What people buy

[Torchwatch]

In my 20's when Speedo make Lycra swim briefs in a wide variety of colours and patterns going to a sports shop had the excitement of a kid a sweet shop. You never knew quite what they had new in stock and were tempted to buy things just because they looked different and new. There is also the suit that you see and are not sure of, until you sleep on it and realise you must have it as soon as possible, though you can't get back to the shop until the next weekend.

A swim brief is a very tight area in which to make a statement or a work of art. Those designers that can do it seem to have a touch of genius. The designs on jammers work differently, while the board shorts designers tended to head towards gross ugly floral works.
You can say something with a swim brief then wear a different pair next time and say something else, whilst you are stuck with a tattoo for life.

Since swim briefs are fairly cheap and store compactly you can always buy more than you need in designs you like and make a different statement that fits your mood.

[JamesSwim]

Originally Posted by Torchwatch

In my 20's when Speedo make Lycra swim briefs in a wide variety of colours and patterns going to a sports shop had the excitement of a kid a sweet shop. You never knew quite what they had new in stock and were tempted to buy things just because they looked different and new. There is also the suit that you see and are not sure of, until you sleep on it and realise you must have it as soon as possible, though you can't get back to the shop until the next weekend.

A swim brief is a very tight area in which to make a statement or a work of art. Those designers that can do it seem to have a touch of genius. The designs on jammers work differently, while the board shorts designers tended to head towards gross ugly floral works.
You can say something with a swim brief then wear a different pair next time and say something else, whilst you are stuck with a tattoo for life.

Since swim briefs are fairly cheap and store compactly you can always buy more than you need in designs you like and make a different statement that fits your mood.

Yes, I've noticed that jammers are for the most part designed similarly, either solid or with a stripe or design down the side. Very rarely do you see an over-all pattern. Plus there's little variation in the cut that I can see. Not like "low cut" vs. "standard cut", 1, 2 or 3" sides, sunga cut, etc. in a brief.

[50 Free]

Never in my life have I seen a retail store with a decent selection of competitive swimsuits, just jillions of non-comp beach wear. Thank god for the modern method of shopping online. My favorite by far is swimoutlet.com

[Bede735]

I've bought a couple of pairs from Swimwear 4 Men:

http://www.swimwear4men.com/

It's a firm based in Austria which has a substantial number of briefs to choose from, though on the downside they are quite pricey.

[Swimmboy]

Jamesswim - Swimoutlet is indeed focused on serving the needs of competitive swimmers rather than the general public, and I am sure that is why you see more briefs on their web site. They are a major advertiser/sponsor of the Swimming World Magazine web site, which is dedicated to competitive swimming (Swimming World Magazine was created around 1960 to serve the college/high school/summer league swimming members). So it is not surprising to find such a wide choice of briefs on their site compared to sites run by department or general sporting goods stores.

[JamesSwim]

Originally Posted by Swimmboy

Jamesswim - Swimoutlet is indeed focused on serving the needs of competitive swimmers rather than the general public, and I am sure that is why you see more briefs on their web site. They are a major advertiser/sponsor of the Swimming World Magazine web site, which is dedicated to competitive swimming (Swimming World Magazine was created around 1960 to serve the college/high school/summer league swimming members). So it is not surprising to find such a wide choice of briefs on their site compared to sites run by department or general sporting goods stores.

Thanks, that make sense. There sell many suits that can be used for competition, but not too many that are in men's fashion category.

The site that Bede75 mentioned, Swimwear 4 men, also sells more briefs (504 styles) vs. board shorts (80 styles), but that's probably for a different reason. Their best selling brief is a solid white "HOM" brand brief, so it may cater to those in Europe (it's an Austrian web site) who buy it for recreation or sunning rather than for competition (they do sell standard competition suits, but not too many)

[Bede735]

Strange bestseller as 'they' always recommend that you shouldn't wear white briefs.

I don't know how many of their suits are meant for recreation as opposed to training/competition. Surely if the suit is brief enough then that makes it suitable for proper swimming?