This is part of #AccelerateHerStory, a series celebrating women founders redefining industries
Bawsty, a fashion brand designed for fuller-busted women, has carved out a unique space in the industry. If you’ve seen the rapport online between the brand and its customers—Baws Babes— it feels almost like a love story.
The single line in many of their social media posts, “This model is not wearing a bra,” caught my attention and countless others, promising both style and support in a way that many brands overlook.
As a Bawsty woman myself (pun intended), I had to see what the hype was about. Now, with a few loved-on pieces in my wardrobe and the brand’s growing popularity among Nigerian women, it’s clear that Bawsty has struck a chord. Their designs are versatile yet undeniably sensual and feminine, and their collections are almost always sold out.
Beyond the clothes, the brand’s co-founder, Morenike Olusanya is vocal online about some of its operations structure of their operations. I’ve seen Bawsty Clothing and Retail expand quickly and have an inkling of what is happening. If you’ve followed the brand for some time, then you also know that there’s more to come for busty women who live active lifestyles.
I’d asked what people would most be surprised to learn about Morenike. It is jiu-jitsu, apparently. “Still a bit of an amateur, but I can defend myself,” She says, laughing.
Personally, I was surprised to learn that the multi-disciplinary artist and illustrator had no hands in the creative direction for Bawsty. This assumption stemmed from their fabric choices, which toggle between solid hues or bright, feminine florals. Wearing a dress from the latest collection, she described herself as the “noisemaker” for the brand.
What inspired you to start Bawsty? Did you always know you wanted to clothe fuller-busted women?
I knew I wanted to look for fashion solutions for myself as a busty woman, but I didn’t know I wanted to provide that solution to other women, lol. I only knew how much I wanted to when my business partner & cofounder, Damilola Onosowobo Marcus brought the idea.
She called me one blessed day and asked if I’d like to partner with her to create hot clothes for busty women, and I was like, “hell yeah!” It was a no-brainer. Especially because while we’d be solving other women’s fashion problems, we’d also be solving ours as busty women.
How did you go from the idea to actually launching the brand? What were your biggest hurdles?
One thing about my cofounder, Dami, is that when she wants to start something, she already has everything planned out before execution on the operation and creative direction side. I’m in charge of customer relations, sales and marketing, so I had to try to find a way to start making noise about the brand. Something I had very little experience or knowledge in.
So learning on the job with a sprinkle of self-doubt, was something I struggled with. As an artist that wasn’t particularly stylish and knew nothing about fashion trends and the fashion business, I was lost. I knew a bit about relating with people because I was running my own art business. But my partner was always reassuring me till I found my footing. On the operation side, I know my partner struggled with finding tailors who understood the type of quality we wanted to put out.
We are both artists, so we are very particular about details and finishing, and some people didn’t get it, so there was a lot of hiring and firing, until we found our current team of tailors. We love them so much and it’s obvious they love us as much as we love them because Bawsty fits always look and feel so amazing.
Watch to hear the full story, including behind-the-scenes insights, Morenike’s biggest lessons, and what’s next for Bawsty:
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Your pieces almost always sell out—how do you manage demand while staying true to quality?
Quality is something we will never compromise on, no matter what. We are designing and manufacturing clothes for a group of people who have had just to make do with what they are given. The least we can do apart from selling them hot fits, is make sure they're good quality at a reasonable price.
I’d rather try to appease customers and reassure them when clothes sell out than rush production and put out bad quality. That will hurt the brand now and in the long run.
Bawsty has built a strong community. How intentional was that, and what has helped you connect so deeply with your customers?
I’m happy you mentioned that we have built a strong community because it’s one of our goals. We will make our community even bigger, happier and strong with time. People in general bond with people they share similar life/fashion experiences with. We wanted our customers to know that we see them, we are listening to their feedback and concerns, and we really want to make them feel beautiful and happy.
We are intentional about making the above happen. You can see that through the design of Bawsty fits, how we communicate with our customers and try our best to prioritise their needs, our inclusive and custom size guide, our genuine/transparent captions “this model is not wearing a bra“, “dress is sheer” etc. show how particular we are with making sure they know that we genuinely want them to enjoy.
What’s been the most surprising thing about running a fashion brand?
I’d say people are actually buying and wearing Bawsty. LOL. The clothes are very beautiful and of course, we expected people to love us the way we love them, but sometimes, the love and support they show us shocks us. We appreciate it so much.
“This model is not wearing a bra” has become a signature caption. I need to know how you achieve that support in your designs.
Test test test. Our design team is literally the best. Before every dress goes out, they are tested by busty women to make sure they are practical and flattering. Even we the founders do not put out dresses without testing them ourselves.
If it’s not sitting right on bodies as busty women, we do not sell them until they’re resolved. Sometimes, the outfits even make it to the photoshoot stage, and we decide not to sell it days before it goes out because a small detail is off. We are that particular about how our customers should feel in their dresses.
Have there been any styles you were nervous about releasing, but they’ve become fan favourites?
Haha! For me, it’s the double silhouette, double-layered midi dress. It’s a stunner and it will make you feel so hot, but it’s a bit complex to wear. We’ve had to release videos showing people how to wear it and guide customers who have come to our DMS to ask how to wear it, LOL! But it’s always SO worth it when they figure it out because they always get compliments about how beautiful they look.
₦34,000. Shop Bawsty
What's that one thing about making clothes for fuller-busted women that most people might not realize?
It’s not as complex as people think it is, you just have to be a bit more intentional. It’s also a bit weird for me that people make clothes like women do not have a bust, sometimes. Especially because at some stage in a typical woman’s life, she gets bustier.
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What’s been the biggest lesson you’ve learned as a business owner?
I’ve learnt to think fast, be more patient and understanding. I’ve learnt not to take things personally. I’ve also learnt to rest, lol.
If you could go back and give yourselves one piece of advice before launching Bawsty, what would it be?
I actually don’t have any answers to this question because I don’t have any regrets. I like that it started the way it did. I appreciate how far we’ve come.
We’ve seen its name online and know about it, so we need to know: How’s Spawty coming along?
Haha! Spawty is coming along fine. WATCH OUT.
This year’s International Women’s Day theme is ‘Accelerating Action.’ What’s one-way ShopBawsty is actively driving change for women in Africa?
We are encouraging busty and plus-size women to explore clothes that flatter their bodies instead of just covering their bodies. We are inspiring them to be proud of their curves and edges. We also hope that we are a source of inspiration for any woman out there who wants to solve a woman’s problem or start a business.
Morenike and her co-founder Damilola have built more than a brand; they’ve built a movement. Bawsty proves that when you create with purpose, the right audience will find you and keep coming back.