Nasty Pig
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Frederick Kearney
- David Lauterstein
- Frederick Kearney (Creative director)
- David Lauterstein (CEO)
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_-_3.jpg) Exterior of Nasty Pig's flagship store in Chelsea, Manhattan, in 2020 | |
| Founded | October 31, 1994 in New York City, U.S. |
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| Headquarters | 259 W. 19th Street, New York City, New York , U.S. |
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Number of employees | 12[1] (2017) |
| Website | store |
Nasty Pig is an American men's fashion brand, based in New York City. The gay-owned company was founded in 1994 by Frederick Kearney and David Lauterstein, who serve as creative director and chief executive officer, respectively.[2]
Nasty Pig initially focused on sportswear catering to leather subcultures, with early products including jockstraps, jeans, shorts, and related apparel, before later expanding into a broader clothing line.[3]
The gay-owned brand has since expanded its product range and offerings, targeting primarily gay men.[4][5][6] Sexual fetishism remains an influence; Nasty Pig has carried bondage harnesses and straps, as well as rubber jockstraps and bedding.[7] The company has also sold silk woven neckties displaying the brand's logo "intricately hidden within the weave of the material".[1] The brand's logo and visual language reads fluently to LGBTQ+ communities which makes it easier to find other members of the community. The current logo balances understatement with nerve writes Rob Salerno of Xtra Magazine.[8]
Out's Stacy Lambe has described the brand's aesthetic as "a refined combo of punk attitude, street graffiti, and high-tech materials".[4] Michael Kleinmann of The Underwear Expert has called Nasty Pig a "masculine sportswear line with an unabashed fetish edge" and "a connection to a raunchy, sexual subculture of some kind".[9] ChicagoPride.com's Ross Forman has described Nasty Pig as "the ultimate edgy clothing brand for the masculine, sexually self-assured male consumers", with "bold stripes and loud colors".[1] The brand's motto is "fun clothing that gets you laid".[6][10]
History
We started Nasty Pig because we wanted to create a culture brand that would allow queer people to express their queer identity. In the early nineties so much of our community was defined by the AIDS crisis in one way or another. We wanted to offer something that celebrated our uniqueness as a people.
Nasty Pig Incorporated was formed on October 31, 1994, by partners Frederick Kearney and David Lauterstein,[1] who continue to serve as creative director and chief executive officer, respectively.[4] The couple met in New York City in 1993 and began selling "re:vision goggles" with refractive lenses to the Club Kids. Profits allowed Kearney and Lauterstein to start sewing and selling clothing from their West 23rd Street apartment.[1][11] Nasty Pig, named after their dog Piggy, was created in response to stigmas caused by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.[9][12] According to Lauterstein, the brand was influenced by New York City's hip hop culture and sports, including baseball, basketball, CrossFit, football, mixed martial arts, and weightlifting.[13]
In 1995, co-founder Lauterstein conducted his first photoshoot with artist and performer Kevin Aviance, whom he described as a formative influence for Aviance's redefinition of drag, masculinity, and performance at venues such as the Sound Factory. The collaboration led to the creation of the “Oh No She Didn’t” dress, designed after Aviance commissioned a custom garment.[14]
The couple's first "closet-sized" 72-square-foot store, called 're:vision', sold Nasty Pig T-shirts, rubber chaps and superhero sleeveless shirts, and vinyl pants, among other products.[1][15] Nasty Pigs' first retail clients were the Leatherman and Mr. S in New York City and San Francisco, respectively. The brand grew nationally after being heavily featured at Chicago's International Mr. Leather, an annual fetish and leather conference and contest. According to ChicagoPride.com's Ross Forman, "Nasty Pig gained notoriety for its line of machine-washable Nasty Pig Rubber, highlighted by Nasty Pig Playsheets, and has seemingly gone wild from there. Nasty Pig quickly became the brand-of-choice for the young, fetish scene in New York – and spread worldwide from there."[1] Nasty Pig became "the first sportswear company in their industry to sell branded jockstraps", and the brand's jeans line (NP Jean) became a "best-selling stretch denim style".[1]
