Just about 5 years ago we were prepping to launch a Kickstarter campaign for our Bareskin Binder: a masculine swim top/binder option for folx who didn’t have the perfect dysphoria-easing solution. We had noticed holes in the market — binders were uncomfortable, scratchy, caused back pain, hardly ever breathable, ugly, and, worst of all, there was only one “nude” color option - a generic band-aid peach offered by only two binder companies.
We realized that a whole portion of the binding community was being excluded by the current offerings available, so we sought to provide a solution. We wanted to create a binder that, upon first glance, blended in with the wearer and created the illusion of blending in along with providing some ease to the dysphoria binders can often bring on. When we started our Kickstarter campaign, the idea of a range of nude binders (along with a racerback design) was unheard of and people loved it.
Fast forward to five years later and we’ve definitely made a substantial impact on the binder market as a whole. The largest player in the binder game has introduced their own line of nudes and, more recently, a racerback option. There’s something to be said for creating a product so influential and good that your competitors mimic its design — but we still think that our binder is the best option out there. We still hear to this day how our binders alleviate stress and pains that other binders cause and how people often forget that they’re even wearing them…after they’ve gotten them on of course.
Our binders aren’t perfect, they never will be. We’re constantly evolving and improving. After we completed our Kickstarter, it took us over 6 months to hit the market with a product we felt comfortable putting our name on. That was mid-2016 and we only had 4 colors and 5 sizes. Fast forward to today, we’ve moved manufacturers from our initial manufacturing team in Arlington, TX to one in Austin and we’ve expanded to include 7 colors and 7 sizes.
We have another color on the horizon along with 3X hoping to hit the shelves in 2021, but, until then, we’re sitting back and enjoying the journey that got us here. We couldn’t have done it without those 700+ Kickstarter campaign backers or without the thousands of customers we’ve had purchase our products since then, so thank you! Thank you from a little queer brand that saw a need and looked for a way to solve it. We’re going to always look to improve and provide for this community that continually provides for us. 🌈