Ultracor, a leading luxury women’s athleisure brand, has expanded their sustainable line into the largely untapped men’s activewear space. Having dominated the market for leggings with an array of vibrant and sleek styles, including their signature Knockout Legging, the company hopes to reach the same level of popularity with their men’s shorts. The new line aims to give men the luxury performance option they’ve been missing. We virtually caught up with Michael Ball— who runs the business alongside his wife and Ultraor’s CEO, Asha Kai—to find out what makes their line unique, and new shorts the best.

V Man: What made you decide to expand Ultracor to include a men’s line?

Michael: There are only a handful of players in the men’s athleisure space, and they’re not high-end. We use our proprietary fabrics from Italy, which make the quality and performance better than anything else available to men today.

V Man: How do you ensure that the performance level of the products is as high as the luxe fabric?

Michael: Having spent years in the professional cycling industry I applied what worked and what was missing when designing the “technology” behind our various compression pieces, and our shorts.

V Man: Tell us about the shorts, what makes them stand out?

Michael: Our fit and finish set us apart, it’s a different experience. They’re the most comfortable shorts I’ve ever worn. And on top of that they dry in minutes—even after wearing them in the pool, they’ll dry in about 5 minutes. Once you try them on, you’re sold. They’re like driving a Lamborghini...after it, you’re not going to want to drive a Prius.

V Man: What type of guy is the Ultracor line for?

Michael: It’s for men who are interested in the finer things in life, but who are also looking for the highest-level products no matter what. But it’s also for those who aspire towards this lifestyle—these are investment pieces, they’ll outlast and outperform anything else that’s out there, so they’re worth the price tag.

V Man: Your popular women’s line has an impressive celebrity and influencer following, are you seeing the same trend emerge with the men’s line?

Michael: Yes, Steve Aeoki and Dwayne Wade are fans, as well as the Rock for who we made some custom pieces. We also had Justin Bieber and Chris Pratt place orders. Because the pieces can be worn for both workouts and streetwear purposes, the audience is really diversified.

V Man: Besides focusing on quality, what is another key feature that distinguishes Ultracor from other brands on the market?

Michael: Our commitment to sustainability. There are no other men’s lines that come close to ours when it comes to both ethical production and the use of non-toxic inks. We also never overproduce like most fashion brands.

V Man: What got you so interested in sustainability?

Michael: Being in the denim industry for many years showed me how much pollution, waste, and overproduction occurs daily. We wanted to do things differently—in the U.S., in-house and on-demand, so as to not overproduce. Honestly, having three little girls changes everything—they’re the future and they deserve a world that is pollution free.

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