How often do you see....

[James]

To look at this from another perspective, whilst as mentioned the odds are fairly slim in respect of encountering another kilt wearer going about their normal day to day activities.

Here in London where once to wear the kilt would have created a certain level of interest: now it is virtually ignored.

This suggest that the acceptance of the kilt as day to day attire has been greatly enhanced over the last few years.

Too a local hire shop now always has at least one kilt on display in it's window: often several. This suggests a higher demand than of a few years ago. The changing display of variopus kilts shows that it is not merely one to attract attention.

Too all available information suggests that sales of kilts are booming.

Put all this toegther, and it suggests that the kilt from being a non appearer on the horizon, is now firmly upon the event horizon.

So it is a bit like a snowball rolling down a hill-at present that ball is very small and slow: but given encouragement and people like ourselves wearing our kilts out and about, it will grown and gain impetus at an ever increasing rate. As that impetus gives courage to the many closet kilt owners to wear theirs in public, and others to at least try the kilt.

James

[Lee]

I see only one guy wearing a kilt on a regular basis - and that's me.
Have met 4 or 5 other guys in town who own/wear kilts, but only one other who is kilted on a regular basis.
So it appears to be a small community in a city of 800,000.

Lee

[arrogcow]

There are a few guys with UK's in town, and I have heard reports of them out and about, but I have never seen anyone on the street. There is a Scottish pub and both the owner and Matre d' are always kilted, but that is still a Scottish arena. However, I have on a couple of occasions seen kilted guys just going in for dinner or a beer (your first pint is free if you wear your kilt).

Adam

Of course as soon as I post this, I'm now wrong.

This morning I was going to the premier of a movie I was the camera man on. As I was walking, there was a guy (Bill I think) wearing a traditional kilt, hose, sporran, and a polo shirt. We chatted for a while, and he told me that this was the first time he had worn the kilt out, but was difinitely interested in wearing it to work. He also said that he didn't know much about kilt wearing in general. So I pointed him here, and hopefully he will stop by to say howdy.

he then went on his way. At the theater, a woman told be she had seen someone in a UK yesterday, and I know it wasn't me. So the kilt bug is getting out even in Cincinnati.

Adam

[Alan H]

Wow, I never expected this thread to take off like it did.

I guess what's happening here is that those of us on the board, at least in the USA now realize that while you trudge around during the day in your kilt, all alone in your world as the "lone kilter" there are other guys all across the country who are also "lone kilters" in their community. So you are not alone, there are others who share the experience.

What is also a common thread here is that many of us know of "some other guys who I heard owned a kilt, but I never see them". so in fact the number of guys wearing kilts out there is probaly 2-3 times what we think it is. Many of those are only very occasional kilt-wearers, but they're out there.

Think about it.

Stack this up with the fact that Utilikilts had about 2 million dollars in sales last fiscal year, and that adds up to roughly (VERY roughly) 12,000 - 13,000 kilts. Let's go with that line of thought....

If it takes Rocky and Kelly a day to make a kilt, each, and they work a normal work-week, they're turning out ten kilts a week, or roughly 500 kilts a year. Bear is probably doing a bit less than that, say 300. Freedom kilts has two girls working in the back, making kilts, plus Steve. I bet they turn out two or three a day, or about 15 a week, making around 600 a year. Jeff at Pittsgurgh Kilts probably turns out 300 a year. Sportkilts probably churns out 500 a year. Stillwater probably sells around 500 a year. That's 2400 kilts a year, just from some of the guys on this Board. How about TFCK and RKilts and King Kilts and all of the Scottish kilts that get imported? How about the large number of smaller one-man/woman traditional kilt shops scattered around the country like Barb and Matt an Kathy's Kilts? I bet any money that AT LEAST 7,500 kilts a year get sold in the USA on top of the kingpin, Utilikilts. Add it together and I'd guess that there are around 20,000 or slightly more, kilts sold in the USA every year for the past two-three years. It could be as high as 30,000 kilts a year.

If the average price, averaged over the imported tanks and the $75 sportkilts works out to about $150, that's an annual USA kilt sales market of 3 million dollars. Honestly, I bet it's more than that, since Utilikilts, alone is 2 million bucks. I bet it's more like four million bucks.

That's a bloody lot of kilts....X Marks members can't buy ALL of them. LOLOL!

We are not alone, we are just *visible*.

Alan

[Hamish]

Other than fellow dancers at Scottish/Highland dance events, fellow Priders at Pride events, and buskers on the streets of Edinburgh, I believe I can say, with hand on heart, that I have never seen or bumped into a kilted being away from my own home - and I am talking of a period covering the past 40/45 years.

[emeraldfalconoflight]

My Englis h 105 Professor wore a Utilikilt and he said that a compatriot of his was looking into getting one. The Professor only wears his on Fridays, but hey three of us is a start at a smallish Community College.

[Archangel]

Looks like London, Ontario, is not so bad. I wore mine to the Sunfest on the Saturday. The Sunday performance, I didn't, but there was another guy there wearing one. I've bumped into a kilt-wearer at the supermarket. And within the Goth/Punk scene, my daughter tells me, there are several kilt wearers.

At a family reunion in May, my nephews from Guelph, Ontario and B.C. were excited to be shown the sportkilt site. Somewhere, something cool in terms of kilts is happening and they all knew about it and wanted to get in on it. I think it's becoming the new way to cheer school teams on. I wasn't sure why but they were excited.

[Rob]

I'm just curious. Outside of Highland Games or other Celtic or Ren Faire events, how often do you see another guy wearing a kilt "around town" or for daily wear?

I live in the SF Bay Area, and the SF Peninsula.... (I haven't met Rigged fact-to-face yet, we gotta change that) and I have seen another person ONCE, in the past year, wearing a kilt outside of a Games or Festival setting. It was a caramel Utilikilt, and the guy was shopping in Safeway in San Francisco, and DANGIT....I wasn't kilted. I'd just gotten off the boat after an ocean race and was still wearing my foul-weather gear!

I get no flak at all for wearing mine, but I essentially never see anyone else do it.

Alan,

Have you ever been to the King's Head pub in Campbell on a Wednesday evening (used to be Thursdays)? You will probably see some kilts if you do. Last time I was in the Bay area I went to the King's Head, but it wasn't Celtic Night at the time. It is not too far from Stanford University. A dollar off drinks if you wear tartan:-

http://www.thekingshead.com/celtic.htm

There are more kilts than you may think in the SF Bay area.

Rob

[Sindarius]

I've only seen kilts worn at Highland games and Ren Faires here in the Tulsa area. I suspect there must be others who wear kilts casually as it is a decent sized city, but I've yet to see any.

Still .... "Hope remains while the fellowship is true". ~ Galadriel

- Sindarius

[Rob]

Other than fellow dancers at Scottish/Highland dance events, fellow Priders at Pride events, and buskers on the streets of Edinburgh, I believe I can say, with hand on heart, that I have never seen or bumped into a kilted being away from my own home - and I am talking of a period covering the past 40/45 years.

Ham,

Surely you must be jesting. I reckon on seeing about half a dozen kilted men each year at many locations varying from Lostwithiel (Cornwall) to Durness (Northern Scotland), just by chance, i.e. not at special events.

I even saw a couple of 'suspicious' looking kilted characters at Llanhamlach in Wales a couple of years back, who looked a bit like you and Dave W (LOL). By the way, how is Dave getting on? He hasn't posted here recently.

Anyway, keep your eyes scanned Ham and I am sure that you will see more kilted men.

Rob (expert kilt spotter)