"What turns you on about your man's underwear?" asks Blackberrys

The apparel brand recently forayed into the innerwear space.

What turns you on about your man's underwear? 'Without is better', 'underwear with snakes or emoticons', 'tight and not baggy' were some bold answers to this comparatively less bold question posed to unsuspecting girls.

While women accosted with such a question in public spaces would probably understand that the intent is to promote a brand, one of the last names that would occur to anyone though is the name of a 25-year old legacy brand which began its journey in the bylanes of Chandni Chowk -- Blackberrys.

"What turns you on about your man's underwear?" asks Blackberrys

Men's apparel brand Blackberrys from the Gurgaon-based Mohan Clothing, which addresses all wardrobe needs for men including suits and jackets for formal occasions, khakis, shirts, shoes and accessories, recently forayed into the innerwear segment. Moving on from the sleaze and sexual innuendo associated with men's innerwear advertising, which has almost always objectified women, Blackberrys carried out a cheeky, on-ground activation #BangOn, for the launch. The brand's agency Grapes Digital, along with Indiatimes, executed the activity in Gurgaon.

The video was shot and produced by MensXP.com.

Speaking on foraying into the category and how the move is in line with the ethos of the stately brand that Blackberrys is, Nitin Mohan, director, Blackberrys, says, "We have largely been in the formal space for 25 years now. People appreciate us for our fits, and in the innerwear segment 'fit' is the most important attribute. So, this was a natural progression for us."

But, why was no sub-brand created for the new offering? "Blackberrys has matured and has been accepted very well as a specialised menswear brand. Entering into the segment under the mother brand was therefore obvious. It completes our product portfolio," says Mohan.

The product falls in the affordable premium category, and according to Mohan, its closest competitor in the market will be Calvin Klein. Jockey is nowhere close, he asserts.

The brand also sees this as an opportunity to communicate with the younger set of customers. "Blackberrys has been seen as a formal and fairly straight-jacketed brand. This is an opportunity for us to break the mould and loosen up a bit for the fashion forward, vivid and confident young customer," shares Mohan.

Blackberrys has 200 exclusive outlets, besides a presence in 1,100 multi-brand stores and 130 large format retailers such as Shoppers Stop and Lifestyle. It is accessible across the country in Tier I and II cities. Currently, the innerwear range is available across all brand outlets.

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