The first thing we noticed about Dosco Jones is how stylish their collection of boxers are, and the second thing we noticed was a standout website statement: ‘they reduce up to 90% the need to scratch your balls’ – this had #TeamCoco instantly wanting to know more about the company and the company owner, Frederico Barreto.
Q. At what point did you realise that you wanted to design and produce gorgeously stylish, snug fitting underwear for men?
A. I had always struggled with my underwear. I tried briefs, boxers, boxer briefs, you name it, I tried it. However none solved two key issues for me: all of them climbed up my legs or up my waist and every time I stood up I was having to adjust my underwear. Additionally none of them really caters to the peculiars of male anatomy in the sense that trousers push our anatomy against our legs or other zones of skin. However the male anatomy was designed precisely to stay away from other zones of the body or skin, because specific temperature needs to be lower than that of the body.
All those reasons led me to redesign the boxer brief specifically for men.
Q. Did you previously work in the clothing industry or was this a step into a new world for you?
A. I’ve worked in management consulting for the past 17 years, starting up several projects (a kind of internal entrepreneur) and I’ve also started a few personal side projects through the years (printed t-shirts, financial advice, etc). But I had no previous experience in the clothing industry. Actually I’m a firm believer that outsiders have the best chances of disrupting any industry.
Q. Your design offers supreme comfort, is this down to the style and cut of Dosco Jones boxers or down to the material and fabric that you use?
A. That is the money question. I redesigned the boxer brief with the male anatomy in mind because I always struggled with other ‘traditional’ underwear. So what I did was create a special division that stops our ‘junk’ anatomy from touching any other skin. That division is a pouch where a man can ‘park his junk’ and keeps our junk from getting warmer than it is supposed (prevents sweating) while at the same time it prevents the underwear from climbing up the legs or the waist.
Q. Do you only wear your own brand boxers nowadays or do you ever invest in any competitor pants to see/evaluate the differences?
A. I do try new underwear all the time, however It’s very hard to find underwear that is even close to the comfort that Dosco Jones offers so I always go back to wearing them.
Q. Your designs make a statement, especially the mustard, moss, and rust colours, was this your aim, and do you have a biggest selling colour from the collection?
A. Our aim was to have two basic colours (white and black) and a few more vibrant ones (dark brown, midnight blue, mustard, moss and rust). Men told us that they wanted some choices in colour so we delivered. Our best seller is our midnight blue model.
Q. Can we buy Dosco Jones here in the UK?
A. The UK are already our largest fan base. We deliver to any country in the world but our greatest fans are in Europe. We were featured in British GQ in May and will be so in June and July as well. There is a vibrant fan base of ours in the UK, thankfully.
Q. What is your immediate plan for Dosco Jones in the next 1-2 years, and are you looking to spread into new territories around the world?
A. Absolutely! We’re being asked to have our collections in some high-end brick & mortar stores, which is also an objective of ours.
We think we can change the way men wear, and most of all feel, about their underwear.
Most brands are just about the brand name and give no attention to the specifics of male anatomy. We want men to be able to choose between an underwear that was designed with them and their anatomy in mind or any other popular brand that is just focused on churning out sales.
Q. What piece of advice would you give someone looking to get into the clothing industry or more specifically the underwear sector, now that you have launched your own successful business?
A. Just start and figure things out as you go along. Don’t wait to have everything figured out or you won’t start – there is never a perfect moment to start. I’m more than happy to share my learnings with anyone willing to learn.
It is with great thanks to Frederico Barreto for openly and honestly answering our rather personal questions about his underwear label Dosco Jones.