[Torchwatch]

Before the coming of the sportswear chains sports shops were run by local people who stocked what they thought they could sell. The men's swimwear rail was like a sweet shop with a big variety of designs, colours and patterns.
The sportswear chains held low stocks and reduced choice reducing options to black or navy Speedos. Once you owned a pair of black or navy Speedos there was nowhere else to go.


The naturist beaches attracted families with children as well as single men, the families would occupy the main part of a naturist beach, straight single men would find spots among them while gay single men would find there own space at the ends of the beach. With the coming of child abuse reporting phone lines most of the naturist families disappeared in the UK and US, the naturist beaches now being maintained by str8 and gay single men. This is the connection between nudity and gay men.

Many of the gay men that went to naturist beaches didn't want to be naked but wanted briefer and more colourful swimwear than was available in the chain stores. A market for mail order "extreme" swimwear developed that has since gone online. Although straight men also bought briefer and more colourful swim briefs while the majority of men and boys wore larger and baggier shorts declaring that the briefs were a gay thing.