Nike X SKIMS Hype Stumbles In NYC Stores

Plus: Castore licenses socks and underwear, chasing performance basics growth

Author

Avinash Duggempudi
October 01, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

ClickZ Underwear

Here's what's happening this week in the world of underwear and intimate apparel marketing:
- Castore taps licensing to scale socks and underwear
- Nike x SKIMS launch underwhelms in-store despite buzz
- Jessica Simpson brings celebrity intimates to Walmart
- Zara Larsson debuts creator-led brand MAIN ROSE
- Lounge leans into celebrity “edit” playbook with Emily Ratajkowski

⏱️THE MINUTE READ

Juvenon suspected upper-funnel spend were fueling growth, but pixel reporting undervalued them, pushing spend to the bottom funnel.

With Fospha’s Halo, they unified DTC and Amazon sales and uncovered the truth: TikTok was 9X stronger than reported, DTC performance was under-credited by 2.9X, and upper funnel became their growth engine.

  • 📈 +18% revenue growth QoQ

  • 📉 20% CAC improvement YoY

  • 🚀 10X upper-funnel SoW growth

📌WEEKLY MUST-KNOWS

Castore signed a five-year licensing partnership with Apparel Brands Ltd to develop, manufacture and distribute Castore-branded socks and underwear across the U.K. and Europe for men, women and youth. The move extends Castore into foundational categories without tying up in‑house capacity, accelerating speed to market and retail reach via a specialist platform. Expect intensified competition in performance basics and new wholesale opportunities for retailers and marketplaces.

Despite months of hype, NikeSKIMS saw sparse lines at New York flagships and only modest online sellouts at launch. Early reception suggests social buzz isn’t converting 1:1 to store demand, highlighting product/fit, price and launch mechanics as the real conversion levers. Activewear and intimates brands banking on headline collaborations should stress test sizing breadth, merchandising depth, and omni execution to avoid hype-to-sales gaps.

Jessica Simpson unveiled a new intimates line at Walmart, using a social-first reveal to drive attention to accessible bras and panties. A celebrity-led entry at a mass merchant underscores value channels absorbing share in basics as consumers trade down. Mid-market DTC players should expect increased price competition and influencer-led discovery on retail.com that can compress margins.

Intima introduced the “Intima Hotel” collection inspired by luxury hospitality, positioning intimates and loungewear as a 24‑hour lifestyle experience. The themed capsule leans into comfort, tactility and at‑home indulgence—storytelling angles resonating with holiday shoppers. US brands can borrow the playbook: nameable capsules, sensory narratives and cross‑category bundles to lift AOV and giftability.

⚡QUICK READS

Everything You Need To Know About Zara Larsson's New Lingerie Label: Zara Larsson debuts MAIN ROSE with Scandi design talent and a bra‑as‑accessory ethos—creator‑led DTC plays are rising in intimates; expect drop‑driven content and mesh‑centric styling to trend in Q4 creatives.(More)

Emily Ratajkowski Rocks See-Through Hot Pink Bra, Thong And Garter Belt For Steamy New Lounge Campaign: Lounge’s “Emily’s Edit” signals the brand’s continued celebrity‑edit model—use for upper‑funnel reach, but plan platform‑safe variants for paid social and creator whitelisting.(More)

The Nike X SKIMS Collection Drops Today — Here’s What To Know (& Buy), From A Nike-Obsessed Shopping Writer: NikeSKIMS launches 58 silhouettes across seven collections at 10am ET—optimize search and PLA coverage around “matte,” “shine,” “airy,” and colorways; prep inventory alerts and waitlists.(More)

Zara Larsson Launches New Intimate Brand, "MAIN ROSE": V Magazine spotlights MAIN ROSE’s focus on women’s health, comfort and power mesh—evidence of demand for expressive first layers that double as outerwear in styling.(More)

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