The revenge of Bridget Jones’s (highly sought after) underwear

In just over two hundred years, one of the must-have clothing items in the wardrobe that has undergone most metamorphosis – not just aesthetic – are underwear. In the nineteenth century it was even forbidden to name them – they were called “pipes of decency” – and their main aim was to be hygienic, warm and discreet. However, underwear in general was also a valid ally when it came to obtaining a certain result in terms of silhouette, a bit like the modeling lingerie of today. The only difference was that, in the past, corsets and crinolines were in plain sight, making everyone participate in their use to achieve, for example in the Victorian age, the classic countryside shape: you could not see every detail, but you he knew very well that the linen supporting the curves was right there. Today, however, the so-called shapewear exists precisely in order not to be perceived in the least or imagined even if, on the big screen, an anti-stereotype champion taught us the opposite: Bridget Jones.

The famous character played by Renée Zellweger in fact, brought to the fore and with great self-irony her high-waisted panties, making them, in a certain sense, iconic. Now, twenty years after the release of the film, that lingerie considered anything but sexy is one of the most sought after products of the moment, even on Valentine’s Day: it took a global pandemic to get into – as if we hadn’t done it enough already – Bridget Jones. The global shopping platform Desire in fact, he noted that searches for “comfortable” and “high-waisted” underwear increased by 46%, but not only that. Provocative factor, which, as the name suggests, should have something to do with provocation, has instead recorded a 35% increase in sales of high-waisted underwear in the last six months.

However, it seems that the founder of the brand, Serena Rees, has long sensed the potential of shaping “long johns”: “I became a big fan of long johns it started when I worked for Vivienne Westwood in the early 90s” for this reason that, to differentiate Agent Provocateur’s offer, in 2017 it launched the new brand Les Girls Les Boys, also focusing on larger, snug underpants, and relatively gender neutral. A change that has paid off, given that in 2020 sales increased by 400% on an annual basis. That the era of lingerie I see / see is now over?

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