Over the past thirteen years, DailyJocks has grown from a Facebook page dedicated to connecting its community to the best places to buy underwear online, to a subscription service, to where it is today: two stores and an international fanbase of over 500,000.
The DailyJocks offering has since expanded from underwear (briefs to jockstraps and everything in between); to partywear pieces such as crop tops and harnesses; to sportswear such as joggers and gym shorts. Along the way the community too has expanded to include all facets of the LGBTQIA+ spectrum… but until recently, the brand itself seemed to only reflect a small portion of that spectrum.
We chatted to founder, Nicholas Egonidis, about the decision to evolve the DailyJocks brand - and his goal to become the most diverse company in the world.
DJs: DailyJocks has just undergone a huge transformation in the past few months. In what ways is the brand different?
Nic: In so many ways, from our product range to how we communicate with our customers, to the models we work with and the stories we tell. It’s such an exciting phase for the business - and we’ve only just begun. Our mission is to become the most diverse company in the world.
DJs: Why was it necessary to evolve? The brand was already successful - it wasn’t like you ‘needed’ to change?
Nic: Toxic masculinity has proven to be as much of a problem in the gay community as it has in mainstream culture. The day I realised that we were part of the problem, was the day I chose to pivot and transform my business towards finding a solution.
DJs: In what way were you ‘part of the problem’?
Nic: Throughout lockdown, like many others, I was given the space to reflect on my business’ mission and values. When I considered the foundations of DailyJocks, I recognised that the business was always intended to serve and champion ‘community’.
However, for the past few years, while our customer base was changing to reflect so many more identities than ever before, our brand and product offering was yet to catch up.
Stepping back revealed the need to ‘step up’.
DJs: Was there a distinct ‘tipping point’ for your decision to ‘take the leap’ into this new phase for the business?
Nic: It was getting increasingly hard to hold space for what we were presenting alongside published statistics of LGBTQIA+ depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicide. These were all on the rise in a demographic that was already five-times more likely to experience mental health issues compared with their heteronormative equivalents. For intersectional community members - such as trans and indigenous - the problem is even greater.
DJs: How has DailyJocks evolved?
Nic: I chose to focus on a few key areas… As long as these were in check, I knew everything else would follow suit: the team, our product, the brand, the customer experience and our partnerships.
DJs: Talk us through each of these. In what ways are you ensuring diversity is championed when it comes to ‘product’?
Nic: Now we can proudly say we are one of the few retailers that offer fits specifically designed for trans male and trans female bodies.
As well, our product range is growing to be able to offer every style in XS to XXL by the end of the year.
When it comes to the third party brands, in order to be stocked by DailyJocks, you’ve got to promote diversity in your marketing materials.
DJs: What about the team? How are you ensuring diversity and inclusivity behind the scenes?
Nic: That was actually one area that I was already really proud of. When I looked at who we were behind the scenes, I was excited to see that we were already a diverse collective of cultural backgrounds, sexual orientations, gender-identities and abilities. For us the challenge was to ensure the consumer-facing elements of the business were as diverse as our team actually is.
DJs: On that, the DailyJocks relaunch campaign was a huge leap forward for the brand. Talk us through the thinking that went into that.
The relaunch campaign was designed to showcase DailyJocks’ actual community members and was all about intersectional representation: queer indiginous; trans and non-binary talent; incredible models who represent disabled communities and a cross section of cutlural and nationality backgrounds and body types.
Beyond just featuring talent as models, we wanted to show their personalities, their passions - and the pain-points that lead to us transforming our brand. As such, our relaunch campaign has included interviews that we share each week in the blog - and a video campaign that presents our campaign stars’ ideas and opinions - as well as their incredible physical presence.
DJs: How has the brand’s new M.O. been received so far?
Nic: I am so proud and excited for what this new era means for us, and the response so far has been overwhelmingly positive.
This is by far the biggest and most pivotal moment in in my company's history and
I'm just so excited for what the future holds for us, and what this could deliver to the community.
We are expanding our size and style selection weekly… Check out the DailyJocks underwear collection here.
DailyJocks acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora nation and the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation on whose lands we operate. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present.
