As Japanese waistlines expand, so is the market for girdles -- for men.
A new line of male underwear that flattens the stomach and lifts the hips proved so popular when introduced on a trial basis last month that some stores quickly sold out.
“Men are getting so much more fashion conscious these days that they’re starting to pay attention to the lines of their body and their silhouette, just like women,” said a spokeswoman at Triumph International Japan, a leading underwear firm.
Triumph marketed two different types of “long girdle” -- one from the navel to the knees, and the other a “hip hugger” version to be worn with low-waisted pants.
Both sold so well that it plans to raise production and develop new variations, including a version for summer wear.
Other firms intend to launch similar products, according to business daily Nihon Keizai Shimbun. One even plans to start selling underwear that lifts and shapes the upper body as well.
One factor behind the boom, which has made the girdles popular not only among middle-aged men but also those in their 20s and 30s, is likely to be a growing weight problem among once slim Japanese.
According to a Health Ministry report issued last month, some 29 percent of men aged 20-60 are overweight compared with 24 percent in 2000.
The Triumph spokeswoman, however, said most of the demand is due to new styles in pants that are cut to emphasize the hips. “It’s really more about style,” she said. “After all, there aren’t that many men in their 20s and 30s whose figures are giving way.”