Review: Contours Lingerie in Madison, WI
My experience at Contours Lingerie: amateur fitters and a disappointing selection for all the hype.
Considering the few local options available for properly fitting bras, Contours lingerie certainly has the largest selection. They carry Panache(Cleo, Masquerade), Freya, Elomi, and others. However they do not seem to be entirely current in their selection. There were few bras from the current season and I was mostly shown bras in styles from a season or two ago.
I informed my fitter that currently my best fitting bra is the Cleo Lucy in a 30DD. My fitter began by having me remove my top and leaving my bra on. She measured my underbust (29”) and suggested I start with a 28 band but could move up to a 30 for comfort. She eyeballed my cup size and said (with surprise) that she thought my guess was pretty close! I was so relieved that she put me in a 28 or 30 band! She did not ask me what kind of bras I was interested in. She left to bring me a selection of bras and I was thrilled when she returned with an entire armful of goodies. There were sports bras, soft cups, t-shirt bra, and balconettes. However I was quickly dismayed to find they were all 28D or 30D sizes. That’s two cup sizes too small! (Did she not hear me when I said my only fitting bra was a 30DD?)
Left alone I was not surprised to find that nothing fit. I had squeezed into a 28D balconette when my fitter came back to check on me. I was bulging obscenely out of the top, most of my side breast tissue was pushed up into my armpit (forming unsightly bulges) and the underwires cut into my breast tissue along my ribs. I politely told her I think I need a larger cup size! To which she replied: “Oh no, that’s the shape a balconette is supposed to give you! It takes a little getting used to having all that cleavage doesn’t it!” Obviously she was completely unaware of all these major fit issues! She asked if I had tried on any of the soft cups and I replied that I thought they would be too small. After I reiterated that the Cleo Lucy 30DD fits me perfectly, my fitter informed me that most people need to “size down a cup” in soft cups, hence why she brought me all 30Ds (including a Lucy 30D!) This illustrated a fundamental lack of understanding that shape and cut determine a good fit, and not by sizing the cup up or down! This is the difference between a bra that fits, and a bra that fits well. Not wanting to argue, I thought I would try some on and simply show her what a bad fit they were.
However I did not see my original fitter again. Instead, after some time, a new fitter came to check on me whilst I was wearing the Cleo Sadie 30D. (I have previously tried this bra in a 30DD. The cups are perfect volume-wise but this bra has a very stretchy band, and as I had been after t-shirt bras this whole time, I held out hopes that they might have a 28E in stock. (They boast having a fabulous selection of 28’s.) I was quad-boobing terribly on my larger side, and still quad-boobing on my smaller side. The new fitter popped in and asked how I was doing. I replied, “Well I think I need a larger cup size and probably a 28 band.” She had me turn and face her, then told me that she thought it looked like a pretty good fit. I proceeded to show her all the bulging out of the tops and sides, and the especially unsightly profile on my larger side. She really tried to sell me on this bra, but after I protested further, her response was: “Well the girls are always a little uneven and I suppose you want to fit the larger one!” This comment left me feeling insecure and I was embarrassed to be assertive in asking for different sizes. However the fitter did leave to bring me yet another armful of bras, this time largely 30DDs. She did not remove any of the other poorly fitting bras, so the bras were literally falling off the hooks in the fitting room. I felt like I was drowning in badly fitting bras! As a person who knows what she’s looking for, this was entirely overwhelming. So I can only imagine how someone new to this might feel! Drowning the customer in bras is neither a helpful nor successful sales tactic!
Out of over 20 bras brought to my fitting room, only one fit. I ended up going home with the Cleo George (5731) in 30DD. I feel like I made this purchase more out of polite obligation than anything else. This bra fits well, except for the color. The yellow-orange gingham looks awful in contrast to my skin tone. The baby blue lace is nice, but alone even that doesn’t look great up against the orange-ish gingham. I would have taken the Cleo Lucy 30DD in hot pink, but they wanted over twice the price I can currently find it for on Amazon and other major online retailers. I have a feeling I will be going back to try to exchange this bra.
When I asked my first fitter about extended 28 sizes, she informed me that their selection was a little limited at the moment, but I could ask at the register to be informed (via phone or email) when they might get a new shipment of 28’s in. In contrast, when I asked the second fitter about more 28’s, she said they had just gotten in a new shipment but they hadn’t unpacked it yet, and so didn’t know what was in it. (What bra boutique doesn’t know what sizes they ordered?!?!) She then advised that I like them on facebook to see the latest styles in stock.
While I feel that while this boutique is certainly miles ahead Victoria’s Secret or many of the other mainstream bra retailers present in the area, there is need for major improvements in the way they conduct their fittings. Namely: do not overwhelm your customers by immediately throwing a dozen bras or more at them, it’s a terrible fitting tactic. Instead, ask the customer what kind of bras they are looking for, and then thoughtfully suggest alternative styles. Understand that a proper fitting bra is not determined by merely the band and cup size, but shape is what ultimately matters in fit. Do not push your customers into buying a bra that they are not 100% satisfied with. Neither of my fitters demonstrated any knowledge of the various types of breast shape: shallow or pendulous breasts, full on top/full on bottom breasts, breasts with wide or narrow roots, or knowledge of the bras that might best fit these shapes.
I certainly hope that they will continue to hone their skills as fitters, as they could be providing the community with a fabulous top-notch service.
I plan on giving this shop one more chance. I know that fitters are often faced with people that are stubbornly sure of their (wrong) size, so they have a lot of misinformation to combat. I would not call the fitters pushy, but they were certainly unreceptive. I feel that as an informed individual who knows their size and shape, my knowledge was debased and devalued.
Filed under Bras ups and downs
5 comments
So sorry that you had a bad experience at Contours. I live in the San Francisco area where there are NO local stores stocking my size. I was in Madison recently and my BFF and I had the totally opposite experience at Contours. Though the selection was somewhat limited it was still the largest selection I have ever had in my correct size of 36J. My friend was properly fitted and given an extreme amount of attention as a "proper fit virgin." I asked for what I wanted by size range and brand and was brought at least 15 bras. Hopefully, your experience was an anomaly.
I feel reassured that you had a great experience -- I really wanted to fall in love with the place but my first fitter just left me so disappointed. And it was strange that she stopped helping me so abruptly, yet was at the register when I checked out. The second fitter was much more warm, helpful, and accommodating, and I probably would have had a much better experience had she helped me from the beginning. (Despite trying to sell me on a bra that I was clearly unhappy with.) But I do plan to set my first impressions aside and give this place another go, though I'll wait til they announce new inventory. I will update with another review/experience whenever that may be!
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