Blog – Bra Directory

A Brief History of Your Bra Store

bradirectory — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 19:56:03 +0000

Most of us know how important bras are to a woman’s wardrobe. Bras add value to how women look and feel in public. For large bust women, they play a pivotal role in their everyday comfort. Many women cannot get by without a well-fitting bra. Yet, spending $100 or more on a bra is not possible for everyone.

The answer might be an online bra store in Canada that works to help independent bra stores sell their slow-moving stock. As a result, they connect customers to premium bras at sale prices. All bras on their site are always at least 30% off.

Your Bra Store’s mission is to help independent bra stores increase their sales.

Unlike most bra stores that offer an array of products and knowledge, Your Bra Store focuses on bras at sale prices. There is no bra-fitting advice and there is no real glamour to their approach. Their focus is one thing, bras.

Founded in 2016, the idea for Your Bra Store came after a consulting job at an independent bra store.

“I admit I was fairly ignorant to the machinations of the bra industry. When I was brought in to help with some operational challenges a small bra store was having, I was quite surprised at what I found.”

What they found was a unique industry.

“I realized that there are three kinds of Bra eco-systems;

Mall Bras (Victoria’s Secret, La Vie en Rose)

Direct-to-Consumer Bra (Knix, Third Love)

Premium Bras (Empreinte, Prima Donna, Elomi, Marie Jo, Simone Perele).”

The incredible thing about premium bras is they sold almost exclusively in small, independent bra stores. You might find some brands in department stores, The Bay carries Chantelle and Wacoal, but most premium bras are sold in independent bra stores.

Research by Your Bra Store shows that only 1 out of the 5 top brands sold in independent bra stores are also available in large retail stores. Of the top 20 bra brands, 12 of them are only sold in bra boutiques.

“When I started going through the layers of the business, I was floored when I saw their inventory.”

It turns out that for bra stores to be effective at serving their market (being as inclusive as possible), requires buying a lot of inventory.

“There are about 170 different bra sizes. From a 28AA up to a 46K. There are lots of sizes tucked in there. Why? Because our bodies are so different.”

If a store wants to serve most of the clients that come through their door, they must carry an incredible amount of stock. Not only are there about 170 different sizes, but there are also types of bras (plunge, full cup, demi, strapless, etc.), different colors (beige, red, black, blue) and different brands.

“It’s insane right? What’s the math there? If you want to carry one of each bra size, in five different types, in two colors, and from only two brands? That’s 170 x 5 x 2 x 2 = 3400 bras!”

3400 bras, yet all you will have for each customer (or size) are two bras of different colors in each type. That’s not enough.

“Then I broke down the cost. A store that sells brands like Empreinte, Prima Donna, Marie Jo, Simone Perele, Elomi, Panache, Chantelle, and such, their average cost per bra is about $55. So a basic store, with only those 3400 bras, has to invest $187,000! That’s a lot of money.”

The train of thought did not stop there. Your Bra Store realized that across Canada there are all these little bra stores everywhere. All of them with a lot of money tied up in bra inventory and with little to no reach beyond their community.

“What’s more, their inventory is highly prized. Customers who wear these brands are some of the most loyal customers out there. Women who wear these brands are acutely aware of how that brand fits them and their size. A woman in Nova Scotia who wears Prima Donna or Elomi can confidently order a bra online, regardless if it’s coming from Alberta or Manitoba. She knows what she wants (needs!) and if she can get it at a good price, all the better. Plus, with us, she’s still supporting a small, independent, female owned business.”

With the thinking cap still on, the research continued. The next deep dive was into understanding the web presence of these bra stores.

“I began to look at the web presence of these stores. I worked in a store with a lovely lady with excellent bra fitting skills, great customer service, and great a team. But no IT skills. As I kept meeting other store owners, I continued to find the commonality; stores run by passionate women, most in business for over 10 years, and a general mistrust of eCommerce and even of their own POS systems!”

The main reason bra stores are reluctant to embrace eCommerce is because most of them believe bras should not be sold online. Selling bras online without people trying them on is the antithesis of that.

Yet, bra stores face the same challenges other retailers face, the so-called “Retail Apocalypse”. Their expenses are going up. Wages, up. The cost of leasing a space, up. The cost of renovating, up. Costs of goods, up. But their sales are slowing down and the customer is becoming more demanding!

In the past, bra retailers rarely gave refunds or took items back. Now they are confronted with customers who want to return their bras. If the store doesn’t take the return they risk online scorn. A negative review is a blow to their online reputation, further suppressing sales and adding to the challenges of running a retail store.

“Even the stores that were branching out online were not having much success. Opening an eCommerce store is relatively easy but having people find it is very hard. We did the research and call this the problem of “Low Visibility”. The average bra store’s website in Canada in terms of site traffic gets about 130 people a month. A pittance of the online traffic that exists in this area. What’s more, most of their online customers were the same as their in-store customers. Retailers found themselves with increased work and expenses to serve the same customers.”

Even with all these changes going on, bra stores continue to need lots of inventory. With so many existential threats percolating, that is money at risk!

“So this is where I came up with Your Bra Store. What if I went to the retailer and said, “Hey, I know you have all these bras here that have been sitting. Why don’t we try to move your older merchandise to free up that money? I will take care of the eCommerce, the IT, the SEO, and I’ll also take care of the customer.”

When retailers work with Your Bra Store they don’t have to worry about customer interactions, complaints, returns, anything.

“Our goal was to make it as easy as possible for them. I would be their eCommerce site (or an auxiliary site to their own) and at the same time remove all the parts of eCommerce that drive retailers crazy. Such as web maintenance, customer service, traffic growth, etc.”

Bra stores were very receptive when YBS went out to pitch their idea but ran into the challenge of how do to track all these bras. Inventory accuracy is key because you don’t want to make sales that you can’t fulfill. But the store doesn’t want to email YBS every time they sell a bra. So that’s when the entrepreneurship and the need to invest came in.

Your Bra Store now has an inventory platform that connects with the store’s POS systems. Stores using Shopify, LightSpeed, or Smart Vendor can connect to Your Bra Store’s system and it automatically updates any changes to inventory quantities.

“Developing the platform really changed the game for us. Suddenly we could easily connect to stores in a no-risk method. Our platform doesn’t do anything other than read inventory totals every 3 to 5 minutes and updates any changes. It can’t affect anything inside the retailers’ system. It is a simple query based on SKU matched with inventory totals and done.”

Five years later, Your Bra Store is still growing. The pandemic forced them to slow down a bit;

“I love to visit stores in person. I don’t really think there is another way to do business. I want them to see my face. I want them to know that we are in this together. I understand the challenges of running a retail store, and that all my efforts are to support them and make things easy.”

When a retailer works with YBS they market the bras under the Your Bra Store banner. The customer only sees Your Bra Store and does not interact with the retailer.

When a bra sells, the retailer just pops the bra in the mail. Done! They get paid. They call the process, “sell and forget”.

“We also offer the customer the ability to make returns! You can’t find that anywhere else for sale bras, we did the research! But we pay out the customer for those. We don’t bother the retailer at all.”

Your Bra Store now has a development team;

“Last year we built the Bra Directory which is a list of all Canadian independent bra stores. You can go on there and type in your postal code and find stores within a geographic range you set. You can also find stores based on specialties, like virtual bra fittings that are very helpful to people who don’t have access to a bra store close by or have mobility issues. We built this because our goal is to support these small bra stores. It also has charts, a calculator, and blog posts about things we learn and discover working with bra stores.”

They have a writer for their product descriptions. Each product description is written unique, they do not copy and paste descriptions. They do this to distinguish themselves from other retailers who all have the same description for the same product. It also helps them with Google.

They also have a data entry person.

“For too many years I was the bottleneck of the company. When a store shares 300 bras with us, it takes a long time to upload them! Now, when I meet stores and they share their product information with me, we can upload them quickly and start making sales faster.”

Your Bra Store likes to point out that their clients are the bra stores. By focusing on serving the bra stores, the result is the customer gets incredible bras at incredible prices.

While most stores focus on image, knowledge, new products, and so forth, Your Bra Store only focuses on building relationships with bra stores to get the best bras at the best prices.

“We believe that our bras, at those prices, are substantive enough for us. We are not out there to be the bra company on the cover of Vogue. We want to keep our mission and our process simple. We want people to know that we are the spot for amazing bras at great prices. You’ll always get an authentic, new, unworn bra from us. We think that’s enough.

We think that is a fair value proposition for everyone involved; the customer and the store. There is an old saying, “They who hold much, squeeze little”. We believe in a narrow value proposition for our clients and our customers that we can repeat over and over and over.”

