2017 marks 100 years in business for the most-loved lingerie brand Naturana. It wasn’t always easy to stay in operation, in fact, during the post-war years, when fabrics were scarce, Naturana made a virtue out of necessity and produced bras made out of old aprons and tablecloths. With that level of hard-work and dedication to bra making, its no surprise that Naturana has continued to rule the lingerie world even into 2017!
With the evolving times, lingerie has also gone through a sea change and have through time evolved to accommodate various aspects quite potentially. Naturana has been a strongest link and a brand that has evolved along every bank of lingerie history and has been both a witness and an initiator of change. Naturana were the founders in a lot of early technologies with the use of fabrics, especially, in the 1960s with the use of more flexible, stretchable elastic fabrics etc. Founded in 1917 in Germany, Naturana is now one of the largest lingerie and swimwear manufacturers in the world. The brand has always been celebrated for its ability to combine fashion with a perfectly engineered fit. Naturana makes creating comfortable, well-fitted affordable lingerie for all shapes and sizes their number one priority. Carl Dolker, the brand’s founder, originally set out to create fashionable silhouette for women without the restraints of a corset; a revolutionary idea at the time! This desire to create a more natural silhouette required innovation and pioneering textile manipulation. This hard worked paid off and by the 1930s, Naturana was known as the brand for the modern active woman.
Naturana’s dedication to innovation continued into the 1970s with their brand new silhouette, a soft cup bra called ‘The Star Bra’. The Star Bra features crossover detailing at the front, giving a natural look. This bra is still one of the company’s bestselling models, with over 30 million items manufactured and sold since its creation. Famous showgirl, Marlene Charell, became the face of this iconic bra in 1978! During the 1950s, their bestseller was a rigid cotton bra with circular stitches. This bra was produced by Naturana in shiny satin with overstitched cups and matching girdle, creating an hourglass look which was so popular with the many glamorous film stars of the time, such, as Ava Gardner, Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell. Shoppers alike clamoured for these delicates so that they could indulge in the luxurious styles of Hollywood with a great fit.
Naturana is not only unique in its vision, but also in the way the company itself is structured. The company since the beginning has been a close knit family run business. The very pillar of the company has been resting on the strong shoulders of the Dolker family and has always worked out innovation through every collection they got out in the market. The family has invested heavily, especially in the UK, with an office/showroom relocation and a new restructured sales force to help drive sales and to take the brand forward through the last 100 years.
Although the family is still leading the lingerie brand, there have been several big changes for Naturana. Their sales and marketing director in the UK explains that one of the biggest changes is that they’re moving from their core essential business, which is still 60% of their sales overall, to more fashionable colourful collections and focusing on their high-end boutique collection, Eva, which celebrates the femininity and sensuality of the female form. Naturana is certainly enjoying their centennial celebration, but they are also looking to the future.
Naturana has grown from being a small business, manufacturing everyday garments from its factory in Germaringen, Germany, to an international company, delivering products to over 50 countries.
