Why wear a kilt? An oft asked question. I wear a kilt because I like them. It is one of those miracle garments that can go from knock around to white-tie formal by merely changing the stuff that surrounds it: shirt, jacket and accessories. It is distinctive and makes you memorable. You see a man in a kilt and you remember him.

My partner and I had a trade show in New York last week. When you do a trade show, one of the major goals is to get people to stop for 10 seconds so you can engage them about our business. Wearing kilts on our busiest day insured that we had a steady flow of curious onlookers and had lots of opportunity to engage people to talk about our business. Naturally "the question" arose ("why", not "what's underneath" that is the OTHER question), to which we would answer, "it's Monday, it's kilt day." Which made people wonder if they were missing out on some parade or national event. Well it worked. We had the busiest day ever at our booth, just because we wore kilts. As they say in "Gypsy", "ya gotta have a gimmick."

Personally I wear a kilt just about anywhere I wear pants: the theater, out for a nice dinner, bars, clubs, anywhere I want to wear something a little nicer and more distinctive. Never once have I had a derogatory remark, lots of questions, but never anything negative. Men love them, women love them, matters not. I walk with a longer stride and stand with better posture when I wear a kilt. I feel like myself, but more of it. Naturally lots of questions, all of which you have fielded if you have worn a kilt out for more than an hour. Of course the best, classiest, most respectful and coolest question is "what's your clan tartan?" Then you know you are talking to someone who has a mind that extends beyond what is underneath.