We asked Vincent Langlois, 35 — founder and creative director of BY LANGLOIS — to talk about who he is, what drives him, and the new era of the brand.
Why did you start a men’s underwear brand?
Since I remember, I’ve always been obsessed with underwear. When I was around 17-18 and started having a bit of my own money, it became the thing I loved buying the most.
I still remember working at the grocery store, and during my lunch break I’d walk to L’Aubainerie to buy micro briefs because they were the only place selling them. The cut wasn’t perfect, but they were affordable, maybe ten dollars a pair, and I loved them. I wasn’t “collecting” underwear, but I was definitely buying a lot — it was my thing.
"Everything was either too expensive, not well-cut, never with unique colors"
When I wanted unique, cooler shades, the only brands offering them were insanely priced — 30, 40 dollars for one pair — and even then, the quality didn’t always match.
And I’ve always had a specific aesthetic: I love monochrome, I love color, but I don’t like loud mix-and-match designs. No brand had the exact mix of what I wanted: the perfect cut, a price that makes sense, and clean monochrome colors in unique tones.
So when I finally reached a point in my life where I had enough money to invest in something real, and enough experience to build my own vision, that’s when I decided to create BY LANGLOIS — the brand I always wished existed when I was younger.
People know you online through BY LANGLOIS — but who are you behind it all?
I’m a small-town guy. I grew up in Granby, but I was born in Saskatchewan — my dad was in the Canadian Forces back then.
Both my parents are from Gaspésie, so I’ve got that mix of roots and energy that’s hard to shake.
I’ve always been artistic. When I was seven, I made a little “how to draw” booklet and sold it to my cousins. (laughs)
That mix of creativity and entrepreneurship has always been in me.
I studied marketing in Jonquière, in the advertising program — but I had so much drive to live and create that I left before finishing.
At 19, I left everything and moved to Montreal with only $300 to completely restart my life.
I worked in a grocery store for ten years, and during that time, I kept painting, taking photos, and creating nonstop.
In 2014, he was featured in Le Journal de Montréal, VICE Magazine, and several other publications — that’s what really opened the doors for him.
From there, he started working on creative projects in New York and beyond.
All of that eventually led to founding BY LANGLOIS five years ago.
Describe your vibe in three words.
Intense. Warm. Empathetic.
What’s been on repeat in your playlist lately?
Charli XCX, nonstop.
Especially Von Dutch — it gives me that bold, electric energy.
And Olivia Dean — So Easy (To Fall In Love) SO in love with her.
Something no one knows about you?
In 2022, during the pandemic, I got pretty sick — way more than people realized.
I never talked about it because I’m not someone who likes to make a big deal out of things, but it definitely left me with some lingering effects. It took time, doctors, and a lot of patience to understand what my body was going through.
It wasn’t easy, but each year since then I’ve been improving.
I’m not fully back to where I used to be, but I’m genuinely in a much better place now.
That whole chapter grounded me, made me slow down, and showed me how resilient I really am.
What’s something you are proud about your business?
Even though BY LANGLOIS is still a small, independent brand, it started from nothing but an idea — one that everyone told me wouldn’t work.
People said launching a underwear brand was impossible, that the market was too full, too competitive.
But I kept going. And now, we’re about to reach 100,000 pairs sold. It’s not a million yet, we'll get there. but for something I built alone, it means everything — and it keeps growing.
Early bird or night owl?
Night owl, 100%. I’ve always been like that, even as a kid, I hated going to bed. It just never felt natural to me.
And it stayed that way. Something happens when the sun goes down… I wake up. I get ideas. I get creative.
Like a lot of artists, I guess... the night just hits different. (laughs)
We can’t ignore your face tattoos — Why did you decide to do that?
I’ve always been drawn to art that’s bold and radically different — the kind that hits you the second you see it. For me, using my body as a canvas just felt natural. I chose words instead of images because words deliver a message directly. Images can be interpreted in a thousand ways, but a word confronts you. It forces a reaction.
A closer look at the face tattoos that shaped his visual identity.
A lot of it came from growing up questioning everything society was telling me.
“if you’re rich you succeeded, if you’re poor you failed; if you’re beautiful you’re valuable, if you’re not you’re invisible. I hated that messaging."
I wanted to create something that stood completely against it — an image so far from what society expects that it becomes radically shocking, but in an artistic way. It’s silent, just ink on my skin, yet it speaks loudly in people’s minds.
My goal was to mirror the modern culture — this obsession with beauty, fame, success, identity. Instead of painting it on a canvas, I chose to live it. To embody it. To not let myself be boxed in by anything or anyone.
But it’s also not just rebellion.
I’m obsessed with architecture, cities, and the feeling of being connected to the world. That’s why I have all those city names — a reminder that no matter where we’re from, we’re all just humans who need love, meaning, belonging. We are all one.
My tattoos are basically the intersection of everything I feel, everything I question, and everything I admire — all carved into the way I move through the world.
If you could talk to your 20-year-old self — the one who was still dreaming without knowing where life would take him — what would you say?
I’d tell him to do everything exactly the same.
To keep dreaming — big, loud, and without limits — because nothing is impossible.
Life will throw challenges your way, but don’t be afraid of them.
Every struggle has a reason.
And no matter what, you’ll keep going, keep building, keep creating the life you’ve always dreamed of.
Most of all, I’d tell him — don’t ever stop.
Vincent Langlois is the founder and face behind BY LANGLOIS.
Balancing design, accessibility, and passion, he’s redefining what modern essentials look and feel like.
What he’s building goes beyond underwear — it’s a vision, a culture, a living universe.
