When we think of Zubaz today , “ useful ” probably is n’t the first intelligence that pop into our heads . However , Quaker Bob Truax and Dan Stock actually had a practical intention in thinker when they create the garish bloomers in the later eighties . Truax and Stock owned a Minnesota gym that was democratic with muscleman , but their clientele had a problem : the hardcore weightlifter could n’t find bloomers or shorts that comfortably fit their massive thighs while offering the flexibleness they need for their workouts . So in 1988 Truax and Stock get down brainstorm a new kind of pant for the heavy - lifting man .
The pair developed a comfortably loose-fitting pair of boxers with an flexible waistband , and their bodybuilding customers and friends quick became hooklike on the roomier duds . They call the shorts “ Zubaz , ” a take on the ' 70s street slangzoobafor “ in your face . ” The duo also cleverly made their shortstop in loud , classifiable , Day - Glo blueprint — the classic zebra - stripe pattern was one of the first Zubaz prints — that matched the company ’s slogan , “ make bold to Be unlike . ”
OF ROAD WARRIORS AND FEMALE INMATES
The men started doing a fairly brisk job deal Zubaz out of their gymnasium solely on word - of - mouth ballyhoo . When it come up to promotion , Truax and Stock had a pair of genius up their gaudily printed sleeves : wildly popular professional wrestling tag squad the Road Warriors were partners in the designers ’ gymnasium . Road Warrior Hawk and Road Warrior Animal looked mighty at base in Zubaz ; the gimcrack pants interlock well with their stylemark face key and spiked shoulder pads . Then , Zubaz catch another break : after a J.C. Penney manager saw a fan sporting a pair of Zubaz at a hockey biz , the section memory board chain begin distributing the brand nationally .
The literal production of the early pairs of Zubaz sounds a tad farfetched . Truax and Stock were brother with several corrections policeman who worked at Minnesota prison house , and when the safety gadget hear the bodybuilders call for a manpower to sew their increasingly popular shorts , they had a trace : hirefemale inmatesto do the work . Thus , former pairs of Zubaz were the ware of convict labor .
50,000 PAIRS A WEEK
As Zubaz ’s national reach extend , so did the brand ’s star power . Dan Marino became the most famous name to endorse the brand , but supermodel Claudia Schiffer also pulled on Zubaz for a series of ads . The brand ’s growing popularity led to a grow product line that let in longer pants and jacket impress in professional mutation ’ teams coloring . Eventually the brand was move an center - popping50,000 pairsof Zubaz a week .
Of course , Zubaz ’s popularity was n’t as abiding as Truax and Stock probably hoped . Although the company deal over 9 million pairs of drawers and extract down around $ 160 million in sales during the early 1990s , the gasp did n’t quite end up becoming a timeless classic . Truax and Stock sold their shares of the society in the early 1990s , and by 1996 the business was bankrupt .
ZUBAZ REDUX
After Zubaz go belly - up in 1996 , Truax and Stock reacquired the trademark . They sat on the concept until 2007 , when they plunge a line of raw Zubaz as a bauble product aimed at retro - minded young men . grant to a 2008Minneapolis Star Tribuneprofile , the cooperator decide to keep the venture modest by mostly selling on the Internet , out of a shop at the gym Stock owns , and at a few Minnesota sporting goods shop . In 2015 , theyexpandedtheir online store for a new generation of comfort - seek customer . In accession to pants and shorts , the land site also offers blue jean , leggings , washup suit wriggle masque , and skateboards .
If you ’re a baseball lover front for an apology to total out to the ballpark , several MLB teams hold regularZubapalooza Nights .
As one might guess , a enceinte portion of the revitalize Zubaz stain ’s client were old devotee whose Zubaz had meet similarly orphic fates . As Heron Márquez Estrada of theStar Tribunewrote , “ As password of the return of Zubaz has fan out , Stock and Truax theme receive a lot of inquiries from human being who buy the knickers — often in their preferred pro squad colors—20 years ago , and then their wife ‘ lost ’ them . ”
This post originally appeared in 2011 .
