I don’t understand the festive adverts for Figleaves. The posters I have seen on the tube feature a slender model in beautiful lingerie with the tag line “All I Want…“, but who are they hoping to appeal to? If they’re thinking that men with female partners will be attracted to the model and buy lingerie from them as a Christmas present, I suspect that approach won’t be quite as successful as they’d hope. I imagine that many heterosexual men would like the image but, if their girlfriend doesn’t look like the model, they’ll perhaps not consider that Figleaves might be a good place to shop. After all, it doesn’t tell you anything about what else they sell. The posters get their name stuck in your head, but there is far more to the brand than ‘sexy’ undies for toned feminine 20-somethings.
First of all, Figleaves sell a lot of different types of underwear. There are everyday, fashion, luxury and sensual styles in a variety of different sizes and from a wide range of brands. Their site is easy to use – with great search and browse functions – and your delivery arrives in a nice box that makes it feel like you ordered a gift for yourself. Knowing that you get a pleasant online shopping experience with a reliable company that has a broad range of stock would, I think, appeal to more people than just an image of lingerie that is someone’s (but not everyone’s) idea of sexy. I’m not sure how they’d put that across in a poster format, but a good advertising agency could surely come up with something. One other important point is that… Figleaves also sell men’s underwear. (I’m pretty sure I saw posters for this last year, but not so far in 2014.)
When taking advantage of a 20% discount recently and buying myself a long lusted after Curvy Kate bra, I decided to order some pants for my partner to see what their men’s offering was like. Described as “fundamental to your underwear drawer”, the FGL Colour Real 3 Pack Trunk seemed like the ideal choice for style, price and a splash of colour. I left them out for him when they arrived and waited for the new pants to be modeled. It was worth the wait, I can tell you. They are all kinds of awesome. The trunks are made from a soft yet sturdy cotton/Lycra blend which gives a lovely fit without wrinkles or digging in, and the elastic waistband has a soft backing that gives comfort as well as a good fit. The colours are stunning and the contrast trim is stylish and comfortable. In addition, they wash really well without losing colour, shape or softness, so the impressive figure hugging* fit remains.
On this evidence, I’d highly recommend checking out the FGL brand (apparently it stands for Figleaves Gentleman’s Label). If you’re looking at buying underwear, loungewear or nightwear for someone this festive season, I think that Figleaves is definitely worth a look. Treating yourself in the inevitable post-Xmas sale is a must too, of course!
*Can you say ‘figure hugging’ when reviewing men’s pants? I’m going to go with ‘yes’.
I too actually love shopping at Figleaves but their Christmas video is awful. It goes along the same lines as the poster you saw where it features a slender and very beautiful model but you hardly get to see any of the lingerie. It’s more about her pouting, flicking her hair and generally ‘being sexy’. How is this selling their products and all the things that makes them a go-to website for lingerie and decent service? I just don’t get it. Btw, love those man pants!
It’s weird, isn’t it? I’m sure the vast majority of their sales will be everyday pants or bras bought because a woman loves the style/fit rather than because she thinks it’ll make her look sexy. Their marketing strategy baffles me.
But, yeah, fantastic man pants 🙂