To not understand why bravissimo's bands stop at 40?

Not sure if anyone has suggested Brastop but they are really good! I'm a 34H & used to shop at Bravissimo, but Brastop stock more or less the same brands for nearly half the price!
Their lingerie, the basques and bodies are so good too! So supportive, with no need for underwire
Sorry! Edited to add they go up to back size 46 I think

Is it worth checking whether the brands they sell are available in more sizes. I went there last summer( it’s a fair way away) and they had hardly any stock as their warehouse had burned down. I got a few bras but found a much better selection online. I got fantasie Freya etc and not only were they cheaper but had more sizes.I went to the shop as I had lost weight but none off my back.
eBay was my king lots of sellers selling bnwt in all sorts of sizes.

I had a look at Elomi. They do indeed have one bra available in a 42C. In three colours, not the 8 which are available in other sizes. It didn’t feel massively inclusive, compared to their range as a whole.

They were so set on the "slender with big boobs" market that they forgot they actually needed to sell their clothes. They were so dull, even when I was the right size I didn't want to dress for a Country Living photoshoot!

Even when I was the right size, I found that the extra boob space was always situated in the region of my chin, which is not where I normally keep them.

They deserved to fail in the end. A younger brand called Made in Preston were good for a while.

My tits are my own… 28DD. Size 6-8. They’re not even particularly big I just have a good handful and a slim back/ribs.

For small cup big band people, Bon Prix has a surprisingly good range at sensible prices

Has anyone tried Miss Mary of Sweden?

I agree. I'm an apple shape in a 40 F and I've measured time and time again and it's definitely 40 underbust. I can't squeeze my back fat into a cup at the front of my body without using liposuction 😂

What a great thread thank you!
Learning lots!

I have exactly this problem.
Used to be slim with big boobs
Now post-meno I have got fatter too!

Edited to say that the bras in shops for bigger women don’t fit me either as I seem to be between the two ifyswim and I don’t think I’m the only one

Bollocks
there are lots of people with naturally small back sizes & larger cup sizes but for ages there wasn’t many people who catered for them - they filled the gap in the market
the market has changed and more options exist now

I think because they specialise in slim to average sized women who have a larger bust, so need a small back to large cup size - which is difficult to get in regular shops.
Your friend needs to look for companies specifically catering to plus sized ladies.
Snag and molke are worth a look for comfy bras in a plus size

Which is just bollocks. I’ve always had my bras from there - before I lost 11 stone in the last 5 years and since then.

This is one of the misconceptions that led to it’s founding, people assumong you can’t be slim and busty naturally.

yours, 28G.

It’s really not. I’m a size 18 and a 34KK, no surgery

I've had good bras from SimplyBe and Yours in the last 2 years at bigger band sizes.

Extenders are also a good idea!

It's a shop for naturally slim women who have had breast enlargement surgery.

It’s a ‘movement’ for sure. But makes sense when you think about how modern fabrics allow for stretch. The old - measure round your rib cage then add four inches for your band size - was invented decades ago for non-stretchy fabric. And a lot of people don’t realise that the support in a bra (should) comes from the band not the straps, so band should be tight. Then the bigger cup makes up for it and gives your boobs space to sit correctly.

Mmm, while cost explains some of it, certainly something like not making M cups, I absolutely think a blanket “no band sizes above 40” isn’t about technical issues. It’s about the kind of customers they want.

I think this is probably based on a commercial decision. I’m a lopsided 36HH having had a lumpectomy in 2007. Since then I have used probably six or seven different independent shops which have all since closed and have also looked at setting up my own lingerie shop.
The amount of stock required is huge. One bra, one colour I think I calculated at over 30 sizes.

This may explain why Bravisimo only stock some of their range in 40” and above.

Find an independent shop that stocks Elomi.

It is very expensive to manufacture a bra - especially one that is structured to support a large size - and the factories that make them have minimum order quantities which often make stocking very large (and also very small) bra sizes not commercial.

There are so many variances in bra sizes that to stock a full range is often not viable due the small numbers being sold in unusual sizes. You might sell a 42 M cup bra once in a blue moon, but have to hold at least 50-100 in stock due to the minimum number you have to order from the manufacturer which could mean you are holding that stock for years.

Multiply this cost by the number of possible sizes there are, and you can see why businesses have to make a commercial decision to only stock the sizes that will sell more frequently.

Ewa Michalek is a good idea, I think. The Polish brands tend to have the widest size ranges, though they’re still lacking in the large band small cup segment.

For those over a 40 band who are still in a B-C cup, Elomi do a good bra in that size range, no underwires. Most bra manufacturers refuse to believe that plus sized women do not all gain proportionately in the bust.

I just did a search of my favourite site here in the US, and Goddess (same company as Elomi and Freya) have multiple styles in a 42M
including soft cup.

Is it not the cup size that's problematic though? I know a fair few places that stock bigger band sizes but not M cup.

They also aren’t a 40!! They are more like a 34 compared to every other manufacturer

She could wear vests and female tank tops. Just until the weight drops. My mother didnt wear bras at all when she gained weight.