There was a time when I belonged to the Victoria Secret society. I think I may still have a few items tucked away in my "intimates" drawer. That time has come and passed and now I'm a real woman and someone has finally realized that real women need their own stores too. A place where they can walk in and feel comfortable. A sales clerk won't come up to them and say, "are you shopping for someone else?" or worse, "I don't think we carry your size here".
Regretfully I don't have news of Victoria Secret coming out with a new line of bras for the plus size consumer. But lucky for us Charming Shoppes, owner of the charming three Lane Bryant, Fashion Bug and Catherines, is expanding their bra line. The Cacique line of bras has been so successful they are building stand alone shops for the shear purpose of decorating our plus size curves.
If you really had your heart set on Victoria Secret maybe this will help. Before Charming Shoppes purchased the Cacique line it belonged to Limited Brands. Who is Limited Brands? Well they are the owners of Victoria Secret. Feel better?
Now if you are like me you're probably wondering what the heck Cacique means. This has been a little harder than I thought it would be to find out. I checked with Charming Shoppes and because it is not their original product they didn't have a definition for me but they did tell me it was is pronounced Ka-seek.
According to the Webster's Dictionary cacique is Spanish: 1 : a native Indian chief in areas dominated primarily by a Spanish culture; 2 : a local political boss in Spain and Latin America. How's that for something representing our curve decorations? I decided to talk to a Spanish speaking friend of mine. She agreed with the above definitions. "It is a noun mostly associated with masculine stuff. When I lived in Cuba, there were some guayaberas (peasant-style shirts for men) called Caciques." Some further thought reminded her of "the Taino caciques used to raise their people in arms against the colonizers. Maybe there is a play on words with the verb "raise," she said.
Currently there are sixteen stores built. There's talk of up to fifty more stores by next year. Move over Victoria Secret, real women are finally getting their pretty lingerie in full force!The Cacique stores will carry sizes 36 - 48 C - DDD, F, G and H. Sorry no higher doubles. Maybe soon (they don't know unless you all ask for it). The other intimates will run in sizes 12 - 28. While you're there be sure to enlist the help of their "Trained Cacique store associates and bra-fit specialists" who are there to make sure you are getting the best fit from your bra.
If you haven't heard or tried Cacique or don't have a store in your area there is always online shopping. If you're Canadian they have "Borderfree" shopping so you don't have to pay customs and GST charges to your postman. It's all taken care of online (click on their little Canadian flag for details). UPDATE: Shipping to Canada is currently suspended until further notice. Check the LB website for details.
Visit Lane Bryant's Cacique Collection.
M. E. Wood lives in Eastern Ontario, Canada. If you are going to find this eclectic reader and writer anywhere it is probably at her computer. For more information visit her official website.
