At the end of August, Panache opened their Facebook floor up to their much loved customers to ask, well, pretty much anything they liked!
Designers Sam and Debbie held the fort answering questions on the Panache products you already own, plans for future collections, and how to get great bust support – you name it, you asked it.
We’ve put together a roundup of some of the more enlightening Q&A’s to give anyone who wasn’t there to take advantage of Debbie and Sam’s words of wisdom a second chance to do so…
Q. I would love to know more about the design process and how you turn a concept into reality
A. Debbie: The design process involves many people from across the business. It starts with us, the designers – presenting our ideas, mood boards and concepts to the product team. Following this we then move forwards working closely with the garment techs, fabric techs and costing teams to make sure that the styles are desirable, fit for purpose and affordable.
And as if that wasn’t enough…
Sam: We then work with Marketing to showcase the collections to the sales team and store buyers for them to select our ranges. It sounds simple, and we wish it was. There is a bit more involved and it takes 5 months for each season’s collection to be developed.
Insider tips, Debbie and Sam even reveal their favourites from the stunning collection. Hard to choose, but they did well…
Q. Hi Debbie & Sam, where do you get your inspiration for your new designs from?
A. This is the most exciting part for us. We take inspiration from fashion trends, catwalk, art, architecture, people watching, celebrity culture, street style and more recently Pinterest and Tumblr.
Sam: Once we have done our research we pull together mood boards and colour boards. We source fabrics and trims from around the world. At Panache, we have a designer per brand and as a team we build the collection for the season, interpreting the trends in-line with the brand personalities.
Q. Which bras from your range are your personal favourites?
A. Debbie: Antoinette and Ardour are my personal favourite from the range I design. I love all the additional detail you get from these two pieces.
Sam: I design Superbra and my favourite at the moment is Envy because of its androgynous styling – combining masculine and feminine for an uber chic look. It launches in a couple of weeks so keep an eye out.
Q. Why did you make the straps wider on the larger Tango bras? I wear an FF or G and loved the thinner straps, was there any customer consultation beforehand?
A. Sam: Hi, this will have been suggested through customer and sales feedback. As part of our plans for improvement and development, the aim with this change is that it would be more comfortable.
Debbie: With all our developments and new styles we conduct extensive wearer trials.
Q. Do you have plans for an underwired nursing bra?
A. Sam: Underwired nursing bras are a little controversial, as health professionals don’t recommend women wear wired bras during their pregnancy and whilst feeding. However, we know that there is desire for this product in the market and it is something we are researching.
Q. Can I get the same support of a bra with straps, in a strapless bra?
A. Sam: In fuller bust sizing this becomes more difficult. We work with the best fabrics and components to achieve the best support and lift from strapless styles.
The Q&A even benefited from a little model scouting…
Q. Are there any celebrity fans of Panache?
A. Debbie: We have heard that Fergie (from Black Eyed Peas), Scarlett Johansson and Jessica Simpson are all fans of Superbra. And of course Whitney Thompson is the current face and fan of Sculptresse – our new fuller figure range.
Q. Hey if you ever need a model to road test them for you I’m your girl!
Why not give it a go? Send your details including size and location to feedback@panache-lingerie.com
