This is a radio show from Russian Radio Mayak, lead by Sergey Stillavin and friends. It is sad to say that this show just closed down in 2012.
Left to right: unknown, Vladimir Pastuhov, Victoria Kolosova, Rustam Vahidov, Sergey Stillavin
In this particular show they discuss 5 popular brands on Russian market – Filodoro, Omsa, Golden Lady, Glamour, and Sisi and the public votes. Some people phone in to express their opinion and some leave messages by SMS.
We should make an important note here that Omsa brand is actually owned by Golden Lady. This we can easily learn from their website. It is mentioned in the show by one of the hosts too, but the question about exactly HOW these 5 brands were chose is not answered. As you see below, some callers expressed this concern too.
PANTYHOSE BRAND COMPARISON
| Sergey Stillavin | What a sweet topic we are going to have today! |
| Victoria Kolosova | Pantyhose? |
| Sergey Stillavin | I am trying to be docile, especially topics that are about women. I myself actually stopped wearing pantyhose when I was 6. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Today we are going to choose the best brand of women’s pantyhose. This is very important! I spoke to small business owners who have small shops and kiosks near subway stations about products that bring the most revenue in high traffic areas. They said that the best thing is to sell pantyhose because it is a renewable resource. Nobody today bothers to stitch up and fix runs in pantyhose. |
| Victoria Kolosova | My friend a while back taught me how to fix runs (reconstructing the weave) and I knew how to do it. She had a special hook for doing that. If you are having insomnia, doing this is the best way to fall asleep! |
| Sergey Stillavin | Here is Victoria with her stories about pantyhose. We’ll also hear about stockings today, of course. As I understand, today you are always in pants and you are not wearing anything under? |
| Victoria Kolosova | I am not wearing (any pantyhose underneath the pants). |
| Sergey Stillavin | But at least sometimes? Your husband, Maxim, asks you to wear? |
| Victoria Kolosova | Yes, sometimes, but it’s just that my legs get itchy. |
| Sergey Stillavin (joking) | From what? Maybe you simply need to shave your legs! |
| Victoria Kolosova (shyly) | I am allergic. For real, my legs begin to itch. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Today I am inviting respectful women, young women, and men (specifically male businessmen) who sell pantyhose to join our discussion. |
| Rustam Vahidov (interrupting) | Did you ever kiss women’s feet in pantyhose? |
| Victoria Kolosova (giggling) | Unwashed? |
| Sergey Stillavin | Stop leading us astray! |
| Sergey Stillavin | We need an expert opinion on whether items, depending on their brands, are really different. Or (like once we had a phone call about jeans) all these brands are all made at the same factory. Do these products really differ based on brand and price? What is the (quality) range? For example to me all these names are familiar because of TV commercials, especially in winter, when women begin to dress warmer. Which ones of these advertised brands actually became popular? Today we have 5 candidate brands: |
| · Sisi | |
| · Glamour | |
| · Filodoro | |
| · Golden Lady | |
| · Omsa | |
| Rustam Vahidov | (about Filodoro) …very well known. |
| Victoria Kolosova | (about Filodoro) … and most expensive. |
| Sergey Stillavin | There are also elite brands, like Wolford, I think. |
| Rustam Vahidov | Yesterday I’ve heard it was Pierre Cardin. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Pierre Cardin makes everything, except for the chairs! |
| Victoria Kolosova | Pierre Cardin is available in all supermarkets in quite large quantities. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Ok, somehow we chose five brands. Ladies, let us know your consumer opinion please, and we welcome to hear from men about the trade. |
| What are the pricing policies from the manufacturers, does the quality of pantyhose really vary, and brand is it that people buy most of? | |
| Because popularity is simply what the person is used to hearing, but real sales data makes up the statistics. | |
| Sisi, Glamour, Filodoro, Omsa, Golden Lady – wow, what kind of names! Who came up with such names? | |
| There is a real emphasis on Italy – somehow it is very strict that pantyhose have to be Italian, is it right? | |
| Vladimir Pastuhov | Filodoro was created by my friend, Dima Sedon. He now lives in Switzerland and he is a professional cyclist racer. At first they’d bring it in their hand luggage! They designed it on their own, ordered manufacturing from an Italian factory, came up with this name by themselves, started to bring it in. |
