The department store Intimate Apparel business for the last several years has felt more like “ladies foundations” (think of Sears in decades past) than an exciting area for millennial customers to find contemporary products. But that’s changing. Our recent store checks surprised us with a new crop of looks and merchandising moving away from the archaic functional brassiere and underwear presentations to a modern bras and panties assortment for a sexy and confident contemporary customer. We’re seeing a renewed interest with the introduction of younger brands, such as BCBGeneration (pictured) and L’Agent by Agent Provocateur (co-designed by Penelope and Monica Cruz) at Macy’s for example, directly competing with the market space dominated by Victoria’s Secret. We’ve noted this change across department store nameplates, and we expect to see new celebrity and designer brands—such as the Heidi by Heidi Klum just launched at Macy’s—jumping into this space in the first half of the year. It’s interesting to see that the former VS model has a new namesake brand with price points that compete with her former employer. If this resonates with millennial customers, there are many implications for new and old intimate apparel brands alike. We’ll be reporting back throughout the season to see how these trends are performing.
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