What's New in Women's Fashion
My article "What's New in Women's Fashion" was published on BikePanel today. Like my other articles I translated it to English (with some changes) and I am bringing you the English version here. All the photos that were not taken by me are the same as the ones used in the article and are posted at the courtesy of Betty Designs, Couer Sports and Smashfestqueen.
How many time has it happened to you that you walk into a bike shop looking (for example) for a pair of cycling shorts and the salesperson said to you: "Sorry, we do not have women specific shorts, but 'hey' you're tall, just get men's size S, it's exactly the same". It happened to me more than once over the years. Well, here's the thing - it is NOT the same and there IS a huge difference. If you are a man and reading these lines and shaking your head not fully 'getting' what I am saying - imagine that someone will tell you: "Here wear this thong, we made it bigger, in size XL, it's exactly the same". I have no doubt that your immediate reaction would be to say "NO WAY".
Why in the "normal" fashion world we take it for granted that men and women are not the same, but this is not the case in the cycling world? What's the difference?
Back in the late 90s, early 2000s when I started cycling in Israel, the choices for cycling cloths were limited in general and women specific items were nowhere to be found. On-line shopping was in its first steps. Back then, women had to do with what we could get - men's cloths that were not really conformable and didn't really fit. Lucky for me, I am 5'9" so I could get by with that, but if you were a 5'3" women - bad luck, you had to go find yourself another sport.
When I moved to NYC 13 years ago, I "discovered" that women specific apparel does exist, but the selection was limited. This was when I understood how much of a difference wearing women specific stuff makes (especially when it comes to cycling shorts). Even back then in the early 2000s some brands decided that women do deserve our own apparel, but the designs were boring and with strange colors. Who said that if you are a girl you must wear pink with flowers or butterflies?
Since then times have changes. With the growing number of female cyclists the supply grew as well. Today, almost every big company in the cycling business has its own women's line (apparel, accessories and even bikes). See for example Giant, who went even further and recently announced splitting its women division, Liv, to a separate company. Needless to say that even in Israel, you can now buy women specific apparel, made by either local brands like Funkier or other international brands. But, still the selection is not great, the dealers and the shops do not carry all the sizes or models, especially if you are looking for the high-end stuff, because what woman would spend NIS 2,000 (approx $500) on a pair of shorts. Well here is a news flash: We spend more than that on regular cloths or shoes, so why not on cycling? In fact, it happened to me more than once, even here in the US, I entered into a shop and got told that the $100 shoes they had in stock are exactly the same as the $400 S-Works shoes that I was looking for, and that I'm a woman so it's more than enough.
So today I want to talk about a new trend in the cycling industry that I am happy to say has been growing. I want to talk about the companies that were created by women for women who are serious endurance athletes, and female athletes are their main focus. Those companies invest in cool designs, develop special chamois and make special women specific cuts. They say NO to the existing approach of lets take the men stuff, make it smaller and narrower, change the color to pink or purple and here you go, we have a women specific line.
We can't really talk about women cycling apparel or women's cycling in general without mentioning Terry Bicycles which was a pioneer in the field. Its famous butterfly saddle is celebrating its 30th anniversary, and shortly after launching this saddle (that today looks more like a comfortable TV couch) Terry Bicycles, the company, was formed and has been in business for over 25 years. The company was formed by Georgina Terry and throughout the years it designed and made bicycles, saddles, clothing and other accessories for cycling women. The company's achievements are most impressive, and the brain behind it all was pioneering the field.
See why in the following video:
Today, however, I don't want to talk about Terry Bicycles or Georgina Terry, not because I disrespect their achievements or their cause, but because I believe their products are aimed more towards the women commuters or what I call amateur cyclist (or in my old NYC cycling club terms the C riders). Because today I want to talk about apparel for serious endurance athletes, who spend long hours and days in the saddle. Today I want to talk about the companies that have it as their main goal to create high-end cloths for the serious women cyclists and triathletes.
Betty Design is, in my opinion, the most known and popular of the bunch. Kristin Mayer started the company about 5 years ago. As its name suggests the company focuses on women endurance athletes. Kristin explained in a short interview that during her 17 years racing triathlon, she was always looking for the perfect outfit for race day. At some point she toyed with the idea of creating herself a custom outfit that will match her bike and helmet and that would stand out from the rest (sounds familiar? I've been there myself). Kristin wanted to "create unique kits that made women feel empowered when they put them on."