We agree. Who doesn’t love a great bra on sale? And you also know that when you shop with Your Bra Store you are helping to support a small bra store in Canada. Win. Win.

Writing Your Ecommerce Return Policy

bradirectory — Fri, 10 Dec 2021 22:48:05 +0000

Bra stores have always had strict return policies for lingerie.

In the past, the only way we shopped was in-store. Strict policies were standard across all retail segments.

No one thought of them as draconian then. Sometimes we have to dig deep into our memory to remember that 20 years ago debit machines were an anomaly. The world was different. And the return policies reflected the times.

Well, the times have changed. For bra stores. And the bra store customer.

The shopping experience has gone through a monumental shift. Included has been the drastic change to the way the world sees and deals with returns.

Still, many lingerie stores have not changed and hold onto old return policies. These outdated return policies is a main reason why many lingerie stores have not been able to maximize the potential of their online stores

There are different reasons lingerie stores have poor return policies.

FIVE REASONS FOR POOR RETURN POLICIES

#1 - Old Habits Die Hard

A lot of bra stores have been around for a long time. Generational stores. Established and built pre-internet and pre-ecommerce.

A store that has been running for 20 years and never gave returns, bristles. Refunding bras that leave the premises is unheard of.

There is a reluctance to give money back. Exchanges and credit notes are more common. But even credit notes come with terms.

Once the money enters the store, it stays within their ecosystem.

#2 - Don't Separate Buying Online vs In-Store

Many bra stores have not gauged that a bra sold online is a different type of sale from a bra sold in-store. A bra sold in-store and a bra sold online are different phenomenons.

Having less return options for in-store purchases makes sense.

Those sales are guided. The bra fitter augments the experience. The customer rarely leaves with an ill fitting bra. Rarely. Sometimes. But rarely.

In-store, the customer has all the opportunity to try the product on and get bra advice. Customers can touch the fabric. They try the bra on. Sit. Stand. Bend over. Run with the bra on! They have an opportunity to test it out.

The in-store experience allows the customer to make an informed decision.

The same cannot be said for the online experience.

#3 - No Desire to Sell Online

Plenty of bra stores do not want to sell bras online.

Their online store serves to give their customers access to their product lines from home.

Their online store is leveraged to bring the customer into the store or used to re-fill orders for bras previously purchased.

Their online bra store is an extension of their brick and mortar for their existing clients.

These stores are not trying to expand their online reach beyond their base. As such as they have no desire to tailor their return policy to attract online customers.

# 4 - Lose Patience And Stop Developing

Other stores struggle with the work of building, maintaining, and expanding online reach. Not to mention the expense.

Selling bras online is a slow build.

If you have a strong customer base that is tech saavy, it is easier for an online store to service them. But to expand beyond your geographical area and tap into markets nationwide or abroad takes time. And effort. And money.

We meet stores who give up listing online. Their sales were slow, their reach limited, and the effort huge to only reach their existing client base. They were working more to serve the same people.

These bra stores are not going to tailor an ecommerce return policy for their website.

#5 - Not Publishing a Return Policy

Seems like almost hearsay to not publish a return policy in this day and age.

One of the main staples of running any online store, especially if one desires to appeal to an audience beyond their existing client base, is to make sure you have clear policies published on your site.

More than 90% of people surveyed say that a store’s return policy influences their purchasing decision.

Even with a staggering (when’s the last time we saw 90% of anything?!) percentage, bra stores in Canada continuously fail to write and publish a proper policy.

RETURN POLICIES : IT’S IN THE STATS

For any store that is looking to improve their online experience, creating a return policy that is in line with the current shopping expectations is key.

We know that 90% of shoppers are influenced by a store’s return policy.

58% want a hassle free return with no questions asked.

96% of customers will shop again with a retailer that gave them an easy return experience.

Plus we know that 78% of shoppers would buy more products if they knew there was a free returns process.

These are all facts that most retailers has heard over and over.

Yet, if we break down the lingerie and bra returns and refunds policies, we find that many stores are losing way too many customers along the way.

SELLING LINGERIE IN-STORE VS SELLING LINGERIE ONLINE

Selling products online is a different animal than selling in-store.

In the store you have a plethora of cues and clues to draw conclusions from.

You can sense your customer. You know how things go during a bra fitting.

In your store the product doesn’t sell itself.

The sale is a blend of the store atmosphere, the energy of the staff, the expertise, and the product.

Online we are limited in how much we can influence or guide the customer.

The amount we engage with the customer when they shop online drops significantly.

Two things take over the online experience in a very “in your face” way for the consumer: the product and the price.

In our experience 50% of customers don’t even look at the price or even ask. They try on bras. They have a good time. They find a few that fit. And then pay.

Not online. The price becomes much more prominent. That prominence makes it an influential piece of the equation because it is right there.

When that happens, the customers’ focus on the product is diluted. Might it fit? Sure. But look at the cost!

Suddenly, the price, which to a degree is an afterthought during an in-store experience (how many women have come into your bra store for 1 bra and left with 3, just because they fit?) is playing a central role.

When the price takes a starring role in your sales cycle, you can be sure it’s cousin is close behind (the return policy). If price is driving the sale, then the return policy plays a central role. It’s like both of those elements live in the same part of the brain.

The other main player is the product.

In the store you can rely on the design of the changeroom, the atmosphere, your attire and attitude. The customer is there for the bras, but also for the experience. All that is taken away.

All bra store owners try to add expertise to their product page on their site with bra sister size charts, bra size calculators, bra guides, size charts, fit notes, bra notes, and so on.

Store owners try to enhance the online experience with beautiful design and ease of use.

But no one can make up the ground we lose from being in person. We can share some things, but we can’t put it all together. A bit like a disassembled car. It’s all there. But you can’t drive it.

There is no substitute for the experience of being somewhere. Smelling. Touching. Feeling. Listening. Taking it all in.

The underlying unpredictableness of any moment in the world gives you a subtle rush of adrenaline. It heightens you and how you engage with your surroundings. Something the customer cannot replicate shopping on their couch. Or office. Or bed.

So, the customer is left with product and price as their decision verticals.

There is a risk to shopping like that.

It actually seems quite foolish to buy a bra online!

If you don’t have the fitting knowledge from a fitter, the ability to touch and feel the product, and you can’t test it on, if you are giving all that up, why are you buying it like that?

This is the struggle between the retailer and the customer. And we are all both retailers and customers at different times. We buy. And we sell. This is the rub!

But we are not putting the online shopping genie back in the bottle.

People want to shop online. For bras. For glasses. For kitchenware. You can buy anything online.

The truth is, if we don’t cater to people shopping online, someone else will. Those customers will slip through our fingers and then the only thing we’ll be left doing is twiddling our thumbs.

If the shopping experience is so different, the return policy should reflect that.

As a retailer we should aim to see online sales as a shared experience between the customer and the retailer. Two dancers, one needing the other.

If the customer is willing to take a risk and order something online, the best thing we can do is try to mitigate their risk of an unpleasant outcome.

Taking returns for your online lingerie will boost your sales! Plus, there are ways to mitigate your risk level.

WHY TAKE RETURNS?

Taking returns does not need a terrifying endeavor at your store.

The world of retail has gotten a lot tougher in the last ten years.

The world of bra retail even more!

Bra stores have always been a resilient segment of the brick-and-mortar retail landscape.

Although the investment needed to break into the market is high, selling bras offers a level of certainty and longevity that almost all other retail vectors envy.

It is because of that resilience that competition has shot up!

Between the introduction of online sales, the muscling into the lingerie market by large bully players, brands selling direct to consumers, and the growth of new bra stores, every customer, every sale counts.

When we factor in the rising cost of rent and staffing…well, you know! Bra stores may be resilient but it’s no walk in the park.

Plus stores carry a huge amount of stock to be able to serve their customers.

Those reasons are why it is so important to maximize all your sales channels.

If you already have an online store, why not maximize its potential?

It is well known that customers want two main things when they shop online: easy returns and free shipping.

I won’t get into free shipping here, but suffice to say that I am not a fan.

I’ll write another article on the misleading nature of free shipping and how the culture of convenience has skewed the real costs associated with everything; from the shipment of goods, to the real cost of food, to the car riding services everyone uses.

But I digress….

Free shipping is different from accepting returns.

Free shipping costs you money with each and every sale.

Free shipping emboldens the customer to what can be a point of being unreasonable.

What we argue for is a balanced relationship with our customer.

We want to sell them a product. And we want them to be happy.

We want their complaints to be reasonable.

We want their returns to be reasonable.

We want to make sales.

Even in this imperfect model that is online shopping.

But we don’t want frustrated customers or customers wearing the wrong bra size!

It is important to be empathetic with the customer experience when they shop online.

