We normally don’t do reviews of new stores, but a visit to lingerie boutique Intimacy in South Coast Plaza is an interactive experience.
The store, which opened a few weeks ago, is approachable, cute and is full of feminine touches. The front sports a “feature” wall of matching bra and panty sets in trendy colors and prints.
Roughly 80% of the brands Intimacy carries are European, with French lines dominating. The details on the bras are what make them unique—they go beyond just ribbons and lace. I saw embroidery, appliques, pearls, beading and even a working locket as adornments.
The back of the store, which holds large dressing rooms, is outfitted with drawers of colorful bras, organized by size, that go from an A to a K cup. The store carries more than 90 different sizes.
Although Intimacy sells underwear, it markets itself as a bra fitting service, first and foremost.
Intimacy is owned by Atlanta-based husband and wife team Susan and David Nethero.
Although she is the chief executive, daytime TV watchers might recognize Susan by her other title—“the bra whisperer.” She trained under the Queen of England’s Royal Bra Fitter (yes, someone has this job) and has appeared on “Oprah,” “The Today Show” and a handful of makeover shows.
She’s an expert at sizing up a woman’s bustline and getting her into the right size bra, perhaps for the first time ever.
Based on data the store has collected, some 85% of women are wearing the wrong size.
It’s the bra fitting service that brings women into the store, which offers 30-minute one-on-one consultations.
“In order to be successful, we have to do something different,” David Nethero said. “We are providers of a service: bra fitting. It’s part of the experience of the store.”
Susan Nethero started the business in 1992. David Nethero, who is president and heads operations, came to Intimacy via an executive post at Chicago’s Amoco Corp., a gasoline and gas products company that merged with British Petroleum PLC in 1998.
“This is much more fulfilling for me,” David Nethero said. “It’s so much more than striving for the corner office.”
—Sarah Tolkoff