| Sergey Stillavin (interrupting) | They came up with this name? Seriously? |
| Vladimir Pastuhov | Yes, then later some 2 other Russian guys flew in on their own airplane and for 5 million dollars took this start up for themselves. |
| Sergey Stillavin | So that means it’s completely our own (Russian) story. But what about Omsa and Golden Lady? |
| Vladimir Pastuhov | I am not informed about those at all. |
| Sergey Stillavin | OK, girls, please call in to give us your expert opinion. Men, please only call if you sell it. Let’s not discuss like Vahidov about what’s more pleasurable to kiss, sniff… |
| Rustam Vahidov (interrupting) | … to pull off! |
| Sergey Stillavin | That’s later… Why pull off? Let’s not pull off. Better pull on. |
| Phone call from Angela, 27 yrs old, Moscow: | |
| Angela (Caller) | Good morning. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Please, we have Sisi, Glamour, Filodoro, Golden Lady, and Omsa – what brand do you prefer? |
| Angela (Caller) | Out of these five I’d choose Sisi. But I wanted to say, you were just talking about Pierre Cardin… Pierre Cardin is superb. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Super! In terms of prices, which one is the most expensive brand? |
| Angela (Caller) | Oh, maybe not Golden Lady, it’s just that I don’t use those as much. In supermarkets the price for Pierre Cardin is very affordable and the quality is very good. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Angela, how much does a basic pair of pantyhose cost? |
| Angela (Caller) | Last time I bought it for 110 rubles. |
| (converts to $3.50 USD) | |
| Sergey Stillavin | How long do you wear them for until you get a snag in them, until they are no longer wearable? |
| Angela (Caller) | For me personally it’s 2 – 3 weeks. |
| Victoria Kolosova | That’s good! |
| Vladimir Pastuhov | I wanted to ask, what to you are superb pantyhose? Is it before all its durability, or is it the color, the shade? |
| Angela (Caller) | Yes, you said that right; it’s the colour, it looks good when worn. The quality too. Since I wear pantyhose with both skirts and pants, it completely works for me either way. They don’t fall off. |
| Victoria Kolosova | Also you need to pay attention to the design of the pantyhose and the type. For example, some have low rise waistline, some shape the hips, some shape the legs… they are all different. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Like this will soon start talking about the gusset! |
| Angela (Caller) | Options are limitless, you’ll choose one eventually. |
| Sergey Stillavin (interrupting) | Angela, the main question that bothers me in winter, when women walk in a skirt and pantyhose, do those sheer nylons actually keep you warm? |
| Angela (Caller) | That’s horrible! Today I stepped out to start heating up my car and I saw a young woman in a mini skirt and thin pantyhose. That’s just horrible. |
| Victoria Kolosova | Actually men wear it too. Natalia writes to us (SMS) that her husband wears warm pantyhose when he goes fishing. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Is this why Vladmir is interested in the fishermen? |
| Vladimir Pastuhov | I also have one story about pantyhose. At the time when TV Shopping Channel became popular, besides kitchenware the topic of pantyhose was also raised. My friends came up with a plan. Pantyhose come in different denier. They brought from Taiwan 90 den No Name pantyhose and announced them as anti-cellulite . A whole line up formed and in a matter of 24 hours it was sold out. But a few days later a local prosecutor came all puffed up and promised those guys a TV broadcast and executions, because his wife’s cellulite didn’t disappear. We quickly ceased these activities. |
| SMS Message | You forgot to mention pantyhose from Birobidjan (autonomous Jewish state of Russia). There is nothing worse in the world – they wear for 20 minutes and the rest of the time hang at the knees. |
| Phone call from Sergey: | |
| Sergey Stillavin | Do you sell pantyhose? |
| Sergey, Caller | No, I’m more likely a consumer. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Tell us! |
| Sergey, Caller | This story didn’t happen to me. It happened in one of the resorts in Minsk. There was a health resort with mud baths. A woman came, undressed, and took her clothes with her, but forgot her pantyhose. After her an elderly gentleman came in and was also told to undress, come in, immerse himself into the mud bath, and enjoy. He saw the pantyhose and thought that he is supposed to wear it, so he put it on and sat in the mud bath. He sat in the mud for whatever duration was recommended, maybe an hour. After that it took about 2 hours for staff to pull off his pantyhose! Those were probably very high quality pantyhose. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Do you cohabitate with women? |