Even though we might want them all to come into the store, the truth is, many people can’t. Think of those that are far away or may suffer from mobility issues.

The nature of the bra industry means that some core bras are found in most stores in some sizes (link to bra frag), and then there are oodles of bras in random sizes in random stores.

Often, if your site is optimized and your pages are ranking, you often have bras that no one else has. Or maybe one or two other bra stores have. A customer searching for that bra might be 200 kilometres away.

Your store pops up in their search.

It is a bit much to expect the customer to drive 200 kms to try a bra on in your lingerie store.

But if it is one of those bras that only you have, chances are, you are ready to sell it!

With a strong return policy and a fair shipping policy, you mitigate the risk to that bra while it travels to the customer’s home to be tried on.

With the customer paying shipping costs, it is reasonable to allow the bra to leave the store for a few days to be tried on. If it doesn’t work, it comes back home.

Plus there are ways to mitigate the risk.

8 out of 10 times, the bra won’t come back.

Write A Return Policy That Mitigates Risk

A well thought out return policy removes a lot of the sting you might feel about taking returns on bras.

It’s easy for all those blog writers out there to hark on the points of why you MUST take returns without any real experience on how returns affect us as retailers.

Someone who never had any of their own skin in the game does not make a compelling argument for us bra retailers.

I’ve been there. I know the pain. Take it from me, there is a way…

Here is a list you can follow to reduce the risks associated with returns, make customers comfortable with your store, and increase conversions.

#1 - CLARITY

Make your return policy concise and clear.

Avoid giving it too many moving parts.

Make your return policy short and sweet.

Make sure this policy is very clear and available in different parts of your site.

It can be a banner at the top of the site.

Ideally, in your cart or checkout page you have a box the customer needs to check to confirm they read and agree with the terms of return.

This clarity is your #1 line of defense for avoiding ridiculous claims from customers.

Whatever return policy you decide to write, make sure it is clear, easy to understand, and available across your site.

#2 - KEEP IT TIGHT

Keep your return window small.

Don’t let your return window stretch out for 30 days or 45 days.

After all, when the customer receives the item, we want them to try it on and if it doesn’t fit, send it back.

They should know pretty quickly if it works for them or not. There is no need for extensive return windows.

You can make it 7 days after confirmation of arrival of shipment.

With technology today you’ll know exactly what day the product was delivered to their home.

Setting up a tight timeframe is also your best bet to get the product back in its original form.

The less time the customer has with the product, the less chances are the cat sleeps on it, spaghetti sauce spills on it, it picks up the smell of deodorant, etc.

#3 - AUTOMATE!

Staying out of the returns process is one of the best things you can do.

This will not always be possible especially when the customer is looking for an exchange and you will probably have to get involved to help them choose their next item.

Still, if it is a straight return, automate it.

There are plenty of apps and tools out there that plug into your website that make the return process automatic.

Here are some tools for your website:

Smart Refunder – if you run a Woo Commerce site.

Return Magic – has an API so your developer can plug it into any website.

Bold Returns – works on Shopify.

Aftership – works on Shopify and other websites.

The customer puts in their email, or order number, chooses the reason for the return, and then the system can automatically generate a return label for them.

Easy peasey.

Unless you are paying for return shipping make sure that you clearly state that the cost of the return label will be deducted from the refund.

Why automate?

We have seen too many simple returns go haywire when a discussion on a phone kicks off.

The customer begins asking questions. Next thing you know, the customer suspects there might be a flaw in the product, or, they get worked up, something is always your fault. When they have to pay, and things didn’t go perfect, it’s always your fault!

Next thing you know they start to demand free shipping to return the item, they start to threaten with negative reviews, etc etc. All because of the conversation. A little extra word somewhere knocked that train off its tracks. No no.

Reduce the ability of things being misinterpreted or going wrong.

Let the computers do the work.

#4 - PREVENT (AND GROW YOUR SALES!)

This one is very underrated, but this one not only reduces returns, it also increases sales!

Take a look at your online orders.

Is this one of your regular customers who is in your database?

If so, check their size against the bras they purchased.

Is there something there you see that is very unlikely to work? Send them an email.

Is there an order from a customer you don’t know but that has multiple bras that you know won’t fit?

Reach out and ask them if they are sure that’s what they want.

They might be buying a few bras to test them on and return the ones that don’t work. This phenomena is called Bracketing.

It is when customers purchase multiple products to try on at home.

But this is also a great chance to communicate and make some recommendations.

This approach is one of the best approaches to make more sales!

More often than not when engaging these customers pre-shipment you discover the pain point in the transaction and can offer suggestions.

Do they want matching panties with that? They love that color? Bring another bra in that color to your attention?

Have bras in-store that are not online? Pitch them and make that sale.

Reaching out to clarify discrepancies is a great customer service move, increases customer retention, and gives you an opportunity to increase your order size.

#5 - GIVE THEM THEIR MONEY BACK.

Most stores bristle at the idea of giving the customer their money back. We get it.

That said, if your policy was clear, and if the customer followed the instructions, chances are the bra returns in perfect condition.

If the customer made an honest effort to make a purchase.

If they followed your instructions to a tee.

If the item is back in your hand and it is nothing worse for the wear.

Give the customer their money back.

This ends up being a zero cost customer retention strategy. Remember, customers keep shopping with retailers who make returns easy!

It might take a couple of tries, but once you hit the sweet spot with them, you’ll have a repeat customer. It’s like the old car sales adage: you don’t sell a car, you sell 3 cars over 10 years.

It’s never one sale. It’s five sales over 24 months.

#6 - SCOPE OUT YOUR COMPETITORS.

You probably know who your immediate competitors are.

Google will show people (in your geographic area who are searching for bras) a list of stores with the ones closest to the customer near the top.

You can use the Bra Directory and put in your store’s postal code and search for stores within 30km – 50km from your store (depending on where you are, if you are in a big city probably close the radius to 20km) and make sure you are aware of all your competitors near you.

Next, check out all their return policies.

Can you make a return policy that is at least as good, if not better than your local competitors?

If so, do it!

You will be able to use your return policy to distinguish yourself from your local competition and this will give you excellent return on your local organic SEO conversions.

Local customers will compare return policies from one store to the next.

#7 - MAKE YOUR RETURN POLICY A CENTREPIECE OF YOUR PITCH

Did you create a great return experience?

Then make it a centrepiece of your pitch!

Make sure that customers know about your policy and use it to drive engagement.

VIRTUAL BRA FITTINGS AND THE PANDEMIC

bradirectory — Fri, 17 Sep 2021 18:08:24 +0000

How The Pandemic Spurred Virtual Bra Fittings

The pandemic set in motion societal changes on how we do, or might do, almost everything. Our views of what was possible had radical pivots out of necessity. We innovated and adapted at great speed.

We were skeptical of working from home back in 2019. Now it’s a norm.

For doctors, we would sit endless hours in waitrooms wondering how they land planes in order, organize factories to build cars, but doctors couldn’t keep a schedule. Now we have virtual care, you can see a doctor from your home in a matter of minutes.

When we started Your Bra Store, the largest resistance we faced was that bras shouldn’t be sold online.

Bra buying is an in-person experience. While we agree bras are best bought in person, it is not the only way. Most bras are bought in person, yet, a degree of people will continue shopping for bras online.

Our idea is that the same people who sell it at street level (small bra stores with incredible bra fitting knowledge and expertise) should be the same ones selling it online. That’s my pitch. But I digress.

Resistance to selling bras online was always my wall. And it was very black and white. Some took to my concept and shared their bras with me. Others didn’t.

But 2020 forced innovations and changes of attitude across industries. It happened with bras too.

Not only have bra stores been ready to come with us online, they are now looking for ways to expand. Having fully integrated the process into their operation, they are now working on the steps beyond it. Improvement. Innovation.

What was once thought of as hearsay. Witchcraft! Has now gone mainstream : Virtual Bra Fittings.

Virtual Bra Fittings : What They Are and How to Take Advantage of Them.

With so many lockdowns world wide, virtual bra fittings have gone practically mainstream.

Bra fittings are an incredibly intimate and close interaction that happens indoors. Exactly the type of situations we try to avoid during the pandemic.

Even when allowed to go for in-person shopping, many people stayed away for individual reasons.

Still, not going to a bra store, not buying bras, or not getting a bra fitting is not the same as not needing to buy a bra. Demand is always there. Bras are an essential item in the life of many many women.

Buying bras online or shopping for bras online has always been difficult. Even though having an ecommerce store is a necessary component for any retailer, online bra retailers have been plagued with high return rates since its inception.

Virtual bra fittings have managed to drastically cut that rate for the retailer. Customers buying bras online receive more well fitting bras than before thanks to virtual bra fittings.

