Hidden Figures ~ AIKYOU Lingerie

Recently, I finished listening to the American Biography, Hidden Figures. It is the story of three brilliant African-American women whose work at NASA served as the brains behind one of the greatest accomplishments in American History: the launch of John Glenn into space.  Many of you may have seen the movie, which was extremely well done. But, the book delves far deeper into the lives of these women, the enormous challenges they confronted and the sheer strength of character that navigated their very tenuous path to success. The essence of their triumph is in the details that one cannot really absorb in a film. Their struggle against a racially afflicted mid-19^th century culture and their tireless efforts to rise above in order to create a better social order anoints them, in my opinion as cultural heroes.

Relating this to Lingerie is easy for me. For a very long time, it has been a belief that small breasted women, specifically A cups, are lacking in femininity and require artificial enhancements. But Gabrielle Meinl and Bianca Renninger did not accept this defensive bra posture. Firm believers in the beauty of the small breast, they powered through the industry noise and founded AIKYOU in 2011, a German based brand devoted 100% to the needs of an A cup customer. Recognizing that smaller boobs do not need a lot of support and are structured differently from larger breasts, they have proved that grading a bra down does not work for this customer. Using European fabrics and production and eliminating wires, push-ups and stays, AIKYOU has engineered bras that reveal a smaller bust’s assets, instead of camouflaging them.

I usually don’t write about brands that I have not visited personally. However, AIKYOU is carving a path to a niche in the Lingerie market that is ignored much in the same way that large cups were 10 years ago. This is not about the bralette’s trend, but rather a specific fit informed by a specific bust line. I asked them to send me a sample of a bra for quality analysis. With this style, I am impressed. My daughter, who has a million dollar taste level with a sow’s purse, saw the garment and immediately fell in love. I explained that it would (or should) not fit her 34 B+ chest. She looked at it and insisted that it would. But, it didn’t. The cup does not have adequate coverage. These styles, sized XS – L fit 30-40 A cups only and cannot be graded up. The variety of choices here, the modern design effect and the respect for this woman’s fit needs are a move forward in the market. Finally, an A cup lady is not another hidden figure. Contact: gm@aikyou.de

“Don’t Always Complain The Way Isn’t There.
If You Can’t Find the Way, Create It” ~Israelmore Avivor