5 Tips for Giving the Perfect Gift of Underwear, Intimate Apparel and for the Holidays

December 22, 2009 Survey Shows That Underwear is a Perennial Favorite Gift to Receive, but Knowing What to Buy is Harder Than You Think WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., Dec 22, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- If you are looking for practical and affordable last-minute holiday gifts to give - and who isn't? - you can't go wrong with underwear and socks, as long as you know a thing or two about the latest trends and preferences, according to a new Hanes survey.

Nearly 30 percent of Americans received underwear or socks as a holiday gift last year, and nearly every one of them thought it was a "great gift to receive," according to the consumer survey. The primary reasons for underwear as a great gift were both practical and romantic: 66 percent of respondents said they needed some new underwear, 17 percent said that receiving underwear meant that someone thought they were sexy, and 13 percent had other "great" reasons.

Men are so comfortable receiving underwear that one in four say they would gladly receive underwear as a holiday gift from anyone, not just a spouse or girlfriend.

With the proliferation of underwear and styles and the trend of more colors, Hanes, America's No. 1 apparel brand, has compiled its 5 tips for giving underwear and socks as a great gift this holiday season based on the consumer survey results and market-trend data.

"First, gift-givers need to keep in mind that consumers rank three attributes as most important in receiving underwear or socks: comfort, style and color," said Sidney Falken, Hanes senior vice president. "Men's T- and underwear now come in more patterns and solid colors than ever, with colors emerging as more preferable to the standard white of the past. For women, come in multiple styles and many colors. Our Top 5 Tips can help you make the right choice, even in the frenzy of a last-minute shopping trip."

Top 5 Tips for Buying Men's Underwear and Socks

It's not a tighty-whities world anymore. Here are the Top 5 tips that will help you steer clear of danger when buying underwear and sock gifts for men.

Tip No. 1: Know What He Wears. Sure, you can't go wrong with buying traditional in traditional white, but today, 70 percent of men over the age of 25 buy their own underwear, compared with just 40 percent a decade ago. That means they know what they want, which has led to an explosion of colors and styles available.

Tip No. 2:GiveIn Living Color. Color is starting to take over in men's underwear dressers. A significant majority - two-thirds - of men's underwear bottoms sold today are dyed colors versus white. Color in men's underwear tops is starting to catch on with more than a quarter sold in color. If you like to give gifts with some pizzazz, go with color, but don't be too daring. The preferred colors for men's underwear are black, gray and dark blue.

Tip No. 3:Boxers vs. Briefs vs. Boxer-Briefs is an Age Thing. The eternal question of boxers or briefs is easy to answer. You simply need to know the age of the wearer. Loose boxers are the dominate choice for those under 25 (54 percent preference); tight briefs still reign with older men, 45 and older (44 percent preference); and the compromise silhouette of boxer-briefs is preferred by men ages 25 to 44 (39 percent preference).

Tip No. 4:The is Tops. When it comes to underwear tops, the crew neck is captain, but the fastest growing style is the V-neck. Measured by unit sales, here is how the preference breaks down: crew neck (67 percent), sleeveless tanks (17 percent) and V-neck (16 percent). Regardless of style, remember color. Dyed-color are the fastest growing in all three silhouettes, one reason why more and more men are wearing their undershirts as outerwear.

Tip No. 5:He Wants Boring Socks; Get Over It. Old school is where it's at with his socks. Men want white athletic socks in crew length. Here is the break down: 57 percent preferred athletic socks to casual or socks; 57 percent preferred crew length athletic socks to no-show or low-cut ankle lengths; and 67 percent preferred white versus gray and black colors. The only glimmer of nonconformity was 23 percent said they would prefer black athletic socks and 37 percent prefer low-cut ankle length athletic socks.

Top 5 Tips for Buying Women's Underwear and Socks

Okay men, keep cool and you'll get through this with no problems. Here are the Top 5 tips for buying underwear and socks for her.

Tip No. 1: Know Your Motivation. Remember it's her gift, so carefully think through your game plan if you want to buy a style of underwear that you prefer rather than she prefers. For example, of the husbands who bought their wives underwear as a gift last holiday season, 26 percent said they opted for panties even though they knew that was the style worn by only 17 percent of their wives. Do you buy her what she wants to wear or what you want her to wear? Only you, brave shopper, can answer that question.

Tip No. 2: Married And Single Women Have Different Tastes In Panty Styles. The -style panty is the most popular for single women, and the hi-cut brief is the most popular for married women. As for trends, married women report wearing , boy and less often than five years ago. For singles, bikinis and thongs are just as popular as five years ago, but they are wearing briefs and boy shorts less often.

Tip No. 3: Improve Your Odds By Knowing The Trends In Panty Colors. The most popular panty colors are white, black and prints/patterns. Married women also like pastel colors, while singles like just about anything, including red, pink, blue, purple and stripes. Tip No. 4: Younger Women Want Their Underwear To Help Them Look Good. Women of all ages report that the most important things about their underwear are the style, the color and comfort. But for women under age 35 another big factor comes into play: how they will look wearing their underwear. It doesn't matter if they are married or single, one in four younger women list this as a critical attribute for the underwear they wear. Only one in 10 women ages 35 to 54 and only one in 20 age 55 or older care about this. So young men, get ready to answer a variation of an age-old question: "How do I look?"

Tip No. 5: You can never have too many socks (kind of like ). Unlike men, women overwhelmingly prefer casual socks as a holiday gift, versus athletic or . For colors, they prefer patterns or prints (47 percent preference), followed by white or black.

About the Survey

The Hanes underwear and sock survey of 600 adult men and women was conducted online in late November 2009. The random sample closely matches the U.S. population of adults 18 years of age and older. The sampling error is +/- 4 percentage points at the 95 percent level of confidence.

About Hanes

Hanes is a leading brand of intimate apparel, underwear, sleepwear, socks and casual apparel. Hanes products can be found at leading retailers nationwide and online direct to consumers at www.hanes.com. Hanes is a flagship brand of Inc. (NYSE:HBI) (www.hanesbrands.com).

SOURCE: Hanesbrands Inc.

Hanesbrands Inc. Bernie Wallace, 336-519-6250 [email protected] or Matt Hall, 336-519-3386 [email protected]