You may have not had a virtual fitting but wondered what they were. We see that a lot when we speak to stores. Customers have questions about virtual bra fittings! Lots of them!

How does a virtual bra fitting work?

Am I going to be naked online?

How accurate is a virtual bra fitting?

Here are some answers.

8 Questions About Virtual Bra Fittings

What is a virtual bra fitting?
What should I expect?
How do virtual bra fittings work?
What do I need for a virtual bra fitting?
How do I prepare?
How long does it take?
Do I need to be naked online?
How accurate is the sizing?

What is a virtual bra fitting?

A virtual fitting is the same process that happens in a lingerie boutique, except it’s in the privacy of your own home and done with a video service.

All you need is you, your current best bra, and a soft tape measure.

The fitter will do the rest!

What should I expect?

You’ll probably have to make a reservation for a specific time online. Pick a boutique that has lots of fitting experience and easy returns for virtual fittings, since you may not find the perfect bra in the exact size on the first try.

Many stores will often send you an email questionnaire to find out more about your situation. What type of bra are you looking for? What has been your favorite bra? Things of that nature.

How do virtual bra fittings work?

For a successful virtual bra fitting you need a device that can do video-conferencing.

The fitter will greet you and ask you some basic questions about what bra you’re currently wearing, any fit issues you’re experiencing, and what type and styles of bras you are looking for.

There are different bra fitting techniques when you have an in-person fitting and that applies also to virtual fittings.

Some fitters eyeball size using your current bra, a t shirt, and some movement.

Other fitters use a tape measure where you take some measurements of yourself and the fitter will use a blend of those measurements and what they see to start suggesting bras.

The fitter will walk you through the steps of how to take a proper measurement.

What do I need for a virtual bra fitting?

You need the technical part : a device with video conferencing capacity and an internet connection and a private space.

Have your current best fitting bra (underwired preferred) and a soft tape measure!

Some fitters also want you to have a plain, tight fitting t-shirt to see how the bra looks under clothes as well.

What can I do to prepare?

Think about what it is you want to buy or what you need to buy. What is it you are looking for? Having a clear goal will help steer the bra fitting to where you want.

Think about what sorts of bras you’ve loved in the past.

Think about if there is something that isn’t working for you about your current selection.

If you’ve changed sizes drastically, let your fitter know so they can make sure to get accurate measurements. Have there been any changes to your body type that might affect your bust size or tissue type?

If you’re interested in a specific type of bra like a sports bra or a strapless one for a special occasion, make sure to point that out.

Knowing some of the basic functionality of a bra fitting is also a good idea. Be aware of how to do a swoop-and-scoop and adjust straps.

How long does a virtual bra fitting take?

A bra fitting online takes between 30 minutes and 60 minutes.

Do I have to be naked online?

You definitely don’t have to be naked online.

Talk to your fitter about your comfort level beforehand.

Most often bra fitters want to see you in your bra. It is ideal.

But if you are uncomfortable, make sure to be clear with your bra fitter on what your comfort level is.

Remember, bra fitters are empathetic people and bra fittings are a judgement free zone. They are there to help.

How accurate is the sizing?

Extremely!

You may not get the perfect bra on the first try, but it won’t be off by much. After all, remember that you are getting sized online, but don’t have the actual bra to try on at that moment.

Most boutiques make it easy for virtual fitting clients to exchange bras because they know it may take more than one try to get the right size.

Don’t be shy about expressing your feelings about the bras from your fittings and don’t be scared to exchange something that is good but not great.

It’ll make it easier to buy bras in the future once the fitters get to know your body and your tastes.

The Future of Virtual Bra Fittings

During the pandemic virtual bra fittings have become a regular offering that many lingerie boutiques and bra fitting stores adopted.

We predict they’ll hang around post-pandemic too. They’re an easy way for customers to find their perfect bra without having to live close to a boutique you may want to buy bras from.

Living far from a bra store with a large selection is a reality for most women. Bra stores are very expensive to stock. Many stores stock a certain basic amount of bras in best-selling sizes only, leaving a lot of women with few to no selection locally.

Time constraints are another big reason that virtual fittings have taken-off. Before the pandemic they were extremely rare, so customers couldn’t even tap into the considerable time efficiencies and convenience in a virtual bra fitting. Once they became mainstream, women on tight schedules flocked to them saving themself a drive to the local bra store.

Many bra stores have found virtual bra fittings a seamless complimentary service to add on to their current offerings. So much so that there is a whole movement of “what’s next?” in the virtual bra fitting world. Innovation and creativity has been sparked!

Some of the things we have seen and heard :

Improved Lingerie Boutique Experience Online

Most stores started fitting a bit of a mad dash as governments shut them down and they found themselves forced to develop new streams of revenue quickly. This meant that virtual bra fittings were a basic video conferencing affair with little thought put into the whole “look and feel”.

Stores are now working on creating a more curated online experience. They are looking to offer clients visual environments that might replicate the professional and intimate experience a customer finds at a bra store.

This includes better backgrounds, better ways to feature and show bras to the customer over the screen, virtual mirrors where the customer and the fitter can discuss what is being seen, and other innovations.

Improved Bra Fitting Tools

Stores are beginning to implement online bra fitting kits. You can purchase an online bra fitting kit that will be shipped to you.

Most of them are fairly basic, but you get a soft measuring tape, often color coded so the fitter doesn’t need to be able to see the itty bitty numbers on the tape. Bra fitters can make assessments based on the colors displayed when the customer uses the tape as instructed.

Basic tshirts are also being considered. A customer receives a tape measure and a basic white tshirt in their size that allows the fitter to judge the look of the bra below a layer of clothing.

Focus on Aftercare and Improved Shipping

As virtual bra fittings continue to find a foothold, what stores aim to accomplish in a virtual bra fitting is changing.

The original concept was to assess bra size and make suggestions for the customer, this still did not create a whole close loop experience. Customers were still returning bras that fit only because they did not have the guidance to properly snuggle into the bra once it arrived.

Stores are now doing pre and post purchase virtual bra fittings. Especially stores with the size to be able to absorb shipping costs.

In this scenario, bra stores still conduct the original bra fitting and assess the customer’s bra size. The customer then purchases (sometimes doesn’t even purchase yet) a group of bras that are shipped.

The customer then has another scheduled virtual fitting when the bras arrive at their home. This allows the fitter and the customer to work on each bra individually creating a higher guarantee of fit accuracy. The customer then returns the bras that did not fit.

The bra store compiles accurate notes on the customer’s size. This helps the customer to shop again and have bras shipped to them with a high degree of certainty that they fit and reduces the overall time spent in virtual bra fittings.

You are ready!

Use our button above to find stores in Canada that provide virtual bra fittings.

Book an appointment and get your measuring tape ready.

Good luck!

CLOSING YOUR BRA STORE

bradirectory — Thu, 19 Aug 2021 21:35:27 +0000

Steps to Help You Close Your Retail Store

DISCLOSURE : nothing in this article is legal or accounting advice!

This is a road map from our experience dealing with bra stores.

If you have debts, it is your duty to put the interest of your creditors first.

You must make every effort to maximize the value of your items to make sure your creditors are satisfied.

We want to make it very clear : talk to your professional advisors!

Closing your bra store is now a reality. Regardless of how you arrived here, the path forward is like other retail store closings.

The main criteria that will determine your closing plan is: how much time do you have?

This article assumes you have a reasonable amount of time, 2 months at least. Rarely does closing a lingerie store sneak up on someone. Lets hope you are at the early stages.

Closing a store is an intricate job with many moving parts. The analogy I use is “Christmas Dinner”.

It’s Christmas and everyone is coming to your house this year and they expect a BIG DINNER. You can’t look at Christmas Dinner as one thing. Rather, a collection of small things (and some big) that when put together make the dinner. You cannot do it all at once.

You boil the potatos, and soon enough, the mashed potatos are ready. You made a couple of salads yesterday. You also made dessert yesterday. The turkey is in the oven. You caramelize some carrots and then whisk the gravy. In the end, you put it all together and you have Christmas Dinner.

The same goes for closing your store. Don’t look at it as one thing but a bunch of small tasks that put together complete the big task.

Looked at as one major job might make it seem less overwhelming but provides the poorest results. Dismantling it piece by piece and working through the sections gives you the best chance.

Our goal is to have you close your store on your terms and with the best results.

Time Is Your Friend

How much time do you have?

The ideal time frame to properly wind down a bra store is 3 months.

One month will be hectic. If you only have one month, your expectations should be low. Recovering your investments will be hard.

Two months is a doable time, but a little hurried.

Three months or more gives you the best chance.

You should leave at least 5 days after your last day of business to clean up, make any repairs to the location, and tie up loose ends that show up.

