Jenny Davis, design director/owner, beatrix privé Luxury Plus Size Lingerie (photo by Rima Canaan Lee)

It all started at a Zac Posen show …

In 2010, I was in New York City for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week — I am a magazine editor and stylist — when I was absolutely swept away by Posen’s show. The models, the pink-carpeted runway, DJ Mark Ronson’s joyful music, the mere handful of chairs separating me from my fashion idols like Anna Wintour and Rachel Zoe. But it was Posen’s use of color that left me breathless — bold, saturated, assertive shades in combinations I had never seen before. I wanted to harness that color … to make something, use it in some way … and then, walking down Houston Street after the show, I hit on it: lingerie. But not just any lingerie. A luxury brand especially for a subset of women who love fashion but are totally ignored not only by most major labels but also by niche labels. Researching the plus-size lingerie market, I found a wide selection of well-engineered bras, but no real luxury underwear options. It seemed to me that fashion-forward plus-size women had only two options: granny panties from big-box retailers or cheap, scratchy “sexy” options that just didn’t fit right. I set to work to create The beatrix privé Signature One-Size Stretch Thong, drawing on my experience as a former Macy’s Emerging Designer, my knowledge of color trends and my personal styling work and friendships with plus-size, professional women. It took over a year of patternmaking and fittings (among my wonderful fit models: a Plus Size pageant winner, a massage therapist, a student, an actress, a teacher and a soccer mom) to arrive at our final style, but watching the reaction from my fit models and friends throughout the process, I knew I was on to something special. I hope you agree.