Your boobs are about to be disrupted — here’s why, The Next Web interview with WoW CEO Marija Butkovic
It’s a private quest every woman has been on since her pre-teens. We’ve all been on various excursions to the mall, high street or local lingerie boutique in the hope that somewhere, out there, exists the mythical perfect bra.
The problem is that traditional lingerie and sports clothing stores have long offered standard sizes, fabrics, designs, and capabilities, with little chance for customization. Industry giants like Victoria’s Secret are now seeing major criticism and declining sales numbers due to the demand for lingerie that isn’t just sexy but also designed for different shapes, activities, functions, and, most importantly, comfort.
The relative lack of innovation in the bra industry and high demand (it’s set to reach $30.4 billion by the end of 2025), have made it ripe for disruption.
Bras are ready for disruption
The tech industry is now answering the call for better support and options with a boom in smart bra technology. As Marija Butkovic, Founder and CEO of Women of Wearables explained,
“Lingerie is something deeply intimate for every person, especially women. Besides making women feel beautiful and good about themselves, it needs to serve its original purpose: To support our breasts and help our posture. If we add the technology element to this equation, we get highly personalized pieces of clothing that can potentially solve more serious problems connected with women’s health like heart disease, breast cancer, and stress.”
And it could be the perfect moment to shake up the bra industry. The smart fabrics industry is expected to see exponential growth with a forecasted valuation of $4.08 billion by 2023. At the same time, a growing number of women are entering the market. Butkovic sees this as a major turning point:
“Until more women started getting involved in the wearable tech industry, most wearable products were designed by men, for men. Women really focus on end-use, need, and function. Women are natural caregivers, hence a lot of technology they develop focuses on providing solutions to things people really need help with. Besides, I somehow think that only women can truly understand the problems they have and how to solve them.”