The bra industry has been changing recently. No longer dominated by product designs that prioritize being pleasing to the onlooker, many of today’s bra brands are focused on fitness, comfort, and the overall health of the one wearing the brassiere. However, the bra industry is still ready for disruption, especially in the eCommerce space, where it can be difficult for women to find a bra that fits them just right.

One bra brand, Pepper, has stepped up to make that happen.

Pepper's revolutionary approach to bra design for small-chested women showcases how niche eCommerce brands can transform entire product categories through innovative solutions, authentic branding, and customer-centric technology. Here, we’ll explore how Pepper came to be and what it has done recently that is shaking up the industry.

Breaking the Mold: The Pepper Brand Story

In an industry historically designed around a standard 36C body type, millions of women with smaller cup sizes have long struggled with ill-fitting bras featuring uncomfortable gaps, unnecessary padding, and designs that simply weren't made for their bodies. Enter Pepper, a brand born from personal frustration and transformed into a mission-driven eCommerce success story.

A Brand Born of Personal Experience

Launched in 2017 by co-founders Jaclyn Fu and Lia Winograd, Pepper set out with a clear purpose: to celebrate small-chested bodies rather than trying to make them appear larger. 

Fu's own experiences with ill-fitting bras and the societal pressure to conform to unrealistic body standards sparked the idea for a brand exclusively dedicated to AA, A, and B cups. Before launching, Fu conducted customer research by directly emailing friends and family with three simple questions:

• "What bra size are you?"
• "What brand do you wear?"
• "Do you love your bra?"

The responses confirmed her suspicions—those with smaller chests consistently expressed frustration with available options.

A Bold Start

The brand's Kickstarter campaign aimed for a modest $10,000 but reached its goal within just 10 hours, signaling tremendous market demand. What's particularly striking is that much of this early enthusiasm came not from friends and family but from strangers who discovered the campaign and were enthusiastic about it. 

That level of immediate validation propelled Fu to quit her job and focus on Pepper full-time.

Since then, Pepper has experienced remarkable growth, expanding 800% in 2019 alone and securing $2 million in seed funding from investors including Precursor Ventures and the New York University Innovation Fund. 

According to one report, Pepper has an estimated annual revenue of $7.5 million and more than 100 employees on six continents as of April 2025.

Revolutionizing the eCommerce Bra Shopping Experience

Pepper's innovation extends beyond product design to the entire customer experience, creating a comprehensive eCommerce approach that solves multiple pain points for its target audience.

Product Innovation

At the core of Pepper's approach is a fundamental redesign of the bra itself. Rather than simply scaling down standard designs, Pepper created entirely new molds specifically engineered for smaller cup sizes. 

Their innovations include reconfigured underwire that's shorter and flatter to better hug the natural curve of smaller chests without uncomfortable poking, and specially molded shallow cups that eliminate the dreaded "cup gap" while providing gentle lift and support.

"We believe that everyone deserves to feel good in their own skin,” their website states.

"Traditional bra brands have created crazy aspirational body standards that are impossible for most of us to achieve without a very expensive, unnecessary boob job. It's no wonder women today have trouble feeling confident with their body when we grew up watching models in a fashion show (you know, that one) with unimaginable cleavage.”

Digital Fitting Solutions

Digital customer journeys are important for most brands today. According to the 2024 eTail Insights "Future Customer Journeys” report, 81% of retailers view digital customer journeys as critical for omnichannel success.

However, they are even more critical for direct-to-consumer brands that may not have physical stores. The same report found that 37% of consumers see inconsistent cross-channel buying experiences as a pain point.

Recognizing that online bra shopping presents unique challenges, Pepper has implemented several innovative digital solutions:

1. Virtual One-on-One Fit Sessions: Pepper offers personalized virtual fittings where customers can receive expert guidance on finding their perfect size and style, particularly valuable for first-time online bra shoppers.
2. Online Fit Quiz: Similar to brands like ThirdLove, Pepper provides an interactive fit quiz that helps customers determine their ideal size without requiring an in-person fitting.
3. Direct-to-Consumer Model: Pepper maintains complete control over the customer experience by selling exclusively through their website rather than through retail partners. This approach allows them to collect valuable customer data, maintain pricing control, and build direct relationships with their community.

Community Building

Beyond products and technology, Pepper has cultivated a vibrant community around body positivity for small-chested women.

Their website explicitly states they're "creating a community for women who could never find a bra that fit just right, always felt between cup sizes, were called flat chested in their teens, or wore cutlets on a night out.” 

This powerful messaging creates emotional connections with customers who may have felt overlooked or marginalized by traditional lingerie brands.

"When I want to purchase something, I prefer to find the most ethical option available. I believe many brands today might underestimate just how much this matters to consumers. It's incredibly important to highlight your values and the positive actions your company is taking.”

What eCommerce Brands Can Learn from Pepper

Pepper's approach offers valuable lessons for brands across the eCommerce landscape:

1. The Power of Niche Markets

Pepper demonstrates that focusing on an underserved segment can create tremendous opportunity. While mainstream brands chase the masses, identifying and deeply serving a specific audience can lead to remarkable loyalty and growth.

For Pepper, this meant creating products specifically for women who wear AA, A, and B cup sizes—a segment traditional brands had largely neglected.

2. Authenticity Drives Connection

Founded by women experiencing the same frustrations as their customers, Pepper's authentic mission resonates deeply with its audience. The brand doesn't apologize for or try to "fix” its customers’ bodies, celebrating them instead.

3. Technology as a Problem-Solver

Rather than implementing technology for its own sake, Pepper deploys digital tools specifically to address customer pain points in the online shopping journey. Their virtual fit sessions and quizzes directly address the challenge of finding the right size without an in-person fitting.

4. Supply Chain Innovation Matters

Pepper works with manufacturing partners in Colombia to achieve shorter lead times, allowing them to quickly adapt to inventory needs and market changes. According to the brand, Colombia is "known for its expertise in manufacturing lingerie, and has some of the largest and most experienced clothing and textile industries.”

5. Community Building Creates Loyalty

By creating spaces for customers to connect around shared experiences, Pepper transforms individual purchases into participation in a movement. This fosters stronger brand loyalty and encourages word-of-mouth marketing, evidenced by their predominantly direct website sales rather than relying on retail partnerships.

A More Inclusive Brand of eCommerce

Pepper represents a new generation of eCommerce brands leveraging technology, community, and product innovation to transform traditional retail categories. By addressing a specific audience with authentic solutions, these brands create deeper connections and often achieve remarkable growth despite (or perhaps because of) their focused approach.

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Want to learn more about how niche eCommerce brands are revolutionizing retail through innovation and authenticity? Join industry leaders at eTail Boston 2025 from August 11^th to 14^th to discover the latest strategies for building customer-centric digital experiences in an increasingly competitive marketplace.

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