On Saturday morning, over twenty women sat down together in a private room off Church Street and talked about what it costs to have a fuller bust.
Thank you for giving up a Saturday. Thank you for telling the truth in a room full of people you had only just met. Some of what was shared was funny. Some of it was hard. All of it mattered.
Here is who was in that room. Women in their twenties, thirties, forties and fifties. Band sizes from a 32 to a 46. Mothers, including one who came with her own mother. Women who grew up in Nigeria, in Guyana, in the UK, and women who grew up right here.
If you could not make it, here is what you missed.
The morning
We ate. We played some games I made myself, including one that asked you to work out which style personality you are, and one bingo card that got more competitive than I expected.
Then I introduced myself properly. I am a 32JJ. I have had this body since I was 14. I trained as a bra fitter in the UK, I work in technology, and I started Fiiera because I got tired of being told that a third of women are a niche market. I showed the room what I have been building and why.
Then we handed the room over. Everyone had a paddle. We read out statements, you raised your paddle if it was true for you, and you could see in one second how many other women in that room had lived exactly what you had. After that, three conversations.
How it started, and how it changed
We talked about the first time you understood your body was going to be treated differently. The ages in that room were younger than I expected, and it has stayed with me since.
I was already outcast. I was the adult in class.
I was constantly getting told, you’re not appropriate. And it was getting to my self-esteem where I was just like, okay, so what’s wrong with my body? I’m wearing the same thing as the five girlfriends around me who have smaller chests.
I’ve never felt like I want to hide my boobs. I’m comfortable with them. It’s everyone else that’s uncomfortable.
What you cannot buy, and what you would buy tomorrow
Swimwear. Tank tops. Backless. Strapless. Button-up shirts. Winter coats, which is its own particular Canadian problem.
I just want to wear a tank top.
When you’re on holiday, you just want the breeze to be on your back, not to feel like you’re packaged up.
I finally committed to a winter coat, and it’s the marshmallow puffer. I can’t travel on the TTC with it. I’m taking up all the width of the walkway.
What you pay, and what it is worth
This one surprised me. I expected the room to agree about bras. It did not, and the disagreement was more interesting than agreement would have been.
I have always said that bras are torture devices invented by men. I only wear a bra if I leave my house.
I like bras. I just don’t like bras on me. I love a lacy bra. I think they’re beautiful. It’s just never for me.
I wish bras were designed by women, invented by women, to be comfortable, stylish, sexy, functional.
That last one is the brief. I wrote it down.
The part I did not plan for
Before Saturday, we asked whether you had friends or family with the same body type. A lot of you said no.
By the end of the morning you were swapping numbers, sending each other links, and telling each other where to shop. One woman promised to send the room a brand she had found. Somebody else was asked for a nipple cover recommendation and delivered. That was my favourite part of the day.
One thing for you
Something else came out of Saturday. Almost none of us were sure of our size. Some had never been properly fitted. Some had, but years ago, and bodies change.
If that is you, it is not a failing on your part. It is what happens when the shops that can actually fit you are hard to find. So here is one that would love to see you visit.
Bra Boutique on Leslie Street have been fitting women in Toronto since 1982. They carry bands 28 to 56 and cups A to O, which is one of the deepest ranges I have found anywhere in this city.
They are offering 10% off your first order as a new customer. The code is WELCOME10, at braboutique.com. If you go in person, they are at 5867 Leslie Street. Tell them Fiiera sent you.
What happens next
Everything you said is being written up. It goes into The State of Fuller Bust Shopping, our study of what it actually costs to shop for a fuller bust, and it will be published under your words, never your names.
We are doing this again. Toronto first, then further.
Thank you for Saturday. I am building this company alongside you, and I do not take that lightly.