STORE CLOSING TO DO LIST

1 – Notifying people.

2 – Cancelling subscriptions, marketing, monthly contracts, etc.

3 – Winding down the corporation, settling taxes, dissolution, legal and accounting.

4 – Inventory clearance.

5 – Tidy up, garbage, location repairs, etc.

1 - NOTIFYING PEOPLE

Vendors : most vendors will figure out you will be closing from your buying habits. It rarely comes as a surprise to them.

Make notifying them a priority if you have a contract that binds you. It might have notification clauses or penalties for early termination.

In a perfect world, vendors can help you. They can put you in touch with other stores that might buy your merchandise or the vendor might buy back stock.

But this is rare since both would impact their bottom line.

If you feel you have a special relationship with any of them, it might be worth approaching the subject.

Landlord : informing your landlord early can be ideal. Especially if you have to close before your lease expires.

Early notification gives them time to rent out your space to a new tenant. Informing your landlord early may reduce liability. Informing them early can also help you land a landlord reference in the future. Good relationships always pay off!

Staff : notifying staff as soon as can is very important, mainly because it is the right thing to do.

There is no obligation to inform them the minute you makeup your mind. Especially if you have a long window to your close date.

You have to balance your needs with the needs of your staff. You want all your staff to have proper time to prepare for a transition and find a new job. You also don’t want all your staff to find new jobs and leave you before the work in your store is finished.

You need staff for the inventory clearout, the packing, the cleaning. Having staff is key. Some staff may stay on until the end and take employment benefits that come from the closure. Others will be eager to look for a new job.

Either way, this is a delicate balancing act, try to make sure you do not undermine your staff or yourself.

Accountant and Lawyer : these two should be #1. They should be notified even before you make your final decision!

Their knowledge will guide your decisions to make sure that you follow all the rules.

It’s one thing to leave a landlord or a vendor upset at your closing, it’s quite another to be in the Government’s bad books.

The government, the CRA, does not go away. These professionals have a lot of work to do for you. Dissolve your corporation. Pay your HST and pay taxes. Make sure any business licenses closed. Be up to date with payroll deductions (EI, CPP, etc).

Your accountant will provide you a summary of what to expect with your finances. Your lawyer will make sure all legal matters are resolved. You don’t want paperwork following you into the future. When you close your store, you want to close it all!

Customer : this is the last group to notify and best to notify in segments.

2 - Cancelling Subscriptions

Make sure anything on auto-renewal, especially yearly subscriptions are turned off. You don’t want to pay for a full year a month before you close up.

POS System

You probably have a yearly support subscription.

They might have penalties for early cancellation. If you paid ahead of time, make sure you don’t autorenew and chalk up the lost months to the cost of doing business.

Doesn’t hurt to send an email to see if they will refund a part, but keep expectations low.

Web Domain

This might be a sellable asset.

If your website has been operating for a few years and has some Domain Authority (DA), it might have value. People often buy websites with DA to help them leverage the growth of other sites. Use Flippa to find out the value of your site.

If your site has no value, cancel your domain, website hosting, digital marketing, and web designer/service agency.

Phone service

Cellular service

Internet provider

Alarm system

Social media service

Cleaning and mat services

Drinking water service

Payroll service

Banking services

Google Ads

Yearly retainers for lawyers and accountants

Flower delivery

Newspaper, magazine subscriptions

Utilities

SOCAN and Spotify.

3 - Close Corporation and Settle Taxes

Call your lawyer and accountant for guidance. Do not try to do this alone.

This section is beyond the scope of this article.

You pay your professionals good money, take advantage!

4 - Inventory Clearance.

This is where a large part of your focus will be, after all, in bra stores, the largest part of money is in inventory.

Plus, this is what you do and are good at; fitting bras and selling bras.

Having the three months will benefit you the most in this area.

With more time, the more chances you have to recover as much of your inventory investment as possible.

An important state of mind in executing this part of the work without it causing you too much grief is : don’t be greedy!

Closing a store is not the ideal time to maximize profits. Your focus needs to be recovery. Recovering as much money as possible.

It is important to avoid emotional or intellectual valuations of products. You cannot judge items at regular market rates.

A Prima Donna bra that you sell for $160, you cannot expect $160 for it right now. It will create frustration and disappointment.

We want you to get as much money back for as many products as you can in the fastest way possible. That means, sometimes you’ll win, and sometimes you’ll lose.

The moment you decide to close, the value of your inventory starts to drop. If it ends up in boxes, it will no longer be inventory, instead, it turns into “stuff”. And stuff is worthless.

Yet, time is your friend. The moment you decide to close, the value of your inventory begins to drop for you. But not to the customer.

Since the customer does not know yet, this is our opportunity to get stuff done.

Planning Your Sales

Your sales should start slow and targeted.

Do not put signs in the window, blast your newsletter, or paper your social media with “going out of business” promotions until the final 30 days.

Lets look at some ways to get stuff moving, in a 90 day cycle.

The First 30 Days!

Have Accurate Inventory Data

Have an accurate count of all your inventory.

Your POS should allow you to download all your lingerie inventory into an excel or csv file.

Tidy up the data to make it easy to review and sort into segments so you can target products.

If dealing with excel is overwhelming contact us at Your Bra Store for help. We’ll clean, organize, and sort your data quickly for easy reference.

Selecting Your First Sale Items

Choose items that you are willing to sell at a steep discount first. Products to lure customers in.

Do not create a sale that targets all your products. No “Buy one get one free!” or “Everything 30% off”.

Make the sale specific.

For example :

Use your data list to choose products that have been in the store a long time.

Sort them by received data and gather all the products that have been in the store at least 3 years.

Put them all together somewhere in the store. Create a “inventory clearout section” in the store that includes all these products.

You might want to pick a brand that sells well, has a loyal following, and you are willing to sell at close to cost.

Stay away from your best selling bras or your high profit lingerie at this point. Make this sale time limited.

NEXT

Review the layout of your store.

Is it possible to gather and showcase your high demand, high profit items close to your sale items?

Remove any clutter around the sale items. Some bra stores try to put as much merchandise as possible into the floor all at once! Don’t do that.

Make sure the high demand, high profit items are close and accessible to the sale items.

Do not try to overpack this area. You want to limit customer options to maximize your high profit opportunities early.

THEN

Use your email newsletter to let your customers know.

You can also give the email newsletter customers a little extra add-on beyond the offer. Phrase it as a loyalty discount only for email subscribers. You can use a code for the extra discount.

Use a subtle sign on your windows and use your social media to push this specific sale. No need to mention “going out of business” or “closing sale”.

Your goal is to give this sale a unique feeling.

Give the staff whisper offers. Let them offer extra discounts in the changeroom that are not advertised (whisper offers).

Let Your Staff Buy

If your staff knows about the closing, give them a chance to buy office supplies, chattels, computers, chairs, etc. Anything they want. Make a list and let them start making claims to things.

Ecommerce Preparation

If you exported all your lingerie inventory to an excel file from your POS system, you are ready to engage in your ecommerce strategy.

Do you have an ecommerce store? If so, you should try to get all your products listed into your ecommerce store.

Don’t have an ecommerce store, setting up a quick Shopify store is easier than you think and not very expensive. Reach out to us at Your Bra Store and we can help you with the setup.

If you have an ecommerce store, invest in Google Ads and Facebook marketing.

Not sure how to set up and manage either of those campaigns? We suggest reaching out to Dee-Boswell Buck. She is an excellent resource and can set up targeted campaigns to drive people to your site.

Do you use marketplaces to sell online? Setting up accounts on eBay and Amazon takes about an hour. The listing process can be cumbersome and keeping track of inventory can be hard.

If you don’t have time to deal with online marketplaces, listing bras or dealing with customers and returns, contact us at Your Bra Store.

At Your Bra Store, we’ll list your items for you, we’ll deal with the customers and you won’t have to deal with the returns. You can sell all your items at any price and remain anonymous to the customer.

It doesn’t cost anything, we do all the work, and we only charge our fee when we sell an item. You’ll get access to the US and Canadian market with none of the headaches.

Next 30 Days

Putting Your Best Sellers on Sale!

Remember your high demand, high profit lingerie brands we discussed? The bras you put in a prominent position to leverage the customers who came in for the first sale? Take those best selling, high demand bras, the ones that never need to go on sale, and put them on sale.

Make it a small sale!

It may seem crazy to discount them, but the faster you sell them, at the smallest discount, allows you to keep your margins high.

By selling the premium bras and lingerie at a discount allows you to make them “final sale”. You don’t have to worry about customers abusing your return policy as your store winds down.

Selling these high value premium bras at a sale price now avoids having these bras on the floor during the last 30 days where the discounts are higher.

Increase First Batch of Sale Products.

