s’ clothing. Many men who wear support-style hosiery claim it has prevented
early symptoms of varicose veins from advancing to the point of more invasive treatments. Controlled studies
have been carried out on only medical-grade hosiery so anecdotal claims have not been clinically confirmed
however. Since ACTIV SKIN legwear improves the appearance of affected legs, many men are less self-conscious
over their appearance and need not give up wearing shorts just because of unsightly leg blemishes.
Athletics is another factor in the emergence of men’s legwear. It provides moderate leg compression for runners,
cyclists and other athletes, resulting in increased stamina, which can positively affect performance. They are also
beneficial on cold mornings when chilly air on bare legs can lead to muscle cramps. Heavier running/cycling
tights can lead to overheating after body temperature rises and the sun is high overhead. Sheer compression
hosiery is lightweight and breathable, and therefore minimizes overheating.
Outdoorsmen of all kinds have found a place among their gear for sheer or opaque tights. Hunters, skiers,
motorcyclists and others who spend long periods of time in the cold find that little bit of added warmth can make a
big difference, but without the added bulk of traditional long johns. Many expert outdoorsmen already tout the
benefits of women’s pantyhose as a first base layer. ACTIVSKIN provides outdoorsmen with a masculine
alternative. Hikers and horseback riders also experience less chafing on the inner legs when wearing nylon hose.
As with so many styles originating in the sporting world that migrate into general fashion consciousness, hosiery
is no exception. While still somewhat out of the ordinary, more and more men every day decide to wear hosiery
just because they like the way it looks or feels. Why not wear them just because? It is truly a unisex garment, as
men and women both have the same number of legs. As with pants or shirts, they need to be tailored differently
to fit the variations in body shape between men and women. Otherwise, there is nothing intrinsically male or
female about nylon legwear. Society’s conditioned response that tights and hosiery equals feminine is only a
hundred or so years old. As more ‘early adopters’ find the confidence in their masculinity to resist convention and
wear what works for them, look for this trends to “get l’eggs” (pun intended) as it continues its move from the
fringes of fashion into social convention in the coming years.
Comfilon’s® A C T I V S K I N ® Legwear for Men
G. Lieberman & Sons (GLS Hosiery) is a fourth generation family-owned business founded in St. Louis in 1920.
They have evolved from a wholesale distributor of hosiery, undergarments and nightwear to a successful online
retailer of legwear for men. Beginning in 1999, ACTIVSKIN Legwear (www.activskin.com) was developed
specifically for men. Engineered to stimulate circulation and improve athletic performance, ACTIV SKIN is now
used worldwide by men seeking its excellent health and performance benefits, fashionable appearance, and
superb comfort. Our quality products, made in the USA, offer a more comfortable—yet less costly and
restrictive—alternative to medical compression hosiery, or traditional men’s socks and underwear. For more
background on men’s legwear in general, visit our blog, The Nylon Gene, at www.nylongene.com. ACTIVSKIN is
available exclusively via mail order. They offer a 10% discount to readers—for orders placed online. Use
promotion code SEE TRANSM. LTR when ordering online.
For further information contact:
Steve Newman, Director of Marketing Steve Katz, Partner
steven.newman@glieberman.com gls@glieberman.com
P.O. Box 193 / Granville, OH 40023 P.O. Box 193 / Granville, OH 40023
(877) 587-2860 PH / (740) 587-2860 FX (877) 587-2860 PH / (740) 587-2860 FX
###
www.activskin.com www.nylongene.com