Taking Shape

Fashion designers, artists, and especially celebrities have been entering the shapewear category at a slightly accelerated pace of late. Sales in the segment as a whole dropped significantly early in the pandemic, but have returned to near-2019 levels as of the end of 2021, according to players in the market. In North America, sales were $1.73 billion in 2020, with a compound annual growth rate of 5.4% projected over the next 10 years, according to Allied Market Research.

Historically, licensing and collaboration deals in this space have been fairly few and far between. But, with the new entrants being added in the last few years, the list has become fairly lengthy over time. Examples of initiatives involving celebrities and a few other licensed properties include:

  • Lizzo’s Yitti brand with Fabletics, announced last month. The musician, known for her body-positive messaging in her music, on social media, and elsewhere, paired with Fabletics, founded by actress Kate Hudson, for a line of shapewear that falls into three collections. There are 100 pieces to start, in sizes from XS to 6X. The products will be promoted at Lizzo’s concerts and other appearances.
  • Victoria’s Secret’s collaboration with Leonisa. This 2020 partnership between the two intimates brands, the latter hailing from Colombia, led to a limited range of shapewear that represented Victoria’s Secret’s first foray into the category.
  • Kim Kardashian’s Skims brand, which launched in 2019. The shapewear line’s collaborations to date have included a collection with designer brand Fendi, consisting of two drops in late 2021, with the first reportedly selling out $1 million worth of product in one minute. The second drop was more affordable than the first. Skims has also been a partner of Team USA since fall of 2021.
  • Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty lingerie brand, which launched in 2018 and is considering an IPO valued at $3 billion. It includes shapewear among a broader assortment of intimates. The brand, known for inclusivity in size and color, is a joint venture with LVMH.
  • Sofia Vergara’s Eby label. In 2019, the actress announced that she would add shapewear to her Eby lingerie line, which she co-founded in 2017. The focus of the all-sizes range was on comfort. The pieces had the same flocking technology all of Eby’s products are known for, which ensures they stay in place.
  • Spanx’ Illuminate Her contest for female artists. The winners see their patterns and imagery integrated into new collections of Spanx shapewear. Among the artists who have created items with the company to date are Jessica Durant, Hillary Howorth, Melissa Mitchell, and Kim Schuessler.
  • Jill Zarin’s Skweez Couture line. The Real Housewife launched her shapewear collection in 2012 on HSN. The pieces are designed to be luxurious and pretty, which was a differentiator compared to other options that were on the market a decade ago, at the time of the product’s debut.
  • Celebrity plastic surgeon Dr. Robert Rey’s collection with Australian apparel marketer Jupi Corporation. Dr. Rey starred in the reality show Dr. 90210 on E! for several years in the mid-2000s, and the shapewear launched during that time, in 2007. The first collection, which was introduced on HSN, included 250 SKUs.

Some of the examples on this representative list are no longer available, but the majority are still going strong.

Traditionally, many celebrities had been leery of entering this category. Some did not want to confirm that they were users of shapewear to improve their appearance on the red carpet or in other public appearances. Those putting forth a body-positive message often have received flack for endorsing a product that seems to go against that positioning (as Lizzo has from some critics), although the celebrities respond that each woman has the right to decide how they want to look and feel. In addition, the product in general has historically maintained a reputation among many consumers for being uncomfortable, embarrassing, and/or unattractive, qualities with which most celebrities do not want to be associated.

Times are changing though. The merchandise itself is improving. It is billed as staying in place and comfortable; it is often pretty, even designed to be seen rather than hidden away; and it increasingly has attributes such as moisture-wicking, anti-microbial properties, SPF protection, and the like. Wearing shapewear in general has less of a stigma than it has in the past, and celebrities and other property owners are less reluctant to get in the game.

A heads-up that the next edition of Raugust Communications’ monthly e-newsletter comes out next Tuesday, April 19. The Licensing Topic of the month will delve into how trade shows are changing as they come back to live configurations, while the Datapoint research spotlight will examine the varied outbound licensing strategies used by owners of IP with roots in the retail food/beverage and restaurant sectors. If you are not already receiving this free publication by email, you can sign up here.

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