Dici or Nothing : Fabric Molding and Brassiere Innovation by the Canadelle Company of Montreal

Type of resource
Author/collaborator
Title
Dici or Nothing : Fabric Molding and Brassiere Innovation by the Canadelle Company of Montreal
Abstract
The author notes that the social upheavals of the 1960s impacted all aspects of fashion, including women’s undergarments. Embracing feminism and youth culture, many young women rejected the structured brassieres of the 1950s; manufacturers responded with lightweight bras that created a more natural silhouette. The Montreal-based Canadelle Company, originally called the Canadian Lady Corset Company when it was founded in 1939 by Moses “Moe” Nadler (1900-1964), was renamed the Canadian Lady-Canadelle Inc. in 1968 when his son sold the company to Consolidated Foods of Chicago (now the Sara Lee Corporation). From its earliest years, the company was among the leaders in cutting-edge bra design. The author explains that realizing the importance of style innovation to the industry’s future, Canadelle began experimenting with ways to make bras less visible, one of which was the hot molding of synthetic fabrics to create a completely seamless bra cup. Canadelle released its Dici brand of molded bras on the Canadian market in 1974. The author outlines how the company’s creative marketing strategies, their resourceful design department, and their superior in-house molding technology helped the brand achieve widespread commercial success in Canada.
Publication
Dress : The Journal of the Costume Society of America
Volume
Vol. 45
Issue
no. 2
Pages
183-195
Date
2019
Language
en
Citation
Walker, Alexis. “Dici or Nothing : Fabric Molding and Brassiere Innovation by the Canadelle Company of Montreal.” Dress : The Journal of the Costume Society of America Vol. 45, no. 2 (2019): 183–195.
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