Kristin's designs are inspired by the world of surfing and pop culture, and together they create eye catching designs for sure. Kristin explained to me that she loves the colors surf brands use. They are always bright, bold and have a very happy vibe. She loves the summer, the ocean and color and this is where she get a lot of her inspiration. Kristin's goal is to design kits that stand out from a mile down the road by using asymmetry, bold, bright, contrasting colors and strong motifs.
Yes, there is no doubt that if you are wearing a Betty kit you will stand out from a distance. My big question is how does the kit feel? Does it have more than just looking great?
Read the full reviews of both cycling and triathlon kits in my next article in the series.
The second company I want to talk about is Coeur (heart in French and the root to the word courage, and this is the message the company is trying to relay). Like the other companies covered in this article, Coeur was formed by women that after years of racing endurance sports, the search for the cycling and triathlon kit that would fit well and would actually look good lead them to take action. Ten years ago, before Kebby Holden created Coeur all she was able to find in the market were items that were boring, chafed in all the wrong for places (well, frankly there is no right place for chafing), unflattering to a woman's body, or as she put is "made me feel like I was the casing to my sausage". Certainly sounds familiar. How many times have you tried a cycling short that made your thighs looked squeezed like a sausage?
So Kebby decided to do something about it. She decided that she needed a little fashion and a lot of fit and functionality. Her goal was to create the best looking, best fitting, most functional and most comfortable women's clothing. The targeted audience - women in endurance sports. Like Kristin she uses her background as an athlete in her line.
Coeur brings you designs with clean lines. They call their style 'East Coast Preppy meets West Coast chill'. They make their cloths in L.A. As athletes they also chose to give back and donate 1% of the company's sale to the Challenged Athletes Foundation.
So what is special about Coeur other then their designs and the special focus on women? They aim to create cloths that fit well, have pockets in the right places, wont ride up when you run. The one item that I believe stands out is their seam-free chamois triathlon short. Created to eliminate the friction between the rider and the saddle and thus eliminate the chafing during the bike and run portion of the triathlon. I am hoping to be able to test their line and see if the goal was achieved.
Here is a short video on how it works:
Smashfest is the youngest in the bunch and was founded by professional triathlete Hillary Biscay (that under her belt no less than 66 ironman races and several ultraman distance races, including a world championship title) who joined forces with avid endurance athlete and endurance sport designer, Michele Landry. The idea came about when Hillary started to coach Michele and from the conversations between the two about fashion (or lack thereof) in endurance sport Smashfest was born.
Here too the aim is to create a clothing line for the serious endurance athletes that will be stylish, badass and feminine. The designs incorporate geometric shapes, bold colors with the aim to have you stand out in the crowd. Since for a lot of us woman having a perfect matching kit is very important, they offer the complete kit with matching arm and knee warmers.
The inspiration for the designs is taken from their personal experiences, and on the company's website you can find the story behind the designs, a nice unique addition with some personal touch. Speaking of personal touch, the company offers special edition cycling jersey and tri top to celebrate Hillary Biscay's Ultraman world championship title, and she will even sign the jersey if you wish. The company also offers a limited selection of its designs in men's sizes and cut.
Needless to say these are not the only companies that meets the criteria of "for women by women" (see for example Soas Racing and Vanderkitten). This was meant to be a short overview of a trend that I am hoping indicates the start of a revolution in the world cycling and triathlon. Treating women as a force to be reckoned with and not as an afterthought.
I am hoping to bring you in the future more news and product reviews from the female cycling and triathlon world.
Thanks for reading
What's New In Women's Fashion
How many time has it happened to you that you walk into a bike shop looking (for example) for a pair of cycling shorts and the salesperson said to you: "Sorry, we do not have women specific shorts, but 'hey' you're tall, just get men's size S, it's exactly the same". It happened to me more than once over the years. Well, here's the thing - it is NOT the same and there IS a huge difference. If you are a man and reading these lines and shaking your head not fully 'getting' what I am saying - imagine that someone will tell you: "Here wear this thong, we made it bigger, in size XL, it's exactly the same". I have no doubt that your immediate reaction would be to say "NO WAY".
Why in the "normal" fashion world we take it for granted that men and women are not the same, but this is not the case in the cycling world? What's the difference?
 |
| What should we wear today? |
When I moved to NYC 13 years ago, I "discovered" that women specific apparel does exist, but the selection was limited. This was when I understood how much of a difference wearing women specific stuff makes (especially when it comes to cycling shorts). Even back then in the early 2000s some brands decided that women do deserve our own apparel, but the designs were boring and with strange colors. Who said that if you are a girl you must wear pink with flowers or butterflies?
