What is a Plus Size Bra, and does Bravissimo sell them?

When someone refers to "Plus size" bras or lingerie have you ever wondered exactly what they mean? The term Plus Size Bra is regularly used by the media, for example, when recommending a particular bra or lingerie retailer to women. But what are they actually recommending and who are they recommending it to?

On the one hand they could be talking about lingerie for women who consider themselves to be generally "plus size" - they wear plus size clothes, so doesn't it follow that they will wear plus size bras? Well, if a plus size bra is one with a big back size (e.g. 42 and above), regardless of cup size, then their assumption is accurate.

But, on the other hand, they could be using plus size bras to mean bras in bigger cup sizes - which as thousands of you Bravissimo girls will know are worn by women of all dress sizes. big boobs are certainly not the exclusive domain of plus size women. In this case, the term plus size bra just doesn't seem to fit the bill!

Bravissimo provides a service for big boobed women with average sized bodies (generally UK sizes 8-18). This is why you will never find us referring to the bras we stock as plus size bras, because having big boobs doesn't make you plus size. In fact, it makes you totally normal - we estimate that around 50% of women in the UK should be wearing a D cup or above and, with around 80% of women wearing the wrong size bra (the most common mistakes being to wear a back size that's too big and a cup size that's too small) we believe the actual average bra size in the UK is more likely to be around 34E than the often quoted 36C.

We're often asked why we don't stock plus size bras - i.e. bras above a 40 back size. The simple answer is that this is not an area in which we are experts. Designing bras in big cup sizes is a huge technical challenge - and the challenges of making or selling big cup size bras for average size women (wearing 28-40 back sizes) and plus size women are different.

If you are unsure of your bra size and would like some fitting advice, please take a look at our fitting guide. Alternatively, why not give our customer services consultants a call on 01926 459859 - they are all fully trained bra fitters and can give you advice over the phone about fitting and the bras we stock. They are also able to provide you with details of stockists of bras in 42 back sizes and above - whatever your cup size.