These top brand bras will drive customers to the store.

Use the customer traffic the premium bras bring to push whatever may be left over from that first sale.

Also, add extra products to the first sale batch to increase sales from that group.

Increase “whisper” offerings.

Use Appointments.

Encourage customer appointments to buy your premium lingerie (Empreinte, Prima Donna, Ewa Michalak). Review the appointments for each day against their customer profiles to see if they like to buy other products.

Do they also buy Marie Jo sets? Does this customer like to buy Christine nightwear? Hanro? Make sure your fitter is ready with targeted “whisper sales” for them.

Find Liquidators.

Start sourcing liquidators in case it comes to that. You can google retail liquidators to get a list in your area.

Haven’t contacted us at Your Bra Store? Get on it! Lets see if there is a fit in liquidation. We buy bras in bulk.

Talking to Vendors and Bra Stores.

Talk to your vendors. See if any vendors might take items back. This is a long-shot. But worth a chance.

Do you have relationships with other bra store owners? If so, reach out to them, let them know what is going on. At a good price (below wholesale) they might buying stock in bulk.. They might also buy fixtures, mannequins, label printers, computers, etc.

If you don’t know other bra stores or don’t feel comfortable exposing your story at this point, call Your Bra Store. We’ll work with other stores and try to sell your products to them for you.

Increase Marketing.

Stay constant with your social media or your email newsletter. Leverage, leverage, leverage. Stay away from “going out of sale” language at this point. Great bra brands with customer loyalty and a high demand will pull customers in.

Use your windows to highlight the sales. Don’t start a “store closing sale” yet, customers will wait for further reductions if you do and hold off coming in. Create great sales and push them.

Focus on certain demographics. For example, close your store late one day for an office worker sale. Many stores close around 6 or 7. Pick a couple of days to close at 9pm. Create an early morning sale for seniors. Include a couple of carafes of coffee, tea, and a breakfast snack.

Ecommerce

Continue discounting items online.

Make sure your homepage is promoting your sale items.

Final 30 Days

It’s all out now. Don’t hold back.

Make sure your final day of business is widely broadcast through all your mediums and displayed throughout your store.

Progressively discount items and keep the highest discount for the last 5 days.

Broadcast store closing sales over all the mediums available to you.

Extend shopping hours.

Drop prices in any online marketplaces you might have items listed.

Start to source out worthy donations places. Talk to your accountant and see if you can deduct donations from your corporate taxes.

Develop combination sales. You want to sell as much as you can and the easiest way is to combine one sale with another. Bundle, bundle, bundle.

Start pricing your in-store chattels! Put a big, bright price tag on everything you want to sell. Shelves. Desk. Chairs. Couch. Computer monitors. Anything and everything should have a price on it.

If you have space on your sales floor, display your office items.

5 - Tidy up, garbage and location clean up.

Hopefully by now you should only have a spatter of items left.

If you have inventory you still want to sell, the key is to have an accurate list of items. It’s reasonable to put this lingerie inventory in boxes now, but make sure each box has a manifest detailing what’s inside.

Ideally your manifest has information like; brand, style, size, color, quantity, and cost.

The manifests help you with liquidators or auction houses. These are probably your last options at this stage.

If you are no longer interested in selling and have inventory left over, donate to local women’s shelters. Banking some goodwill goes a long way.

Some stuff will be garbage. Don’t fret. Get some boxes and take that stuff to the dump!

Every load you drop off will be a weight off your shoulders. Every bit of weight you release gets you closer to that new door, that new beginning. The lighter you become, the quicker your pace becomes to arrive at your new phase.

Your lease will probably require you to leave your location in broom swept condition. This means repairing any damage to the walls from your racks, removing everything from inside the location, and giving it a good sweep.

I remember when I closed my store. It was bitter sweet. I left a lot of good memories there and it was strange to see it empty. I had worked hard those last few weeks to close it down, and when I stood at the door and looked one last time, I was relieved.

I knew a new chapter could begin.

Stay strong!

TIPS TO BUYING BRAS ONLINE

bradirectory — Mon, 14 Jun 2021 16:44:45 +0000

Why Is It So Hard to Buy A Bra Online?

With so many resources on the internet, why is it hard to buy a bra online? Bras can be and often are, difficult to shop for. For some women, it’s a breeze, but for others it is a real struggle.

There are confusing sizing systems, a wide range of body types, a wide range of bra types, plus the vulnerability some women feel in the bra fitting room. These issues create challenges along the way.

Bra Sizing Systems

Some of this is the nature of the human body. There are so many sizes and variations because there are so many types of human bodies. Each of our little idiosyncrasies need to be accounted for when finding the best bra for each person.

Inconsistent bra sizing makes this process harder. Countries have unique sizing systems that use different measurements, ratios, and size labels. This affects band and cup sizes.

Companies design bras using their system. That doesn’t always translate well to the customer in another region. It might be easier to move between UK and US sizing, but it can be strange to be a 38 band in one system and 100 in another!

An Elomi bra that is a 32 band would translate to a 70 band in an Ewa Michalak bra.

An FF cup in one system is an H in another. A Goddess bra in a J cup bra will be a GG if looking at a Freya bra equivalent.

There are six main bra sizing systems commonly used.

How Do I Make This Work For Me When Buying A Bra Online?

1 – Do you already have a bra you love? That’s a good place to start. Check the tag on it to see what size it is.

Many brands put different sizing systems on their tags so it’s easy enough to cheat and get your size that way.

Empreinte Tag

Simone Perele Tag

With an informative tag it’s easy to see that your 80D in FR bra is a 32D in UK sizes.

2 – Stick to what you know when shopping online.

If you love your Anita compression sports bra, look for similar bras from brands like Shock Absorber which may be less well known.

If you like Elomi bras, then explore similar UK brands like Freya and Panache. Stick to a similar bra type if branching out online. Go to a bra store if you want to be more adventurous.

3 – Information is king.

Know your body. Know your breast type and breast shape. This helps if relying on reviews or fitter notes you find online.

Know your bra types and try to find styles that work with your body shape rather than against it.

4 – Take a picture of the tag of a bra that you love as soon as you can!!

We can’t emphasize this enough.

Washing and wearing can fade a tag completely and by then you may not remember the style or the size.

5 – If you cannot get fitted, do some measuring at home. You’ll need a tape measure. Use our bra calculator online to estimate your size. Remember, a bra size calculator online cannot be relied on for 100% accuracy. This goes back to the nuances of each bra brand. Different brands and different types of bras will affect the fit.

6- This should be #1! There is no replacement for a proper fitting in a specialized bra store. That should be the first place to go.

What about a Sister Size Bra?

A challenge when trying to buy a bra online in Canada is something we call Bra Fragmentation. Some sizes in some stores. It is rare to find all sizes for a bra at any one small bra store in Canada.

Sister sizing can help expand a bit of your selection pool when a size is hard to find.

Sister sizing a bra means shifting sizes while keeping proportions the same. Bra sizes are about volume, so you can often maintain the same volume by going a size down on the chart or a size up.

For instance, say your 34C bra isn’t fitting you well anymore. You could try a 32D or a 36B as alternatives. They will have similar measurements.

While this often works for the next size or two over, it rarely works well over large size range changes. At that point, you’re better off getting re-fitted professionally.

Why does my size not fit from bra brand to bra brand?

Sizing is often consistent within a brand but cannot be relied on between different brands.

Part of this is based on history and part of it is based on geography.

French lingerie brands make bras for more common body types in France. UK companies have conquered the large cup market due to their in-country demand.

If you want to expand your brand selection online it is best to stick to bra styles that are familiar to you.

If stores keep fitting you into full cup bras by one company or made in one country, there’s a good chance a demi-cup bra from another country may not work for you in any size.

It’s always better to try new brands in a store.

If you can’t make it to a store many stores now offer you virtual fittings. The pandemic has accelerated this service. These fittings are sometimes done through questionnaires, photos, or video chats.

Are you trying to buy a bra online because you do not feel comfortable in a bra fitting?

Don’t fear bra fitters! They have seen it all and want you to feel comfortable in your own skin.

Bra fitters go through months of training to be ready to fit customers in a store. Great fitters often have years or decades of experience.

Fitters in small bra stores are some of the most empathetic people around. Think of the gentle kindergarten teacher, or the nurse who always makes you feel better. Fitters are much the same.

They are aware of the vulnerability many women feel when shopping for bras. Bra stores are non-judgmental and empathetic places.

Fitters do this work because they believe in the value of a good fitting bra and the impact it has on your well being.

Small bra stores are designed around the empathetic experience.

Conclusion of buying a bra online that fits.

The truth is there are way too many options and variables happening.

Simplifying will always be your best bet when you want to buy a bra online.

