Tomima’s Blog – Lingerie & Underwear Expert

Goddess bras are getting a face lift… or should I say breast lift?  One of the original plus size lingerie companies in America, Goddess has always stood for quality, support and great design for the plus sized woman.  That philosophy has been the bedrock of Goddess, and won’t be changing.  But what will be changing is style, fabrication and technology to be up-to-date with the market and better service their new and existing customers.  So, to that end, Goddess will be letting go of more than 16 old bra styles this year.  But in return, Goddess is also announcing 5 new bra styles that will start arriving in February of 2009.

So, why the change?  I sat down with Betty Schearf and Mary Alice from Goddess for a frank and informative conversation.  The first point they wanted to make clear is that Evedon , the parent company of Goddess is very committed to continuing the Goddess line.  It’s not going away, in spite of what their competition is saying. Next, we talked about the Goddess customer.  They are committed to their core Goddess customer, but also feel like they owe it to her to bring more modern and stylish looks into her lingerie wardrobe.  Additionally, there is a younger Goddess customer who is staying away because of the dated looks of many of the traditional Goddess bra styles.  Taking all of this in, they concluded that a sweeping change was warranted.

Okay, so what exactly are some of the changes that we will see in the Goddess line?  Mary Alice was quick to point to the fabrication.  First, the lace choices have a more modern look.  To my surprise they explained that lace can look old and dated.  There are newer floral laces out there that give their new styles a fresher look.  There is also more emphasis on the hand of the fabrics they are using.  Softness with support is at the top of their list.

The conversation then moved to color.  This was a very interesting point they made. The core Goddess brand color has always been white and they were selling ivory (on the yellow side) as their nude alternative. Now, I know from selling different brands of lingerie, that nude makes up the lion’s share of my sales.  Well, Goddess knows this too. Their limited color offering was giving the Goddess brand a consumer opinion of being out-of-date.  Needless to say, the new styles coming will be offered in fawn and chocolate to better reflect skin tones.

We’ll also be seeing several construction changes.  For example, there will be more use of the leotard back styling than the traditional camisole back.  By way of explanation here, a leotard back has the elastic from the straps giving a broad "U" shape to the back, rather than the camisole style where the straps come vertically down from the shoulders and attach to the back band.  The advantage to this leotard back style is that it’s more comfortable for the wearer, the straps tend not to slip, and the design creates a more even distribution of breast weight along the wearer’s back.

At least one of the new styles will be bandless.  You know that piece of fabric that can be seen under the cups of a bra? Well, that’s the band.  Though great for support, this band tends to give the bra a large look and can be uncomfortable and/or roll on more petite women.  The trend away from banded bras has been in the industry for a while, and Goddess again wants to provide a product for its customer that is current.

As I mentioned above, there are 5 new bras styles slated for early 2009. The Alice bra will be launching on 2/25/09.  This bra will have that traditional Goddess look of projection with the breasts front and center.  But, the inside of the cups will be lined with a very soft fabric and the fit is extremely comfortable.  The Kiera bra will be launching 1/26/09.  This bra gives a rounded shape to the breasts and includes a modern mesh insert along the top of the cups. Finally, the Rose Collection is made up of three bra styles and will be launching on 3/25/09.  As with the Kiera bra, the breasts will have a rounded more modern shape with new and stylish lace details.

Reflecting on my meeting with Goddess, I was impressed with the thoughtfullness of the decisions they have made.  It’s always hard to let go of tradition, but I think the new styles will not only win over new customers, but update their core Goddess customer as well.  After all, no matter our size, we’d like to know that what we have on under it all is fashionable and attractive.

You can learn more about full-figure sizing in HerRoom’s fitting guide.

Find Goddess lingerie at HerRoom in these departments:
Bras