Invista consumer study identifies gaps in innerwear market

A global cross-gender consumer study led by Strategic Insights surveyed 4,000 men and women. It yielded interesting statistics on customer preferences, revealing that consumers have high standards when purchasing underwear.

The study findings also highlight that the majority of men and women check the underwear label before purchasing (men 63%, women 56%), which shows that fabric quality is important to them.

In terms of fiber desirability, cotton was quoted to be the most desirable at over 70%. LYCRA fiber came in second at 30%-- ahead of the generics, spandex and elastane.

In parallel, INVISTA researchers analyzed more than 300 commercial underwear styles around the world, testing a large variety of fabric properties for both men and women underwear, including shrinkage, elongation, recovery force, air-permeability, fabric weights or shape retention over time.

This study pointed at a few issues and gaps in the existing underwear market including a lack of consistency in current fabric testing measures, and no suitable basic standard for underwear fabrics, which prompted INVISTA to take action.

“INVISTA was surprised to identify such a gap and problem in the underwear market, and we have spent time and resources in the past years to fill this gap with a proprietary test method, which is part of a new quality standard specifically engineered for low LYCRA fiber content fabrics blended with natural fibers that go into underwear. We are raising the bar in the underwear industry to bring the end-consumers more comfortable and longer-lasting underwear, and we’re very excited about what this will mean for the market. With this, underwear has become a new strategic marketing focus for us,” says Kim Chi Phung, INVISTA’s new underwear global segment leader.

Kim adds: “In addition to bringing to market a unique new quality standard for underwear fabrics based on specialized performance criteria, INVISTA is introducing two powerful platforms to market the improved feel and fit of underwear made with LYCRA fibers.” 

Invista