Interview with Co-Founder Steve Villanueva of Otero Menswear
So, what is so special about Otero Menswear?
Our company is founded on the belief that a well-dressed man is more confident and respected than a man in the same position who always looks out of place in his own clothes. And we also believe that dressing really well should be effortless. Because men with confidence, intelligence, and drive have better things to do than try on every shirt that should be in your size. In fact, we believe this so passionately that we completely reinvented the concept of clothing sizes.
Most men’s apparel brands are designed for an imaginary “average” body type—one that is roughly 5’10” or 5’11”, of middling weight, with a chest measurement that determines the width of the entire garment. All other sizes (XS-XXL) are created off of this template by making the shirt proportionally bigger or smaller. Basically, every man alive is expected to fit into only seven sizes, based on a body scale that doesn’t really exist.
In reality, men have two distinctive body types, that actually serve different functions, and these are defined by differences in the shoulder-waist ratio.