1 – Stick to brands you know and love.

2 – Know the common lingo to define your breasts, body, and bra types.

3 – Have a regular bra store? Ask them about their exchange policy. Many, with some friendly email banter, will be willing to ship you a set of bras to try on. Be careful while trying them on and quickly return the ones that don’t fit.

4 – Found a store with a great return policy?

Use our reference material to make some selections. Use our bra calculator, review brands that fit you, know what type of bras you are looking for.

With that information, order 3, 4, or 5 bras to try on at home knowing you can make an easy return.

5 – Stay away from bra-marts. When you shop from a small, independent bra store your purchases do good. Small bra stores are almost all owned by women supporting families.

6 – If you feel vulnerable or uncomfortable, let the bra store know. Schedule an appointment for a fitting and let them know about your reservations.

This is a great way to break the ice and for you to learn about the type of store you are going to from their response.

BRA RETAILERS

bradirectory — Sun, 06 Jun 2021 18:33:08 +0000

Collaboration Is Our Strength

A big idea in business has been that each one of us is always in competition with the other.

But that is not the truth…at least, not the whole truth.

As a bra retailer at your street front location, yes, you do not want another bra store next to you, or even close.

But there is a new way to make bra sales: online.

Sounds easy, but if you have been online, you know it’s not.

Online is where collaboration benefits us. Working together makes us stronger.

CHALLENGES OF ONLINE BRA SALES

In our five years of working with bra stores and making online bra sales, we have noticed four things:

1 – Bra Store Owners Are Not Techies.

All the bra retailers we deal with have street front stores. They’ve been in business, on average, 10 years. Incredible women with a wealth of knowledge about bras. Expert bra fitters. Expert bra buyers. Outstanding trainers. Helpful. They have a passion for bras and their stores.

None of them are passionate about technology.

Bras are a hands on industry that takes place in the nitty gritty of a changeroom. Not on a computer.

I have yet to meet a technofile bra store owner.

2 – Online Bra Sales Are To Their Customer Base.

Most of their online bra sales are made to their own customers. Their website is an added level of service for their customers.

Most online sales are to women who have shopped in-store before.

What I hear is their website adds work and expenses to sell to the same customers.

3 – Low Web Visibility.

Most bra store websites have very low web visibility.

It is very hard for people outside a 20km radius to find their website.

LOW WEB VISIBILITY : WHAT IS IT AND WHAT BRA RETAILERS CAN DO ABOUT IT.

Did you know that 90% of web pages on the internet get 0 traffic?

ZERO!!

We analyzed the website of every storefront bra retailer in Canada with Ahrefs to see their traffic and where it comes from. The numbers are not 100% accurate but this tool is the gold standard for web metrics.

In Canada there are 203 bra store websites.

This excludes Direct to Consumer brands like Knix or Third Love. It excludes mall brands like Victoria’s Secret or La Senza. And excludes online only retailers like Your Bra Store or Fancy Panties. We also exclude large online retailers like Her Room and Bare Necessities.

The average organic traffic to a bra store website in Canada is 303 visits a month.

If we remove the top five stores from this list, the average organic traffic drops to 88!

The average online visibility for a bra store is 88 organic visits out of the 61,567 visits to independent bra store websites that take place every month.

On average, each small bra store averages a total of 0.14% of small store bra traffic in Canada.

If we add to that total the large online retailers (they sell the same bras brands as the small bra store, so we know the customer going there can just as well be your customer) the total organic web traffic a month goes to 115,230.

Of a total of 115,230 web visits for products that independent small bra stores in Canada carry, each store averages 88 of those visits.

That drops the average visibility of each bra store in Canada for the total bra traffic that happens to : 0.076%!!

A pittance for the hard working bra retailer in Canada!

Small bra stores, invisible online, have the best products, the best advise and the best service.

Hence : The Problem of Low Visibility.

WEB TRAFFIC TO BRA STORES

Let’s look a little more at web traffic to small bra stores.

While most stores get an average of 88 visitors a month of the total 61,567 visitors that are going to small bra store sites, that average is calculated after we removed the top five stores.

Here is the web traffic for the five bra stores in Canada that get the most traffic.

Those top five stores, are just regular stores with regular sites. They are bra retailers just like you.

They are bra stores like any other! There is nothing special going on there.

Ranking high is not unattainable.

Splitting that traffic more equitably is possible to more bra stores across Canada. The customers who end up in those top ranking stores are searching for stores just like yours, with the products you carry.

The layout of the internet has pushed some stores to the top and others to the bottom, and the inequitable results are staggering.

The problem of low online visibility is real.

THE SOLUTION : HOW TO DRIVE MORE CUSTOMERS TO YOUR STORE.

This may sound crazy, but ecommerce is in its infancy.

It will only grow. Not only in the amount of people shopping online, but how they shop online.

The future of ecommerce are sites that unite vendors. Consumers will shift shopping habits to supporting local stores. But, we still have to find a way to rank high. The way consumers interact with the internet is limited to the effort they are willing to put into searching.

We know that consumer engagement drops off dramatically after the second page of results. But we cannot all show up in those pages simultaneously, there is simply not enough room.

The key is to give them those local stores in one spot. Bra stores, and eventually, the bras.

We know that in the bra market there is an issue with product fragmentation; too many items scattered across too many sites. By giving them one site, with all the information, in an easily searchable way, we address the problems of low visibility and bra fragmentation.

The solution is collaboration. Together we can do more than any one store can.

If we revert to the approach that we are all in competition with each other, only a few will continue to reap the rewards of online sales. Most stores will continue to spend money on their sites with limited results.

Our strength together is that we have a narrative. By being together, we are unique. Being unique will give us visibility.

With visibility we will get that traffic and with that traffic will come more sales. And we know that with more sales, we help to strengthen bra stores and the communities they operate in.

By working together, the bra store owner can focus on their store and we focus on the technical. What we need is for you to buy in. Say yes. We can do this.

Our work costs nothing to you.

At the Bra Directory and Your Bra Store we work for you. The small bra store owner.

BRAS ONLINE : THE CHALLENGE

bradirectory — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 19:40:24 +0000

BRA FRAG

Bra Frag is short for the challenge consumers face when shopping for bras online: Bra Fragmentation.

While premium bra brands do a great job of keeping us shopping local, when consumer attention shifts online, the results are a trickle of bras and bra sizes scattered across hundreds of stores.

Bra fragmentation favors the bra-mart. Customers become frustrated with long searches for their size. This limits the small bra store’s ability to capitalize on the potential of selling bras online.

Our goal is to bring bras from small bra stores into one spot, here. This will help customers find bras quickly and encourage shopping at small bra stores in Canada. You will still shop at the small store, we will just do the searching for you. When you shop online from a small store, regardless of how far the store is, you shop local. Your purchase does good.

BRA FRAG TEST

We’re going to test some bras online against bra stores in Canada.

We ranked all the lingerie stores in Canada based on their traffic and domain rating through stats provided by ahrefs. These metrics allow us to estimate where a store will show up in a Google search and how much of the bra traffic they are absorbing.

We picked 15 stores fairly randomly. We took into account if they had ecommerce and where they landed in the rankings. We also chose 5 of the top 20 since they are the most popular, but still suffer from Bra Frag.

We picked 8 staple bras from popular brands and checked them against the 15 stores for “bra availability”. That means that, if a bra comes in 40 sizes, and a store has 12 sizes, their bras online availability is: 30%. They have 30% of available sizes for that bra in stock.

The 8 bras we chose for this test are:

Elomi Cate EL4030 | Latte

Simone Perele Andora 131343 | Peau Rose

Chantelle Hedona 2031 | Black

Empreinte Cassiopee 07151 | Black

Anita Momentum 5519 | Black

Anita Momentum 5529 | Black

Prima Donna Madison 0162121 | Black

Panache Sport 5021 | Black

SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM TO READ OUR CONCLUSION.

ELOMI CATE EL8030 | LATTE

SIMONE PERELE ANDORA 131343 | PEAU ROSE

CHANTELLE HEDONA 2031 | BLACK

EMPREINTE CASSIOPEE 07151 | BLACK

ANITA MOMENTUM 5519 | BLACK

ANITA MOMENTUM 5529 | BLACK

PRIMA DONNA MADISON 0162121 | BLACK

PANACHE SPORT 5021 | BLACK

BRA FRAG RESULTS

As we see, bra frag is a real problem.

It creates a legitimate challenge for both the bra retailer and the bra consumer when shopping for bras online.

It stifles the ability of the small bra store to make more online sales because :

1 – the customer loses patience having to browse from one store to another trying to find not only the bra they are looking for, but in the right size.

