The Utilikilts Company
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The Utilikilts Company is an American kilt company that was founded by Steven Villegas and Megan Haas in April 2000. Villegas created his first unbifurcated garment in the late 90's as a comfortable alternative to pants meant to offer the most freedom of movement while working on his motorcycle.[1] Created from an old pair of military pants, Villegas was so fond of his creation he wore it quite often around town. He was approached by his first customer, "a bouncer that you wouldn't want to mess with", at a local bar.[1]
That first encounter encouraged him to produce more kilts, and sell them at the Fremont Street Market in Seattle where he would meet company co-founder Megan Haas.[2] Together they would form the Utilikilts Company, establishing both a brick-and-mortar and web based storefront for their product.
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[edit] Commercial success
Utilikilt's commercial success is primarily from word of mouth, as the company does not pay for product placement or commercial endorsement and eschews professional models in favor of photos of actual customers.[3] Despite this low-key approach, they grew from sales of 750 kilts their first year to over 11,000 three years later.[4][5] The company received a big boost in recognition after Richard Hatch donned a Utilikilt on-screen in Survivor: All-Stars.[6]
[edit] References
- ^ a b Amjadali, Samantha. "Dressed to the kilt", Herald Sun, 2002-11-17.
- ^ Downey, Roger. "The breeze between your knees", Seattle Weekly, 2001-04-11.
- ^ Frey, Christine. "Retail Notebook: Local companies go to Hollywood", Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2004-02-21.
- ^ Villano, Matt. "Seattle:Utilikilts", The New York Times, 2006-05-11.
- ^ McCurdy, Diana. "Men in Skirts", The Dominion Post, 2004-05-17.
- ^ Fernandez, Sandy. "Utilikilts", The Washington Post, 2004-02-15.
[edit] Further reading
- Weinstein, Farrah. "Wanna Be A Real Rebel? Try Rocking A Kilt - Interview with Joe "Photognome" Hunt at Bonnaroo", MTV News, 2007-07-11.
- Spitznass, Jill. "Real men skirt the issue", Portland Tribune, 2004-05-28.
- apRoberts, Alison. "Kilt trip", The Sacramento Bee, 2003-05-06.
- "From cargo cult to cargo kilt", The Sydney Morning Herald, 2002-12-21.
- "Escaping the tyranny of trousers", U.S. News & World Report, 2003-05-05.
