In the last several years, there’s been a rise in celebrities and influencers creating brands. From clothing to makeup and skincare, and even liquor, many celebrities and influencers are getting started on a collab or independent brand. Some have come and gone, while others have grown exponentially and became much more than just a celebrity brand, like Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty. What determines whether a celebrity brand is able to stay around after the hype has died down? The brands that have withstood the test of time are those in which the celebrity truly cares about the products and message they are putting out, rather than simply attaching their name to a product for a cash grab.
Through both her music and social media, Lizzo has constantly promoted self-love and confidence in yourself and your body. As a plus size woman entering an industry that is extremely toxic regarding weight, despite the hate she received, she continued to love her body and show it. To many, Lizzo has been an inspiration and provides hope that to be successful in the music industry, your body doesn’t have to look a certain way. When Lizzo announced she was creating her own shapewear brand, many fans (including myself) were excited to see what she had in store.
Yitty released yesterday at 8 am- the website was full of colorful underwear, leggings, briefs, tanks, and much more. As soon as you went on the website a quiz popped up asking your preference on the tightness, color, size, and focus areas of the shapewear. Her line is owned by Kate Hudson’s Fabletics brand, so those who are a fan of their activewear can buy it all in the same place. It is also within a similar, reasonable price range as Fabletics clothing. As soon as you look at the clothes you can see that it’s not your typical shapewear, as it is full of bright colors and patterns. Seeing colors besides tan or black for shapewear was exciting and felt true to Lizzo and her brand. Another aspect of the website I loved was the detailed size chart. The size chart compared their own sizes to several international sizes and gave inches and centimeters. The best part about it, though, was that it had a separate size chart for each collection within the Yitty brand. I personally loved this as certain collections or styles within the same brand could fit me completely differently, which makes shopping confusing at times. Overall, I was pleased with not only the clothes for sale, but the interface of the website that helped navigate sizing and fit, which can be difficult for shapewear and other undergarments.
I see myself buying Yitty in the future and was excited for this new take on shapewear. Typically, shapewear is meant to hide certain parts of your body and is not meant to be seen. Yitty does the opposite; it is bright and focuses on showcasing what you love about your body rather than hiding what you’re insecure about. In the New York Times, Lizzo says that she was tired of seeing dull and restrictive shapewear that women didn’t want to wear. So, she she created fun and fashionable shapewear that allows women to feel “unapologetically good about themselves again.” Lizzo’s brand adds something new to shapewear and I am ready to see even more. I think this celebrity brand will be able to maintain success because of Lizzo’s dedication to helping others learn to love themselves, rather than jumping on a celebrity brand or shapewear bandwagon.