2 – it makes it difficult for the consumer when shopping for bras online to buy multiple bras from one bra store. They might find one bra in their size, but be limited finding other bras in the same size.

The bra retailer misses their opportunity to makes larger sales in multiples.

3 – This problem is aggravated for those buying plus size lingerie online. Most of the large bra-mart brands (think La Senza or Victoria’s Secret) cut off their sizing at DDD.

The brands that are effective at making plus size lingerie in Canada are almost all only sold at small bra stores. Yet, these stores suffer from Bra Frag.

Finding your bra online is further complicated by the limitations of Google. Google may find the bra, but is limited in sizing results. Often leaving the customer to click on a search result to find out that their size is unavailable.

This often leaves the customer feeling like they have no choice but to shop at bra-marts.

We intend to bring bra retailers and their bras together here.

Offering the consumer a way to find their bras easily and still shop local at a small bra store in Canada.

For bra retailers, this will give them more exposure and increase their ability to capitalize on the online bra market that we know is out there but is not reaching these great stores in communities across Canada.

Use the Bra Directory to shop local from anywhere.

ONLINE BRA DISCOUNTS

bradirectory — Fri, 28 May 2021 00:04:05 +0000

Who doesn’t love a discount when buying a bra?

Some ladies patiently wait for their favorite stores to announce sales to pull out their wallet.

Sometimes, even though you love a sale, you can’t wait. That Elomi or Marie Jo or Prima Donna bra you love and have been wearing hard, but you need to replace her now and can’t wait for that perfect bra sale.

Well, we compiled a little list for you on where to get bra discounts online right now!

Most of these bra stores offer a discount for new customers when signing up to their newsletter.

A little bit of effort and you have a new bra at a sale price. Heck, you might even find a new favorite store you didn’t even know existed.

This is a great way to find an affordable bra online. These stores also cater to a broad range of women. You can find a plus size bra, a swimsuit, a sports bra, a bra for the average breast size, and much more!

The Bra Directory is all about helping you find bras in Canada.

Important disclaimer!

These bra discounts can disappear at any time. We track them, but not everyday. On the day we write this, they are there.

We check the internet for public information.

Click the store to go to their site.

The List :

Foru Fine Lingerie, BC | 15% off via newsletter.

Diane’s Lingerie, BC | 15% off – prompt appears when attempting to leave the site.

J’Adore Intimates, ON | 10% off via newsletter.

Mablellie’s Drawer, ON | 10% off via newsletter.

Comfort Bras by Pauline, ON | 10% via newsletter.

Sand ‘n Sea, ON | 10% via newsletter.

Aglaïa, QC | 20% off via newsletter.

Busted Ladies Lingerie, AB | 50% off matching panties via newsletter.

Envie Intimates, ON | 10% off via newsletter.

My Top Drawer, ON | 10% off via newsletter.

Your Bra Store, ON | at least 30% off on all bras.

Pinned Up Bra Lounge, ON | 10% off via signing up to SMS marketing.

Extra Trick for a Bra Discount.

Here is an extra little trick you can try when you want to buy a bra online.

Create a cart, put in some bras and all your information, name, email, address, etc. Then, abandon it.

Sometimes in 24 – 48 hours you will get a recovery cart email with a discount on your order.

Happy Bra Shopping!

BRA BRANDS AND SMALL BRA STORES

bradirectory — Thu, 27 May 2021 22:12:11 +0000

A fascinating fact about premium bra brands is that they are almost all sold only in small bra stores.

To many of you these brands are well known but for those of you who are learning about bra brands, where to buy bras, or how a bra should fit (if you are thinking, “is there a bra that fits?”, this is for you!) knowing these brands and their availability will help you find the right bras that fit you.

Finding a brand that makes a bra that fits you, makes all the difference.

The classic brands have been around for over 100 years. Prima Donna (1865), Anita (1886), Marie Jo (1919) or over 50 years like Empreinte (1946).

We analyzed all the bra stores in Canada. We checked their website, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest to see what brands they sold. This list is not exhaustive, stores carry more brands than they advertise. This is very informal, but a good baseline of bras in Canada.

We excluded the Direct To Consumer bra brands like Knix or Third Love. We also excluded mall brands like La Senza, La Vie en Rose, Change Lingerie, or Victoria’s Secret. This is only a look at small bra stores and not the whole lingerie Canada market.

The five brands we found in most stores are :

Four of the top five brands (Anita, Prima Donna, Marie Jo, and Empreinte) are not sold in department stores (The Bay, Nordstrom, Simons). Chantelle is the only department store brand on this top five list. Most bra brands do an excellent job of keeping us shopping local for bras in Canada.

We catalogued 138 brands in small bra stores, of those, only 32 sell in department stores. The other 106 brands can only be found in your local lingerie store.

The top 20 bra brands found in stores are:

In the online bra world in Canada, these bras may not sell in department stores, but online, they might as well.

When we go online to look for a bra we might as well walk into a bra-mart. The inner-workings of the internet make it so. Searching for a bra online brings the big players to your screen, the small store is buried deep in the search results. Bra stores in Canada suffer from low online visibility.

You might say; but I see the bra store near me in my Google search results. Yes. You see the two or three stores closest to you, stores you most likely already know. You can shop them without the help of Google, but if you are looking for bras through Google, there is a reason. Maybe your local stores don’t carry your bra size. Maybe they don’t carry your favorite brand. Whatever reason drove you online bra shopping, Google as your guide will funnel you to the bra-marts. The ones that rig the system. Where your money goes to a boardroom instead of a living room.

If you’ve dealt with bras online, bought bras online, you know the challenges involved.

Knowing what bra brands are available, and which brands fit you, opens your ability to buy bras from small stores across the country. When you engage a small store to buy a bra, even if it is far away, you get more knowledge and service. And your money does good.

There is a reason great bra brands are almost all sold in small stores. The best brands know you need knowledge to sell bras. They want their products sold by trained, experienced fitters. Bra fitting takes years to master. Even the most novice bra fitter goes through months of training before working one-on-one in a bra fitting.

There is no substitute to shopping for a bra in person. No argument there. But sometimes, you can’t. Sometimes you live in a remote place. Sometimes your local store doesn’t stock what you like. Sometimes you are confined to your home. We support buying bras in person, but we empathize with real challenges that exist for some people to get to a bra store.

Get advice. Get service. Get the expertise you deserve, the products you love, and do good with your purchasing power.

If you are going to buy a bra online, buying from a small bra store in Canada is the best choice. We encourage you to shop local from anywhere.

Go to our STORES and use the filter to find the stores with the brands you want.

Here is a full list of the brands we found and their in-store availability.

BRA STORES AND FEMALE OWNERSHIP

bradirectory — Thu, 27 May 2021 22:11:03 +0000

I do a thought experiment with bra stores: what other business is almost all female owned?

I’ve settled on two :

1 – bra stores

2 – nail salons

That’s it.

We work bras, so we did some research.

These are Canadian bra store stats.

GOOD DEED BUYING

Why does this matter? It might not. It might matter a lot. If engaging the power of mindful shopping, “good deed buying”, this is useful information. Directing your spending dollars to have an impact on families and communities can do a lot of good.

We know when women get paid, the money goes towards more family oriented goods. Women spend 90% of their earned income on their families. So you know your purchase does good. It helps buy that new washing machine, some pizzas, new shoes. It helps with home expenses and strengthens families.

Almost all the stores in the Bra Directory are owned by women in small communities and neighbourhoods. Your purchase supports them and their almost all female staff.

We confirmed 84% of bra stores have female owners. The number is most likely closer to 100%. The missing 16% are ones we could not confirm. Six stores are a collaboration of husband and wife.

There are no publicly owned companies on this list. No subsidiaries of larger corporations. No chains. Every one of the stores in the Bra Directory is the traditional “mom and pop”.

THE EMPATHETIC EXPERIENCE

Many women struggle with the vulnerability of the bra buying process. The generic fitting room at the mall is no match for the curated space of the small bra store.

Bra store fittings allow you to be yourself and open up about this part of your life and how it affects you. These are inclusive environments with knowledge and expertise, run by helpful people.

These small stores are safe for everyone. The new mom learning about the changes in her breasts. The plus size lingerie buyer. The cancer fighters. The teen having first bra shopping experience. The trans woman. There is no better, safer, place to buy a bra than at the small bra store.

Most bra stores in Canada have been in business for over 10 years, many of them over 20! These stores have seen countless customers with different body types and requests.

Buying a bra on Amazon, Victoria’s Secrets, or other large retailers is not the same. If you are shopping online, these small stores are an email away. It doesn’t matter if they are in Manitoba or Nova Scotia.

Bra stores offer the support, knowledge, and products you deserve. And your purchase does good.

Women supporting women is a winning combination.