FROM THE FOUNDER'S DESK

E&B had a press event in London. Here are three things I learned.

I’ve just come home from a truly spectacular week in London. I had the chance to interview with a long list of editors from the UK press. I went to Harrods, Selfridges, Rigby & Pellar, Marks & Spencer, John Lewis and other big retailers. Here are three things I learned.

1. Brits were shocked to learn about how low US regulatory toxicity standards are.

When we referenced this CNN exposé on big-brand bras that are full of BPA’s readily absorbed by the skin, they couldn’t believe it. “We are so highly regulated here,” was a common statement. Hate to break it to you, but our culture in the US is different. We let big corporations get away with things that you just can’t get away with in the UK and EU. I was aware of these differences when I founded this company, so Evelyn & Bobbie has followed the higher European toxicity standards since the beginning. 

2. Lace and the underwire are still the only mainstream options, especially in larger sizes.

When I started Evelyn & Bobbie, I was inspired by the technical innovation of companies like Under Armour and Nike, which is why I moved to Portland, OR (where all those companies are based). You may not know that we share our entire supply chain with Nike, Adidas, and Under Armour. Except we've applied the leading-edge technical fabrication methods to create everyday essentials that blend softness with remarkable support, delivering lift and separation similar to an underwire for your daily comfort. The result is truly “forgettable” bras and underwear. (Goodbye pain, goodbye daily discomfort.) Seeing how few options women have in the UK left me even more excited about Evelyn & Bobbie’s opportunity in Europe.

• A band that is too loose. If your band hikes up between your shoulder blades and is loose, you are almost certainly carrying the weight of your boobs on your shoulders. No bueno. You need a smaller band size or a less stretched-out bra, at a minimum.

• When you wear a properly fitting Evelyn & Bobbie bra, your “long-line” band sits low on your torso. It hugs the bottom of your ribs. That, combined with wide-set straps, puts the load of your bust on your skeleton and core muscles. That feels like “ahhhh,  I feel two inches taller!”

• Your underwire is sitting on breast tissue. This is actually a big deal. Not good. I can’t tell you how many 32DDD customers I have seen over the years that have been told by retailers that they are a 36C. They sport a band that is too loose and a wire that sits on top of breast tissue at the center front, side boob, or both. Now, don’t get me started on the lack of research evaluating the impact that wearing underwire bras has on our breast health (I can and will go on for days…), but we absolutely do know that no wire should be sitting on breast tissue.

• Ok, you know what’s coming next... Hey, I’ve got an idea: how about we ditch that underwire all together and simply wear soft, flexible garments that move with our body?? It’s time.

• You’ve gotten used to daily bra pain. When I started this company, my mom had permanent divots in her shoulders from narrow bra straps. Most women have ten to twenty bras in their drawer and only regularly wear one or two of them. Usually the most worn-out ones; the ones you can tolerate. But that does not mean they are comfortable, healthy, or supportive of healthy posture.

• If you have divots in your shoulders from bra straps, it’s time to switch to healthier bras. (I know a lady…)

3. Brits are just as confused about bra sizing as we are.

Did you know that in the UK, there is a G, a GG, and an H? Their band-and-cup sizing (e.g. “36C”) is different than ours, but equally as confusing for the customer. Did you know that band and cup sizing has never been and still is not standardized? It was created by a husband and wife team in 1933 by a company called Camp & Co. And it’s been a non-standardized riddle ever since. I remember in the early days of Evelyn & Bobbie when we 3D scanned hundreds of women at scanning parties to better understand what our bodies actually looked like three dimensionally, so that we could design for the diverse way that our differences actually present. I remember standing back and looking at a wall that had images of thirty “36C” bodies all pinned up in a grid. They were the same anatomically, but boy-oh-boy was it wild to see how differently the same measurements could be in terms of volume distribution and torso shape. That’s why we designed Evelyn & Bobbie bras to have a built in “exoskeleton” support that doesn’t stretch out as much as the four way stretch that surrounds it. That allows us to fit 114 confusing traditional sizes in seven easy sizes, XS – 3XL, while still providing amazing support.

This last week in London was gorgeous. All the lights glisten and sparkle as it gets dark. I filled an entire bag with Rose & Violet creams and the finest Earl Grey tea. There are a lot of things that I admire about the attention to detail and high standards seen in European products. And with those high standards top of mind, I’m so excited to share Evelyn & Bobbie with women in the UK.

For your friends and family across the sea, they can start to order Evelyn & Bobbie this year. And we’ll keep you posted on our further expansion to key retailers as well. 

Watch out world.

Here comes comfort.