MAIDENFORM

Maidenform began as part of Enid Frocks, a small dressmaking business owned by Enid Bissett and Ida Rosenthal in New York City.  In the early 1920s, Bissett and Rosenthal began making softly shaped bras into the dresses they were making, as it made the dresses have a better fit.  In 1923, they began making the bras as a separate garment, calling them Maidenform Bras.  These bras went on the market in 1924.

The bras were so successful that the pair formed the Enid Manufacturing Company, for the sole purpose of making bras.  In 1926, Willian Rosenthal, Ida's husband, applied for a patent for a bra that put the bust in its natural position.  The designed proved to be very popular.

In 1930, Enid Bissett left the company, and the Rosenthals renamed it the Maidenform Brassiere Company.  The Rosenthals used creative advertising to advance their product, even being the first underwear company to advertise on billboards.  In 1949, they started one of the most successful and longest running ad campaigns of all times - the "I dreamed" campaign.  In the ads, women were pictured in their Maidenform bras, living out their dreams. I dreamed I was in Paris in my Maidenform bra.

The company diversified into other types of lingerie, especially in the 1970s when comsumers were getting younger.  Maiden form was reorganized in 1999 after filing for bankruptcy, and is still in business.