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Nasty Pig ranked number 3,060 the Inc. 5000, Inc.'s list of the fastest growing U.S. companies, in 2013.[4][16] The company's 2013 "video lookbook" featured Juliana Huxtable and several "gay nightlife personalities".[17] Nasty Pig relocated to a larger flagship store on West 19th Street in Chelsea, Manhattan in 2014.[4][18][19] In 2015, the company's 30-second "Give/Receive" advertisement was considered "too hot for TV" by Time Warner Cable executives. The commercial was scheduled to air on the Cartoon Network, Lifetime, Logo TV, and TBS, but was pulled after four runs on Logo in New York markets.[20] Nasty Pig also advertised during American Horror Story: Freak Show in Los Angeles and New York,[21] before launching its first national advertising campaign in 2015 during RuPaul's Drag Race.[1][22][23]
The brand's products have been worn by James Franco, Lady Gaga, and Madonna.[1] Nasty Pig and Versace outfitted Olly Alexander for his 2018 Paper magazine photo shoot.[24] PinkNews,[25] In 2020, Queerty and Slate praised Lauterstein for his advice for navigating the COVID-19 pandemic.[5][26] He also helped the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene update its 'Safer Sex and COVID-19' guidelines with more specific recommendations for dating and sex during the pandemic.[27]
Lauterstein was included in Crain's New York Business' 2020 list of "notable LGBTQ leaders and executives".[28] Later that year, the fashion brand's flagship brick-and-mortar store in Chelsea closed.[29]
In 2024, Nasty Pig launched a 30th anniversary collection, featuring LGBTQ+ figures like Matt Camp.[30][31] That same year, singer Frank Ocean wore the brand and generated widespread online attention.[32] Lauterstein released a book, SODOMY GODS, that explored the brand's history and its relations to queer identity and the HIV/AIDS crisis.[33][34] The book received significant covered in publications like The New York Times and Kirkus Review.[35][36] Nasty Pig launched the "Real Nasty Pigs of New York" campaign, featuring figures such as Alan Cumming and Billy Porter.[37][38][39][40] The founders were recognized in the OUT100 "Disruptors" category and later honored by the Ali Forney Center for its longstanding advocacy and support.[41][42][43]
The following year, in 2025, Nasty Pig was featured on Sandra Bernhard’s podcast, discussing the brand’s cultural impact and later on, the drag performer Violet Chachki modeled for the brand in a campaign that explored a multitude of gender expression beyond drag performance.[44][45][46] The company continued its advocacy through public statements and op-eds, including commentary on corporate responses to Pride Month and LGBTQ+ rights in U.S. politics.[47][48]
In 2026, online discourse regarding wearing padlocks and fetish gear, singling out Nasty Pig, sparked conversations about the origins of the fashion brand. While some suggested that the brand's name arose out of gay leather subculture during the AIDS/HIV crisis, Lauterstein noted the name was inspired by Kearney's Jack Russell, Piggy. Lauterstein has also stated that the name reflects broader considerations of masculinity and cultural associations with the term “pig,” a rationale he and Kearney have reiterated in multiple accounts, including the Times and Paper Magazine.[49]
Activism and impact
In 2013, Nasty Pig launched Shred of Hope, an auction of celebrity-designed "shredder" T-shirts benefitting New York City's Ali Forney Center, the largest LGBT community center in the U.S. Participants included Dustin Lance Black, Keith Boykin, Andy Cohen, Alan Cumming, Isis King, Adam Lambert, Bob Mould, Njena Reddd Foxxx, Mike Ruiz, JD Samson, Dan Savage, Jake Shears, Ally Sheedy, and Michael Stipe.[50]
According to The Advocate, Nasty Pig grew "from a $50 investment to a global name in apparel — one that has had its own indelible role in influencing the worlds of kink, fetish, queer, and even high fashion".[11] The magazine has described the brand as a "trailblazing menswear label".[50] Ross Forman of ChicagoPride.com wrote, "[Kearney and Lauterstein] developed the first gay culture brand, and Nasty Pig hasn't just survived over the years, it has thrived."[1] According to Out, Nasty Pig was among the first companies to "champion hairy, bearded models in its marketing materials, contradicting the era's" male beauty standards.[6]
Co-founder Lauterstein was honored at the White House for the brand's advocacy during the Monkeypox public health crisis as well as larger LGBTQ+ health initiatives in 2023.[51] The recognition included remarks on Nasty Pig's role in promoting public health awareness in queer communities, amongst other initiatives.[52] During Pride 2023, Nasty Pig partnered with Nordstrom on a retail pop-up, expanding its visibility in mainstream fashion at a time when other major retailers scaled back or cut their LGBTQ+ merchandise.[53] The writer Alexander Cheves noted the brand as a symbol of resistance as the continued anti-LGBTQ+ legislation across both federal and state jurisdictions continues to rise in the 21st century.[54]