| Sergey, Caller | I have a wife. |
| Sergey Stillavin | What brand does your wife prefer? Or, maybe you are not informed about her interests? |
| Sergey, Caller | I see that she buys some, but I don’t know what kind. Probably good ones. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Ok, so you don’t check out the pictures on the packaging. Thank you very much, Sergey. |
| Victoria Kolosova | Julia writes to us (SMS) “I hate skin-tone pantyhose, it’s horrible, vulgar, and not attractive, especially when shiny” |
| Rustam Vahidov | Why? There are pantyhose with lurex as far as I know, right? |
| Victoria Kolosova | There are glossy ones. |
| Rustam Vahidov | Glowing! That’s cool. |
| Sergey Stillavin | (towards Victoria) … How do you feel about pantyhose? Is it just an item of clothing, like a jacket? |
| Victoria Kolosova | Guys, now it is very fashionable to wear prints and colourful pantyhose, there is a massive selection out there, but my legs itch from it and I don’t have anyone to scratch it for me at work. |
| Vladimir Pastuhov | We got a message from a criminal (SMS) – “the most important thing is that through pantyhose you can’t see the face”. |
| Rustam Vahidov | We are getting a message here asking us how come if yesterday we were eating chocolate Easter eggs in our test drive session, why can’t we all wear pantyhose today for TopRussia show? |
| Victoria Kolosova | Those are two different shows! |
| Vladimir Pastuhov | Bring it, we’ll wear it. |
| Caller Oksana has a pantyhose business, Moscow | |
| Sergey Stillavin | Oksana, pantyhose sell well, correct? What do people buy most out of the five brands we listed? |
| Oksana, Caller | Yes, correct. Omsa and Filodoro are top sellers. |
| Sergey Stillavin | What about the price? |
| Oksana, Caller | Around 20-30 rubles difference in retail price. (converts to less than $1 USD) I don’t think it’s a big difference for the consumer. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Tell us please, as a professional, do these 5 brands really differ in quality? |
| Oksana, Caller | They differ very much in the quality of weave, and correspondingly that would determine the lifespan of wearing these pantyhose. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Let’s say those that are better quality and those that sell best, is it the same thing? Do people really buy mostly durable items? |
| Oksana, Caller | Advertisement of course did its job. For example, Glamour pantyhose are just awful, but people buy them and I don’t understand why. But for example brands like Pierre Cardin and Philippe Matignon sell less, but their quality is better. |
| Sergey Stillavin | On average, what is the lifespan of wearing pantyhose? |
| Oksana, Caller | I think 2 – 3 times, not longer. What that young woman said about her wearing it for two weeks is unimaginable. Maybe she washes it, dries it, and then maybe she stores onions in them? I think only 2 – 3 times maximum for wearing. |
| Victoria Kolosova | I also can’t imagine that, wearing for so long. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Now we are choosing a finalist out of 5 brands. At the moment the highest chances are for the brands Filodoro and Golden Lady. Among the outsiders are Sisi, Glamour, and Omsa. What brand should be the winner? |
| Caller Elena, 29 years old, Archangel | |
| Elena, Caller | I am a consumer. |
| Sergey Stillavin | So, out of these brands, which one should become the queen of pantyhose? |
| Elena, Caller | I think that neither out of these 5 brands is good. But I most note, I like Filodoro stockings, but the rest of the pantyhose are all of average quality. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Do you wear stockings to work or for personal business? |
| Elena, Caller | Starting May I wear stockings all the time. |
| Rustam Vahidov | And with flip-flops, do you wear stockings too? |
| Elena, Caller | No. When the season allows for it, I wear stockings. In the summer – of course not. I only wear pantyhose in winter, and only those that are warm. |
| Sergey Stillavin | But still, from the list of these pantyhose brands, which ones do you give preference to? |
| Elena, Caller | I don’t know, I think Omsa. This brand is present on the Russian market since the beginning of the 90’s. Do you remember their commercial with a slogan? By quality they are the best out of all presented brands by you.You didn’t introduce the brand «Грация» (Gracia) that is very popular among Russian women. I am talking about their warm pantyhose.The brands that you are comparing poorly represent selection of winter pantyhose. |
