As we are still living in a world where body acceptance of all sizes is a constant struggle and battle to become a norm in society, there are several brands that are making fantastic products in order to make that struggle a thing of the past and have all of us be accepted for who they are. One of those fantastic companies is Bear Skn, a great brand that markets quality and colorful underwear to men of size that fit well and accentuate what makes husky dudes awesome. The brand has grown exponentially since its birth about two years ago, and they recently celebrated that with an amazing photo shoot for their Bear Skn Neon Brights Collection. [Read more…] about Bear Skn’s Neon Collection’s Woofy Rooftop Party
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Furball 12th Anniversary Hits Up Santos Party House April 2nd
Anniversaries are always a good thing, no matter how you look at it. Especially, when they feature insanely hot bears, cubs and their admirers all under one insanely hot roof. This type of anniversary celebrates the 12th year of the iconic bear party known as Furball, which is doing it in style next Saturday night, April 2nd, at Santos Party House in downtown Manhattan. [Read more…] about Furball 12th Anniversary Hits Up Santos Party House April 2nd
Legendary Bear Event Furball Hits Up Santos Party House Saturday
New Year, New Attitude, New You… but one thing that will always remain constant for many bears and bear lovers is that hot event that brings us all together for a little (or a lot of) fun, debauchery, dancing and so much more. Nothing does that better than legendary bear event Furball, which will be hitting up Santos Party House this coming Saturday night beginning at 11pm. With the three day holiday weekend approaching us, I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate than with hundreds of other hairy and hairy minded dudes, gogo bears (one in particular is writing this), great music, and so much more.
[Read more…] about Legendary Bear Event Furball Hits Up Santos Party House Saturday
Manhattan Digest’s 2nd Fundraiser Another Big Success!
Manhattan Digest held its 2nd fundraiser this past Friday night at Gym Sportsbar down in Chelsea. With the fear of Hurricane Joaquin (Phoenix) settling into New York that night, I was worried that a lot of people wouldn’t show up due to how bad the weather was going to be. Regardless, a ton of friends, family and friendly customers stopped by to donate, have some delicious cupcakes and submit their tickets in hopes to win some fantastic prizes.
Overall we raised hundreds of dollars for cancer research with even more donations coming in over the next day or so. That makes me extremely happy to know that doing something as simply as a fundraiser can hopefully save at least one life with the money that we raised.
I would love to thank everyone that showed up, as well as Serge Sterbois, Jerry Reilly and the Gym Sportsbar staff for their amazing job before, during and after the fundraiser. I would also love to give a shoutout to Tim de Iturriaga at Adonis Lounge for finding a host for the event (the handsome and wonderful Jason) who went out of his way to talk to every person who came down into the basement area about the charity. Finally, thank you to Huascar Aquino from H Bake Shop who generously donated a ton of cupcakes for everyone to devour and enjoy. Got so many amazing reviews from the cupcakes so let’s hope it drives in some new customers for him!
Finally, a big thanks to all the companies that donated generously for this event. This includes Krave & Kulture, Crunch Gym, Haru Sushi, Jacob’s Pickles, Best Barber in Hell’s Kitchen, The New York Beer Company, The Jolly Monk, Hotel Belleclaire, Otto’s Tacos, H Bake Shop, BKB Restaurant, Cantina Rooftop, Morton’s Grille and Bear Skn. My gratitude is endless and I really appreciate what each of you did, so thank you again!
Will hopefully have another one in early 2016. In the meantime, thanks to everyone again who participated and enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Bear Skn- The Next Great Line In Underwear For Men Of All Sizes
When you are a man of a certain size (like me), shopping for good fitting underwear can be just as much of an issue as finding a shirt of pants that showcase the goods all in a great way. I ran into that particular issue last weekend when I was picked to be a Gogo Bear at Furball NYC, which happened during Pride Weekend at Space Ibiza last Friday night. I had some options readily available for myself however I didn’t like the way it fit me and the colors of them didn’t gravitate the eye the way they wanted to. Luckily, one of the sponsors for Furball NYC was this great clothing line called Bear Skn who also provided underwear for all the GoGo Bears for the evening. I tried mine on, which had a great green color to it, and was ecstatic with how it looked, felt and got me through the evening (If you are dying to see how it looks just go to my IG- @musiccub. #selfpromotion.)
With so many mainstream and gay underwear lines focusing on the muscled and chiseled dude, it can be difficult to navigate the world of boxers and briefs for the huskier and thick dudes who want to feel just as hot and sexy as the fit ones do. Bear Skn does exactly that. Their attention to detail when it comes to size, color and body type really shows and with a line of underwear that goes up to 6XL you can guarantee that you’ll be able to find something that fits you to perfection when you try it on.
I recently sat down with their fabulous owner Jody Koenig who explained to me about the history of Bear Skn, its hopeful future and honest thoughts about their competitors in the market right now. Take a look.
How did the concept of Bear Skn begin?
It all started when Co-Founder Bjorn R-G was a member of an underwear of the month club and wasn’t really getting anything to suit his needs. When there was a style he liked typically it wasn’t offered it in his size. We started asking our friends about their underwear and it became clear that there was a need for comfortable and stylish underwear for bigger guys.
Conceptually and design wise what was your original image for the brand?
At Bear Skn, we think of ourselves as craftsmen. While the tools of our trade may be a bit finer than a hatchet, we wanted an iconic logo that conveyed a sense of craftsmanship and masculinity. A hatchet is not merely a blunt tool. It can be also be used to shape something new. We think that Bear Skn has shaped something new that you will truly appreciate.
We started with our standard issue in basic colors black, red, green, blue, and a purple. Then for our premium Backwoods Button down that features the classic buffalo check print. The backwoods really shows the masculine image that we want for the brand.
The name too, how did you come up with that, in particular the spelling of SKN?
We went through a number of different names actually. We tried using our initials but that sounded more like a law firm than a men’s clothing brand. The name “Bjorn” actually means “Bear.” It worked out that it was a fun name that had a great image, and still had personal elements to it. We continued to play around with the name but the SKN spelling came down to what was available as a URL.
What are the options of apparel you can get?
Currently Bear Skn is focused on underwear. We have a brief, trunk and soon to be released boxer brief style. We listened to feedback on our first line and made the adjustments that our customers we asking for. Bear Skn also has plans for socks, loungewear, shorts, swimwear to mention a few.
Do you find bears are still underrepresented when it comes to clothing options in the community?
For a larger man, finding a good fit can be difficult. There are options out there, but you really have to dig and try things that maybe your not use to. There are not many brands that focus on providing new and stylish looks for this size range. You are limited to one outdated look.
What’s your opinion on well known gay clothing labels such as Andrew Christian and Nasty Pig? Do you think they miss the mark when it comes to men of a certain size?
I think they are serving their market very well. As a business you have to find your ideal customer and market directly to them, they have found their group and going after it. That’s where Bear Skn comes in to focus the men of size!
What is next for the Bear Skn brand?
The main focus for us is on growing the breath of our product line and getting into more retail locations. We see more fun colors and introducing more interesting new style.
For more information on Jody’s fantastic line, check out their official website. Right in time for the upcoming Bear Week in Provincetown as well! Happy Shopping everyone!