ABOUT US
The story behind Lissie Lingerie
Lissie Lingerie was founded in 2023 by Melissa Hardie, who first had the idea for a fuller bust lingerie business all the way back in 2018. The idea was born in a changing room, and the rest, as they say, is history.
If we were to describe Lissie Lingerie in three words, or our three values you could call it, we would use Inclusive, caring and knowledgeable. I really wanted to create a brand that truly cares, because for so long I've felt like nobody does, and If they did, I didn't have access to them.
We truly believe that through our knowledge and personal experience, what we have to offer can help mostly everybody who wears a bra, especially if you're a D cup and up. Our goal is to expand our business so that we can cater for as many people as possible, and I think we're off to a good start...
Meet the Team
That's singular, not plural...
Hi there! My name's Melissa, I'm a '97 baby, a gemini for those who are wondering and I'm the owner, mother, gaffer, whatever you want to call it of Lissie Lingerie, and I'm going to take you through our journey so far.
Being a business owner was never on my bingo card, but, here we are, and I wouldn't change it for the world.
I have a background in hospitality, where I worked my way up the managment lader, until leaving that career behind to work for my dad in the double glazing industry. I can't remember what grades I got in School, never went to Uni, and have been working since I was 15.
Lissie came to me in 2018, it was a nameless idea, a seed that was planted and slowly grew and grew, until I couldn't ignore it anymore, and here we are.
It's been incredibly tough making the transition from 9-5 office girl to I'm just a girl boss, and I couldn't have done it without those who are closest to me.
The BTS of Lissie is a one woman show, I'm involved in literally every facet of the business, website design, fittings, accounting, social media etc etc, and I'm very excited to see where things go for us.
Thank you for coming to the Lissie Lingerie website, please let me know what you think, if you have any suggestions to make the site more user friendly, whatever it may be, please click the button below and lets chat!
Mel x
2018
The idea of a fuller busted brand was born
The idea for what we now know as Lissie Lingerie came to me in 2018, specifically in the Belfast Boux Avenue changing room.
At the time, I was chasing a career in the hospitality industry, and work had taken me to the emerald isle.
I was squeezing myself into a lacey red number, a 34 G (the biggest cup size they offered) if I remember correctly, at the time I was around a 32 HH/J, that's up to 5 cup sizes of a difference!
All I remember was thinking... "Why is this such a nightmare, why am I being left out here?" These were often my thoughts during a bra shopping spree.
In that room, I thought about how there was such a gap in the market, and how having a large cup and plus size lingerie company was a good idea. Little did I know at the time that six years later, I would be setting up a company of my own to cater to people like me.
At the time, as I said, I was chasing a career in the hospitality industry, never ever thinking I would have my own company one day. As the years passed and the struggles of bra shopping continued, the idea grew and grew and grew...
2021
Time to take the jump?
Three years had passed since that fateful shopping trip, and the idea for this nameless idea has slowly begun to grow into what I desperately wanted to be my business.
I was thinking about it every day, it was always on my mind, so many ideas were flying through my head, it was so hard to ignore.
At this time I was working for my dad, having taken a step away from Hospitality to try my hand at something new, but I'm afraid working in the double glazing industry didn't spark any passion within me.
I'm not embarrassed to admit that I absolutely love to work, it gives me so much fulfilment in life.
In October of 2021, I bought my first domain name, llissie.com, and handed in my unofficial notice to my dad. I wanted to make a go of it.
Lissie Lingerie was born.
2023
Lissie Lingerie is born
It took another three years to finally take the step back from my 9-5 life and go full time with Lissie Lingerie,. It may have taken three years, but the desire to get going was as strong as ever.
I spent a lot of time researching, looking into the industry, visiting trade shows, speaking with brands and looking for a web development company to build my website.
The 11th of December was the day the proposal was signed to have the website built, this is the day it felt real, we had traction.
From here, socials went up and work began. It has been an absolute pleasure starting a business, something I could not have done from my family, partner and friends.
As you have read, Lissie started off as an idea, and here we are now.
Thank you for reading about our story, and I'm so excited to see where things go for this little business.
Our Mission
The ethos behind the brand
Our mission is simple: make lingerie shopping easy, enjoyable and inclusive.
Our brand values are:
• Inclusiveness - we want to fill the size gap
• Caring - we really do care
• Knowledge - we want to teach you about style & fit
So many of us have had a bad experience shopping for a bra, whether it be a poor selection, a bad fitting experience, being told that you can't be helped, well, there will be none of that here.
Inclusivity is at the heart of what we're doing. Our bodies being made to feel like an afterthought is something most of us will unfortunately know all too well, feeling left out, unwelcome, excluded, that is what we are combatting. Well fitting and stylish lingerie shouldn't be a luxury.
As the business grows, our size and style range will grow with it, we'll branch out to swim, active and maternity wear, as well as accessories and everything else you'd expect from a Lingerie Brand!
If you have any questions for us, please click the button below.