Asia Sexiest Girls 043

The 1970s onwards

In the 70s, like other garment makers, bra manufacturers moved production offshore. The evolution of the bra reflects the constantly changing idea of what an 'ideal' woman should look like - flat, round, pointy, conical, or even 'natural'. The contemporary bra also reflects advances in manufacturing and availability of fabric types and colours, enabling it to be transformed from a utilitarian item to a fashion statement, countering the negative attitudes some women had about bras. Designers have also incorporated numerous devices to produce varying shapes, cleavage, and to give women bras they could wear with open-back dresses, off-the-shoulder dresses, plunging necklines, and the like.

Two design challenges that bra manufacturers face at present seem paradoxical. On the one hand, there is a demand for minimal bras that allow plunging necklines and reduce interference with the lines of outergarments, such as the shelf bra. On the other hand, body mass and bust size is increasing^[32], leading to a higher demand for larger sizes.^[33] Over a 10 years period, the commonest size purchased in the UK went from 34B to 36C. In 2001, 27% of UK sales were D or larger.^{[34] [35]}

Bras are a billion-dollar industry that continues to grow ($15 billion in the US in 2001, £1 billion in UK^[34]). Large corporations control most bra manufacture, such as HanesBrands Inc.™^{[34] [36]}, Gossard™, Berlei™ and Courtaulds® with 34% of the UK market. Victoria's Secret is an exception.

Source from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki