What’s the menswear equivalent of Betabrand?

July 9, 2023 3:11 PM

My husband has moved into a new job and is in need of new pants that can pass for business casual, are stretchy enough to bike in, and, most importantly, fit his body. He currently has a few pairs of long-discontinued REI brand travel pants that fit the bill well enough, but are on their last legs. The new versions of the same pants don’t fit.

The look: chinos or dress pants: something he could toss a sport coat over.

The functionality: stretchy and reasonably sweat-wicking for bike commuting (folks may suggest separate clothes for commuting and work, but he also bikes to meetings and the gym mid-day, and he’d spend half his day changing clothes).

The fit: he generally wears a 36x30, but is a weightlifter and has very large thighs and calves. Probably 75% of the pants he tries on don’t fit in the thighs.

So far he’s tried pants from Land’s End, Old Navy, and Lululemon with no success (a few fit great in the thighs, but were skintight in the calves- that was a new one!). Any suggestions for what to try next would be much appreciated!

posted by rebeccabeagle to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (9 answers total)

Best answer: I'm AFAB but wear a lot of men's clothes, and have a health ass, thighs, and calves. I love these pants. Very stretchy (I am SO GLAD stretch has come to men's pants). Great pockets. They're tech fabric but don't really look it and would totally pass muster with a button up as long as the office isn't formal. They really are weatherproof - I wore them to a rainy outdoor concert recently and was super comfortable.
posted by joycehealy at 3:31 PM on July 9, 2023 [3 favorites]

Best answer: The brand DU/ER was created specifically for men who bike. The crotches are gusseted on at least some of the pants and they have other bike-friendly features. I presume the thighs might be a big bigger because of this? A good friend of mine who lifts and bikes and has large thighs wears them as his only pants. Are they dressy enough?
posted by bluedaisy at 4:15 PM on July 9, 2023 [5 favorites]

Best answer: Du/ers are now all I wear—I think I'm up to six pairs.
posted by avocet at 4:35 PM on July 9, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Rhone has great athletic wear for athletic builds.
posted by dobi at 6:18 PM on July 9, 2023

Best answer: I have not ridden in them, but you'd be hard pressed to find a better-fitting pair of pants than Woodies as they're custom made.
posted by dobbs at 6:24 PM on July 9, 2023

Best answer: My husband has thick soccer thighs, and barbell brand pants have been a big winner for him!
posted by euphoria066 at 9:20 AM on July 10, 2023

Response by poster: Thanks all! These are all what he’s looking for and all the brands are new to him. He plans on trying them all and I’m crossing my fingers that at least one brand fits! (His thighs are very muscle-y, squatting ridiculous weights is his thing, and while great for his mental health, makes pants buying so hard).
posted by rebeccabeagle at 1:24 PM on July 10, 2023

Best answer: Might not support the morph type but I wear Bluffworks to work, on the town, traveling, walking inn to inn and light hiking. It is hard to wrinkle the chinos or stain them. They dry very quickly as well.
posted by drowsy at 7:35 PM on July 10, 2023

Response by poster: We’ve now tried almost all these pants, and Barbells were the winners (the Weatherproofs from Costco are the runners up)! The Barbells are light, stretchy, and JUST big enough in the thigh. All the other pants were too small in the thighs and calves. The only ones not ordered were the Woodies, because the cotton content was higher than he wanted. Thanks all!
posted by rebeccabeagle at 5:33 AM on August 15, 2023