We are pleased to publish this interview with Fred Oudshoorn, owner of Zzada, an online retailer based in the Netherlands. According to the stats for this blog, visitors to Hosiery For Men from the Netherlands are the fifth largest group after the USA, The UK, Germany and Canada.
Can you tell Hosiery For Men readers something about Zzada?
Zzada is a Dutch hosiery webshop and was founded in 2007. We try to combine excellent service with the lowest prices in hosiery for both men and women. We ship all over Europe and charge only € 1,75 postage for orders under € 20,00.
Why did you decide to stock tights for men? Are men an important part of your customer base?
Very soon after our launch we began to offer tights for men. I think that was in 2008 when we added the Polish brand Lida which had three different styles for men. I think about 60% of our buyers are men (you can’t always tell) so I definitely regard them as very important for our business.
Do you feel that tights for men are growing trend? What are the prospects of men's tights becoming a more accepted item of clothing?
Although for most men tights are not on their list of musthaves, I can see sales shifting in the right direction. But like many fashion items, I don't think tights for men will become mainstream very soon, and perhaps never will be. I read many discussions on the Internet about how society “should” accept men who want to wear tights. But if you compare the time it took before women in general were “accepted” to wear trousers, it may very well take two generations before this will be accomplished. I see no point in waiting for that. If men want to wear tights, they should just do it. Besides that, I think “acceptance” is quite a vague concept.
Are tights for men popular in the Netherlands?
Yes, sales for male hosiery goes up every year
Many men continue to buy tights that are designed and made for women. What do you feel are the advantages of tights that are made specifically for men?
Well, no need to say that the female body is proportioned a bit wider on the hips, so for a good fit I would certainly recommend tights for men if you are a man.
Which brands and styles of tights sell particularly well to your male customers?
We can see that Activskin is very popular among our Dutch customers, as well as the WoMan series from Levée. Unfortunately this brand does not exist anymore.
What developments can we expect in the future at Zzada? Are you planning to stock and market any new styles?
As we speak, we are building a new webshop which will launch as soon as we have managed to fix all the bugs. Furthermore, we will continue to expand our ranges for both men and women. As regards male hosiery, we have planned to add some new styles from Activskin this year (suggestions welcome at info@zzada.eu), as we are the only retailer in the Netherlands which sells this brand. So check out Zzada or subscribe to our newsletter.
Many thanks Fred for taking the time to speak to Hosiery For Men. I hope readers of this blog will make time to look at the Zzada store and also offer suggestions for new styles.
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