• Globally, the market size of the subscription model has skyrocketed, offering consumers and businesses a greater variety of services and options.
  • Fashion is a world of ever-changing consumer trends, and these trends don't exclude men's socks and underwear.
  • Samy Liechti is a pioneer in the fashion subscription world, and founded the by-subscription-only brand BLACKSOCKS - a high-quality socks and underwear brand, coining the term "sockscription.”

Subscriptions are not a new idea, and this survey conducted by Zuora shows that it grew by 437% in just a decade. Recent global events and the growing trend of people seeking comfort in the brands they know and trust are going to impact the subscription market further. Until 2025, the subscription market is expected to have a CAGR of 68%, reaching $478 billion.

Contrary to what many believe, the largest category of the subscription market is not streaming services, but eCommerce. Consumers have increasingly been signing up to acquire goods like snacks, beverages, and clothes regularly. One company that tapped into the subscription market long before it became a trend is BLACKSOCKS. The company was founded by Swiss pioneer Samy Liechti in 1999 and supplies funky and colorful socks, men’s underwear, and attire.

Liechti’s idea for an online sock subscription service actually originated from an embarrassing moment; at a tea ceremony with notable Japanese businessmen, he realized too late that his socks were mismatched and spent the shoeless ceremony in complete mortification. He vowed to never be in that situation again and so the “sockscription’” idea was born - a sock haven for men who can order socks online even in equally desperate situations!

Men's Socks and Pioneering in The Fashion Industry

When most companies were sourcing socks in Asia, Liechti was already producing men's socks in Italy and men's underwear in Portugal. For BLACKSOCKS, this gave them the competitive advantage in terms of the quality of their products, meeting environmental regulations, and ensuring working conditions are respected.

As in all areas of the fashion industry, the demand for men's socks and boxer shorts does not stay the same. When BLACKSOCKS started, 85% of men wore only black socks, and most of them only wore them with business attire. The only colorful aspect to this look would have been the pattern or color of the ties they wore.

Men's fashion has changed immensely since then, and even business people often prefer the more casual look, including funky socks like those from Happy Socks. "We increased our product range and introduced funky and colorful socks way before they became such a hot trend. The demand for more colorful briefs has also surged, and we have included this trend into the range of men's underwear, including boxer shorts and briefs,” Liechti said.

A sockscription offers a ton of choices - from what men need, to what tickles their fancy, to just how often they want their essential supply of favorite socks delivered, wherever they may be in the world.

Conscientious Fashion

In 1999, not many people cared about a product's origin, but for Liechti, it was always clear that every product must have a conscience. BLACKSOCKS has lived up to this ideal since the beginning, and Liechti believes it is up to every entrepreneur to have the responsibility of maintaining it.

Cotton remains an essential raw material for BLACKSOCKS, but as Liechti points out with characteristic humor: "It does not grow on the Swiss Alps." In keeping with its responsibility of producing clothing with a conscience, the company started manufacturing its first socks with organic cotton as far back as 2010. The entire process of the production of the socks takes place in northern Italy, including the dyeing and packaging. Everything is done in one contained location which respects the regulations on working conditions and the environment.

In addition, transport routes in both European locations are short, ensuring that the company saves costs, and the range of men's socks and men's underwear all have a reduced carbon footprint.

Samy Liechti, Blacksocks
Samy Liechti, Blacksocks Samy Liechti, Blacksocks

The rise of a Subscription Company

Men have different shopping behavior than women. The latest trends show that they are more frequent online shoppers than women and more loyal to their preferred brands. According to Liechti, when men are happy with a product, they are most likely to want the same one over and over again, coming back even years later for the product. "A BLACKSOCKS subscription is the perfect interface between men and their socks and underwear, ensuring customers can come back for years for their favorite items, no matter where they live," Liechti said.

This is a rare and perfect example of a successful entrepreneurial startup that originated from a comical situation, and then went on to inspire the entire fashion subscription movement.