| SMS Message | There are real brand name pantyhose and there are knock offs. |
| SMS Message | Child, if your product is only one-time use, perhaps you are purchasing knock offs? I usually wear Omsa at least a season, but of course I don’t climb fences while wearing it. Lyudmila |
| Rustam Vahidov | Do people wash pantyhose at all? |
| Victoria Kolosova | Of course, every day! You don’t wear your socks all month long, right? |
| Sergey Stillavin | Foreigners at the end of the 80’s… not for all women it would be pleasant to remember… I remember reading notes about what foreigners think about Soviet women. One of the things listed as what they just can’t understand was why is it that Soviet women sniff their pantyhose before washing! |
| Rustam Vahidov | Sniff which part? |
| Sergey Stillavin | In general, just checking so by accident they don’t wash the ones that are still not dirty. |
| Rustam Vahidov | I remember that from cracked heels pantyhose rips fast. Snags appear. |
| Caller Stas | |
| Sergey Stillavin | Let’s hear out Stas, is he a seller of pantyhose? |
| Stas, Caller | I am a consumer, but not for the intended use. |
| Sergey Stillavin | How so? |
| Stas, Caller | I would like to defend pantyhose by Sisi, 40 den. My wife had such. They are a perfect fit for the timing belt in the car – I checked. In the summer we went out of town and our timing belt ripped and my wife’s pantyhose came in handy. |
| Rustam Vahidov | What car was that, a tank? |
| Stas, Caller | Volga. So Sisi pantyhose were suitable, I remember my wife was wearing it at the time. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Do you, Rustam, control your wife’s pantyhose purchases? Do you know what brand of pantyhose she buys? |
| Rustam Vahidov | No. |
| Vladimir Pastuhov | Oh-oh! I see that you both probably spend your days at the pantyhose section of the department stores! |
| Rustam Vahidov | I only notice brands on television, like most of us, or in the crosswalk if I see a crowd of women near a kiosk. There are line ups there. |
| Victoria Kolosova | A woman should always have a spare pair of pantyhose in her purse. If she has a run or a snag, how can she wear it ripped? Women can go and change pantyhose. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Then is this why you, women, have such long line ups in the washroom because you change clothing there? |
| Victoria Kolosova | So what, everyone has their weaknesses. |
| Caller Anna, 26 years old, Moscow | |
| Sergey Stillavin | At what age did you start wearing pantyhose for adult women? |
| Anna, Caller | Wow, I don’t remember, I think at 20. |
| Sergey Stillavin | And before that? |
| Anna, Caller | Before that I didn’t wear dresses. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Stop laughing! (to the colleagues) Out of these 5 brands, which one do you prefer? |
| Anna, Caller | I’d choose Omsa, but I also wanted to mention something about the quality of Sisi. I purposely bought same denier to compare and noticed that Sisi rips much faster. Sisi pantyhose last in general only one day. |
| Sergey Stillavin | What about Omsa? How long do they last? |
| Anna, Caller | For sure 3 – 4 days of wear. |
| Sergey Stillavin | And in that timespan, how many times do you manage to wash this pair of pantyhose? |
| Anna, Caller | Also 3 – 4 times. |
| Sergey Stillavin | So that means you have to wash it every day? |
| Anna, Caller | Yes, respectively. |
| Sergey Stillavin | This is horrible! |
| Victoria Kolosova | What’s horrible? |
| Sergey Stillavin | To wash it every day. |
| Caller Oleg, Moscow, pantyhose businessman | |
| Sergey Stillavin | Let’s ask Oleg. Are you a pantyhose businessman? |
| Oleg, Caller | Yes, I work with pantyhose since 1995. |
| Sergey Stillavin | So tell us, what brand sells most? |
| Oleg, Caller | I want to word this a little bit differently. In every brand there are good quality pantyhose and low quality pantyhose, so all of you forgot about that. So within every brand you can point out pantyhose that would last a long time and those that would rip up right away. |
| Sergey Stillavin | Which ones are the best in general? Please vote on our site www.TopRussia.ru, for the whole week. |
PANTYHOSE BRAND COMPARISON RESULTS:
Voting in semi-final and final competitions:
Omsa – #1
Filodoro – #2
Golden Lady – #3
Sisi – #4
Glamour – #5
http://toprussia.ru/strumpfhose/
SOURCE:
Original Video (In Russian, 1st Half – Auto Comparison, 2nd Half – Pantyhose Brand Comparison)
DO YOU WANT TO READ PART 2?
Apathy – I feel that this is the best word to describe the attitudes of staff at Wolford in San Francisco.