Since then times have changes. With the growing number of female cyclists the supply grew as well. Today, almost every big company in the cycling business has its own women's line (apparel, accessories and even bikes). See for example Giant, who went even further and recently announced splitting its women division, Liv, to a separate company. Needless to say that even in Israel, you can now buy women specific apparel, made by either local brands like Funkier or other international brands. But, still the selection is not great, the dealers and the shops do not carry all the sizes or models, especially if you are looking for the high-end stuff, because what woman would spend NIS 2,000 (approx $500) on a pair of shorts. Well here is a news flash: We spend more than that on regular cloths or shoes, so why not on cycling? In fact, it happened to me more than once, even here in the US, I entered into a shop and got told that the $100 shoes they had in stock are exactly the same as the $400 S-Works shoes that I was looking for, and that I'm a woman so it's more than enough.
So today I want to talk about a new trend in the cycling industry that I am happy to say has been growing. I want to talk about the companies that were created by women for women who are serious endurance athletes, and female athletes are their main focus. Those companies invest in cool designs, develop special chamois and make special women specific cuts. They say NO to the existing approach of lets take the men stuff, make it smaller and narrower, change the color to pink or purple and here you go, we have a women specific line.
 |
| Terry Butterfly is celebrating 30th anniversary |
See why in the following video:
Today, however, I don't want to talk about Terry Bicycles or Georgina Terry, not because I disrespect their achievements or their cause, but because I believe their products are aimed more towards the women commuters or what I call amateur cyclist (or in my old NYC cycling club terms the C riders). Because today I want to talk about apparel for serious endurance athletes, who spend long hours and days in the saddle. Today I want to talk about the companies that have it as their main goal to create high-end cloths for the serious women cyclists and triathletes.
Betty Designs - When Runway Fashion Meets Sports
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Kristin Mayer and the Bettys' (Photo courtesy of Betty Designs)
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| Betty Design - #BadassisBeautiful - "kit that would match my helmet" (Photo courtesy of Betty Designs) |
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| Sample of the Triathlon Line (Photo courtesy of Betty Designs) |
Read the full reviews of both cycling and triathlon kits in my next article in the series.
Coeur - Speed with Style and from the Heart
The second company I want to talk about is Coeur (heart in French and the root to the word courage, and this is the message the company is trying to relay). Like the other companies covered in this article, Coeur was formed by women that after years of racing endurance sports, the search for the cycling and triathlon kit that would fit well and would actually look good lead them to take action. Ten years ago, before Kebby Holden created Coeur all she was able to find in the market were items that were boring, chafed in all the wrong for places (well, frankly there is no right place for chafing), unflattering to a woman's body, or as she put is "made me feel like I was the casing to my sausage". Certainly sounds familiar. How many times have you tried a cycling short that made your thighs looked squeezed like a sausage?
 |
| When East Coast Preppy meets West Coast Cool (Photo courtesy of Coeur Sports) |
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Coeur wants you to have matching, cute kits that make you stand up that much straighter and stronger
(Photo courtesy of Coeur Sports)
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So what is special about Coeur other then their designs and the special focus on women? They aim to create cloths that fit well, have pockets in the right places, wont ride up when you run. The one item that I believe stands out is their seam-free chamois triathlon short. Created to eliminate the friction between the rider and the saddle and thus eliminate the chafing during the bike and run portion of the triathlon. I am hoping to be able to test their line and see if the goal was achieved.
Here is a short video on how it works:
Smashfestqueen - The Young and The Bold
Smashfest is the youngest in the bunch and was founded by professional triathlete Hillary Biscay (that under her belt no less than 66 ironman races and several ultraman distance races, including a world championship title) who joined forces with avid endurance athlete and endurance sport designer, Michele Landry. The idea came about when Hillary started to coach Michele and from the conversations between the two about fashion (or lack thereof) in endurance sport Smashfest was born.
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| Bold and Colorful Designs (Photos courtesy of Smeshfestqueen) |
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| Colorful tri kits as well and Men too get their own version (photo courtesy of Smashfestqueen) |
Summary
Needless to say these are not the only companies that meets the criteria of "for women by women" (see for example Soas Racing and Vanderkitten). This was meant to be a short overview of a trend that I am hoping indicates the start of a revolution in the world cycling and triathlon. Treating women as a force to be reckoned with and not as an afterthought.
I am hoping to bring you in the future more news and product reviews from the female cycling and triathlon world.
Thanks for reading
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