NEW YORK — Agent Provocateur is taking its racy lingerie from the boudoir to the Lamaze class.
The cheeky British lingerie brand created in 1994 by London-based owners and designers Serena Rees and Joseph Corre is now available as sexy-looking maternity and postnatal intimates. Also launched in March was the first collection of bridal lingerie by Agent Provocateur that has a seductively edgy and hip look.
Rees said the dual introduction of maternity and bridal fare was “coincidental.”
“I don’t mind which comes first, the baby or the bride. But I did it the other way around,” said Rees, noting that she and husband Corre were inspired eight years ago to create maternity and postnatal lingerie after the birth of their daughter, Cora.
“It inspired me because a lot of my friends are pregnant and a lot have pleaded with me to ‘please do it.’ When I was pregnant, it was traumatic with all of those really ugly big white bras I had to put myself in, and how hideous they were and how awful they made me feel.
“The pieces work with fashion and work with their bump. The demand is unbelievable; we have waiting lists.”
The maternity collection, which is available exclusively at the company’s four stores in the U.S. and 17 units worldwide, including the U.K., and at agentprovocateur.com, consists of low-slung “underbelly briefs,” wireless soft-cup bras with front fasteners that give support as well as a supportive postnatal knicker that cinches the waist, flattens the tummy and hips, and features sexy detachable garters. The bridal line, which has had strong sales at Agent Provocateur boutiques, also will be sold on the Web site starting next month.
Bra sizes are 32B to 36B and go up to G cups. Briefs are sized S, M, L and XL; the control knicker is S, M and L. The price range is $82 for briefs and the bras and specialty knicker each sell for $108.
“It’s really important to wear the right bra when you’re pregnant for health reasons,” Rees said. “Our bras are supportive, full-cup bras, but in great fabrics that are comfortable to wear and don’t irritate the skin.”
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Regarding the control knicker, Rees said she collaborated with maternity doctor Gowri Motha, whose clients have included Kate Moss, Gwyneth Paltrow, Elle Macpherson and Lady Helen Windsor.
She explained that after giving birth, a vacuum in the womb is created and needs to be reduced. “The elastic, firm-control garment pulls the body into shape. It should be worn immediately after giving birth, up to 40 days. It helps to bring the body back in.”