In a mission to challenge the status quo, one Seattle man dared to set out to liberate men from their slacks. He does this with his handy-dandy — (wait for it) Utilikilts.
Steven Villegas founded the Utilikilt in Spring 2000 after leaving his union gig painting ferries and submarines. He said that creating the fashionable knee-length kilt allowed him to exercise his necessity for uniqueness.
“My greatest fear is being homogenized,” he said. “I don’t want to be just a number – I want the world to acknowledge me for who I truly am.”
Villegas sold his first kilt to someone he met in downtown Seattle which inspired him to make more. He started selling his product in small markets until he was able to open his own retail store on 620 1st Ave (at Cherry Street) in Seattle.
In the beginning, he did not see himself as an entrepreneur, but continued to press on sharing his invention with the world.
“It’s a big gamble to be self-supporting of your own craft and to fully rely on what you’re doing,” he said.
Now, Utilikilts are sold nationwide and internationally.
Steven Villegas believes that his kilts achieve three things for men: liberation, practicality and sexiness.He also believes that his kilts challenge male sexuality stereotypes.
“Some people see it as a man-dress and would see the kilts as sissy or feminine,” he said. “Real men don’t care, and that stereotype needs to die.”
Utilikilts customers are usually strong leaders in their respective fields. Customers include “The Other Half” co-hosts Mario Lopez, Dick Clark and Danny Bonaduce, and members of the Irish band Brother. Even a Seattle postman fought to get the kilts approved as an official uniform for US Postal carriers.
“These are people who are able to change themselves, change their communities and change the future,” Villegas said. “We give them an outfit to do it in so they can be acknowledged as changers.”
The Utilikilt not only enables men to be comfortable with their sexuality, but also allows for community building.
“When someone approaches a person wearing an Utilikilt, the viewer usually doesn’t know how to encapsulate that person,” he said. “The kilt throws them off.”
The kilt strikes up questions in the viewers mind:
Who is this person? Why is he doing this?
Villegas said that these questions would usually result in the viewers engaging in conversation with the wearer.
“When you see someone wearing the kilt, you don’t just see a person, you see somebody,” he said.
In the Utilikilts’ quarterly newsletter, Customer Ron Macdonald responded to their question: Have Utilikilts improved your sex life as a sexy senior citizen?
“Women who’d ignore me in jeans chat me up when I’m wearing Utilikilts. Ladies have even passed me suggestive notes at business conferences when I’m wearing a Utilikilt, with very positive results,” Macdonald said.
In another interview, Singer and Actor Jared Philippe stated that his Utilikilt becomes a “conversation piece” among New York folks.
People would ask him, “Where would I wear such a thing?”
His response: “Anywhere you damn well please. It’s comfortable and it’s badass.”
Kilts are usually sold for $150-600. They come in different styles, prints and fabrics, such as leather, camouflage, tuxedo and Spartan. Visit their website at www.utilikilts.com to learn more about their kilts and upcoming events.
Check out Seattle’s Utilikilts at the Oregon Country Fair this weekend, July 11-13 at booth 398.