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Celebrating Pride – How one women became the ‘go to’ bra fitter for her local transgender community
Posted by Claire Hewitt, on June 23, 2022.
Estimated reading time: 1 minute(s)
“Underwear for everyone!”
Meet one of our stockists: Janice Rose Lingerie
When Janice Holmes was made redundant after 35 years employment at a high street store, she knew she wanted to do something that her previous employers hadn’t done: establish a bra fitting service that is inclusive and welcoming to everyone.
From first-hand experience, Janice realised that many lingerie departments in mainstream stores were unwelcoming and inaccessible places for people who didn’t fit into society’s idea of a “normal” customer. So in October 2018, armed with decades of her own knowledge and expertise, she realised her dream of starting a lingerie business – Janice Rose Lingerie – a shop and service open to all.
Janice’s ethos is “underwear for everyone” – from the young girls who may be nervous about a first fitting or skipping sports due to the wrong bra; the women going through pregnancy and breastfeeding; women facing the challenges of menopause; and older women who are often unable to visit her shop (she takes her bra fitting service and pop-up shop into nursing and care homes). But it’s her work with the LGBTQ+ community in the East Midlands that has become a real passion.
Realising she had a lot to learn about how to be a trans-friendly fitter, Janice reached out to Nottingham Chameleons, a social and support group for anyone on the transgender spectrum in the East Midlands, along with their family and friends. Janice had no preconceptions about the lived experience of many transgender people and was simply keen to learn. After being invited to join their private Facebook group to learn more about the community Janice admits she felt totally out of her depth.
However, after a lot of open and honest conversation, a relationship of trust and understanding blossomed. Janice learnt about the barriers that trans people often face when shopping for lingerie: the unwelcoming stores, a lack of understanding from staff, inadequate privacy, and a limited range of stock that didn’t cater for transgender bodies. This helped her understand exactly how and where she could help.
Meeting Katie Neeves
One special person has helped supercharge Janice’s relationship with the LGBTQ+ community: transgender advocate Katie Neeves. Katie visited Janice for an in-store fitting after breast augmentation surgery (read her account here). Many women often misjudge their own bra size, and Katie was no exception. Faced with Janice’s extensive knowledge of cup and band sizes, plus all the different shapes and styles available (a “mammary minefield” as Katie calls it), she was so impressed with Janice’s professionalism and friendly, easy-going approach, that she has championed her services with the transgender community ever since.
Janice’s business is now well-known through word of mouth on the LGBTQ+ grapevine with many new customers coming to her via personal recommendations. She has also started her own private LGBTQ+ Facebook group where the community can share worries and concerns, as well as advice and support.
What Janice Rose Lingerie offers the LGBTQ+ community
After the early days of running her business from home, the ‘bricks and mortar’ version of Janice Rose Lingerie opened in September 2019. It has weathered some tricky periods of closure during the Covid lockdowns but has since bounced back, winning several awards in the process.
Janice aims to help her transgender customers in any way she can. Ensuring they feel welcome and understood by all staff the moment they walk in through the door, or get in touch online, is crucial.
The right stock is important so Janice sources bras that cover a wide range of cup sizes (AA to I cups) but also band sizes to accommodate broader backs (she stocks band sizes 28 to 55). Janice is also happy to answer any sort of question a transgender person may have about bras, from general bra care to the best material to fill bra cups if they haven’t had breast augmentation.
Find out more about Janice Rose Lingerie at www.janiceroselingerie.co.uk
The best Royce bras for transgender bodies
Janice’s top picks from the Royce range.
Royce’s post surgery range of bras come with pockets to not only hold a prosthesis after chest surgery, but can also be filled for those who haven’t undergone breast augmentation.
At Royce Lingerie we’ve been making wirefree bras for over 30 years.
Browse our range of post-surgery and pocketed bras here. Many additional styles can be retrofitted with pockets to hold a prosthesis or an alternative filler if required – just ask!
Maisie
Available in A – G cup in colours blush, mulberry and navy. Maisie is a beautifully soft, satin-trim T-shirt bra. It comes with pockets which can hold a prothesis or alternative filler if required, and is available in larger band sizes.
Charlotte
Available in DD-L cup in colours black, white and beige. A classic shape with half mesh cups, Charlotte provides great support for larger sizes.
Silver Post Surgery
Available in B-F cup with X-STatic silver technology. This is a hospital ‘must have’ bra which provides excellent support and comfort around the delicate surgery site in the immediate days after an operation.
