Soma, You Depress Me

On my recent trip to Sarasota, Florida, I had to stop in to the Soma lingerie boutique and try a bra fitting. I had done one bra fitting before, at Intimacy in Chicago, with unpleasant results, but that was several years ago, and tempted by the desire to have a perfectly fitting bra, I decided to go for it again.


Well, it was even worse than the last time! It was really depressing and kind of insulting. When I tried Intimacy, (on the suggestion and recommendation of Oprah, by the way), the parts that were disappointing were that (1) they told me I wasn't the same size in every bra company bra, so that kind of defeats the purpose of getting a bra fitting, and finding out YOUR size, because you still have to try on a bunch of different sizes to find one that works for you. And (2), the salesperson only showed me certain bras that she picked out for me. I couldn't just look around and pick out the ones I liked. The salesperson would bring a handful of bras to my dressing room, where I was trapped, topless, and then I would try them all on and say "yes" or "no." And (3) the bras were extremely expensive - like $150 each, expensive!  Obviously, I guilt-bought a couple of bras out of a sense of obligation from having used the salesperson's time, and never went back.


Anyway, on to Soma. I had high hopes because my aunt shops there and loves the store. BUT - my aunt is small chested and slim. I, however, am a 40" band, and either an F,G, or H cup, depending on the brand. But I liked that Soma just sold Soma bras, so hopefully, once they figured out my size, I could just pick any bra I liked and get it in my correct size.


Well, the first thing that I didn't like about the fitting was that their only way of measuring you was to measure underbust and full bust, and then subtract. Well, I can do that on my own! What do I need a Professional Bra Fitter for? Even the HerRoom website's bra finder (which is wonderful, BTW!) does a more comprehensive job, involving fullness, shape, etc.)

So on to the depressing part: The (very young, gorgeous, tall and model-slim) salesperson that measured me told me I was a 40G in their sizes, and then told me they had the 1" and the 3" minimizers in my size. (Sad face) Minimizers?! My boobs are one of my favorite things about my body, and something I am proud of, and Soma wants to MINIMIZE them? Seriously, those were my only choices in bras in my size. (Please note, that there is ONE pretty balconet bra available in my size from Soma, but only online). I was offended. Big girls don't always want, or need, to be Minimized. And you should have seen the ugly, pre-formed, can-stand-up-on-their-own, heavily padded, matronly, bland bras she brought me. Just two choices, and they both looked sad, and not at all sexy.


When I responded less-than-enthusiastically that I didn't want those heavy duty, old lady, cow-like bras, but wanted something colorful, lightweight, sheer, lacy, and sexy, the salesperson's eyes clouded over as she realized she had nothing for me, and was not going to make a sale. She basically shrugged and left my dressing room in annoyance.

To be fair, another salesperson, (who I took to possibly be the store manager, due to her air of authority) was more sympathetic; acknowledging the company's lack of choice for larger busted ladies, and suggested I try Sea Cup and Up for a better selection. But anyway, I left the store feeling shunned for my size, and insulted that Soma - a company that specializes in lingerie and should be in touch with women's needs in that department - was basically telling me "Yeah, you're not the kind of customer we want." I promptly returned home and purchased four beautiful, unlined, lacy, pretty bras, that fit wonderfully -  in purple, yellow, cafe au lait, and red - from HerRoom. I love you HerRoom, and all the other lingerie companies that GET IT, and embraces their customers of all sizes and shapes.