are adjusted to who’s running the show. But changing an entire industry doesn’t happen in a day, and it takes more than just envisioning a world where every woman—no matter her size, shape, or occupation—has a comfortable bra to wear. It requires challenging the way that women (and men) view the bra industry, changing the way bras are advertised to women and young girls, and a passion and dedication to making a difference in the lives of all women. Jane Fisher, one half of Harper Wilde, shares how she channeled that passion into a company that does all of the above. Jane Fisher and Jenna Kerner began their careers in psychology and neuroscience, respectively. But, a fascination with the intersection between human consumer behavior and business led them to business school. They learned about companies like Warby Parker, Casper, and Dollar Shave Club— all of which sell relatively boring commodity products online—and realized that one product was missing from the scores of com- panies using this unique, di- rect-to-consumer selling model. Why aren’t bras, an essential prod- uct worn by millions of women, sold that same way? Glancing down at her outfit, Jane saw beautiful designer clothes, but underneath was a cheap, tattered, and ripped bra. She quickly realized that something was out of place. “[Jenna and I are] two women who care about what we look like, we have enough disposable income to buy nice things for ourselves, and we’re living in a world where it’s cool to buy mattresses online. It’s so crazy that this common product is one that we’re not shopping for, and one that we’re not replacing.” It was with this realization that the two found their niche; an empty space in the market that was dying to be filled. Neither of them had ever thought about entering entrepreneurship or retail, and they definitely didn’t set out to begin their careers on the path of industry
disruption—although that’s exactly what they did. Their idea wasn’t simply to create and sell a comfortable, durable bra that can be ordered online and tried on at home. It was much more than that. After living with uncomfortable and expensive bras for years, the two women decided they were fed up with the industry. “[In the 70s], women were in a place where sexuality wasn’t talked about, and the form of empower- ment at the time was over-sexual- ization,” says Jane. But over-sexu- alized ads don’t have a place today. However, with Victoria’s Secret--full of push-ups, frills, and unbridled sex appeal—leading the $16 billion bra industry today, over-sexualization is the norm. “Victoria’s Secret had a moment where it made sense. But in 2018, or [even] in 2016 when we were in school, it just doesn’t.” Today, the bra industry is just out of touch with the modern woman. Women no longer want to face a barrage of hypersexualized models, excessive ornamentation, and $70 push-up bras covered in diamonds when they walk into a store. “The modern version of sexy is much more of a career-oriented, funny, smart, and driven woman who is powerful and amazing,” Jane says, “I’m looking at my friends who are lawyers and doctors and they’re running board meetings, and they just need a bra for functionality. They don’t want diamonds and roses on them. They don’t want them to be lacey and black and red because that just shows through your shirt during a meeting.” The modern woman wants something that lasts; something that’s comfortable, affordable, and functional. But this is something she’s never been able to have. All she does have, according to Jane, is “a really shitty bra,” and it isn’t what she deserves. After collecting survey data from thousands of American women, the Harper Wilde duo found that there’s a huge disparity between what women want and what they’re getting. For decades, bra companies have been making and marketing bras based on what the world wants
to see women in, not what women actually want to be in. Most women want something other than lacy, red and black lingerie to wear on a daily basis. One overwhelming trend in the data showed that, overall, women don’t want to spend their entire paycheck on a bra—a garment that almost no one besides themselves, and maybe their close friends or intimate partners, will ever see. “When you think about it, it’s not like your purse or your shoes or your glasses where someone is like, ‘Oh my God. That’s such a nice bra. Where’d you buy it?’ There’s no reason, other than if you’re getting really good quality, to spend so much money [on a bra],” says Jane. They also found that the little design details, the functional aspects, and the things that only women notice or care about (which male, non-bra-wearing CEOs often miss), are the most important. It’s the difference between back bands lying flat against a woman’s back or cutting into it; it’s the difference between straps that adjust in the back—where no one can reach— or adjusting in the front; and it’s the difference between soft, durable fabric that can be put in the laundry or fabric that has to be washed by hand. “We started to figure out what mattered to women,” says Jane, and once they did, all they had to do was sell them. And they were very intentional about the way they did it. It turns out the perfect foil to the stone-cold seriousness and hypersexuality of today’s bra advertisements is humor. “We know the modern woman. She is smart and funny; she doesn’t need to be shown these really serious women in lingerie and serious poses. No. We’re fun and we can relate to funny stuff.” Frommodels posing with cucumbers over their eyes, to throwing up peace signs, or using a homemade bra slingshot, Harper Wilde’s promotional photos and videos are a far cry from the sultry, serious ads of lingerie companies like Victoria’s Secret. “Overall, women hate bras and they hate bra shopping,” says Jane, “Normally when you start talking
82
FM/AM FASHION MAGAZINE AT MARIST
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online