I bought a business in Oxted, Surrey which has taken me through a new journey in my life.  I bought a lingerie shop which had been trading for 20 years.  The challenge began:  first we refurbished and changed the shop interior to create a customer friendly appearance.  We can now proudly say that we have managed to attract celebrities such as Davina McCall and June Brown, but more so we have attracted customers of all ages and sizes to walk in and experience the glamour that lingerie can provide.

I soon discovered that there was more to selling lingerie than one would imagine.  Providing much needed guidance to all customers and give them the knowledge to buy a correctly fitted bra and know how to wear it.  I attended several fitting courses where I was taught the skill which I could adapt to very quickly due to my previous experience in fashion and dressmaking.

Four out of five women are wearing the wrong size, but I know it is not the size but how a bra fits which counts.  Bras come in different sizes, and different manufacturers mean different fits.  Customers in our shop soon realise there is more to buying a bra from a hanger.  It surprises me time and time again how many women don’t know how to wear a bra correctly.  Once my customers have been for a fitting they learn how to buy and wear a bra. 

Most women today are unsatisfied with their body size and weight.  When you feel good, you look good, and it all begins with the lingerie.  Lingerie fitted correctly can conceal parts of your body which you are less satisfied with, and highlight those which you want to show off.  Recent TV shows, with Trinny & Susannah and Gok Wan, have emphasised the benefits of properly fitted lingerie.

Wearing the right size lingerie can do wonders for your figure and provide comfort and support.  When I fit customers in my shop, they become instantly aware of the change in their body shape.  It can make them look taller and thinner.  I receive great pleasure and joy when I fit customers because I can see the happiness it brings to them once they wear lingerie of a correct size.

Everyday is a challenge because everyone is different.  I have customers who buy clothes and then come to purchase their underwear.  This can be difficult as not all bras come in all sizes.  Women buying these outfits imagine themselves in the clothes and then request the look:

Everyday questions I am asked are:
“Can I be pushed up?”
“….bought together and lifted?”
“….look natural and rounded?”
“….look fuller with a cleavage?”
“….minimised and made smaller?”

I take a deep breathe and sometimes laugh because I can not make miracles, but I use my knowledge of bras to do my best.  I recommend that lingerie is purchased before you shop for the clothes.  We wear bras for all different purposes.  A young girl becoming a woman needs a starter bra, so it is important for her body development to be fitted with the correct size.   Coming into our shop for the first time with her mother, can be a nervous experience.  I need to make it comfortable and enjoyable for her. 

As our body changes, due to pregnancy, menopause, weight gain/loss, illness etc, our breasts change, and due to this we recommend you are measured for a bra every six to nine months.  I see women everyday in my shop, but I know that some of them are not comfortable in front of the mirrors looking at themselves.  Immediately I try to make them relax, and tell them it is normal for whatever size we are to have bulges!  I offer different styles to every customer who wishes to be fitted to demonstrate the different shape that can be achieved by wearing different bras.

I have a passion for lingerie, but I have a greater passion to provide a correctly fitted bra to change the life of my customer.  I hope that they will learn and remember the experience they are given.  I am proud of my achievement.  I have been nominated for several industry awards and I have been a finalist in the “Personal Touch” category of the Underlines Star Awards, where I consider myself a winner amongst stars, such as Rigby & Peller and Harrods, for two successive years.  I have been at these awards with women who are also proud, lingerie shop owners but more so as ‘bra fitters.’