A Chat with Beth Kates, Founder at Liberty & Love – A Lingerie Shop For The Everyday Sexy Woman

I had my incensed light bulb moment in the middle of the lockdown….

Well with no retail experience I launched Liberty & Love for all women everyday…. Underwear for real women of all ages, for themselves with real women of different shapes as models who we can relate to.

During the first lockdown, I found myself shopping online for new sleepwear and lingerie. I was so disappointed by the marketing of women’s underwear. It seemed to be aimed at men, and the idea that you can only wear lingerie for the bedroom or it was very high-end but completely unwearable unless you are a size 4!”

My 16-year-old daughters’ inbox was also full of adverts showing perfect bodies, pouting models, images of girls with clearly enhanced implants and overly padded bras and I feel so strongly this is not what should be inspiring our daughters. Underwear is marketed towards what women should be wearing to please men – and that’s wrong. We need to be focusing on what is right for our own bodies.
 
 

 

How has the company evolved during the pandemic?

 
We are only 5 months old! So very new!

During the lockdown, I was frustrated being bombarded with adverts of late teens and early 20 something women, with perfect airbrushed bodies trying to sell underwear in a way geared for pleasing men.

I saw lots of adverts and felt forgotten about too. I am 50 and still want to look the best I can – even when on the school run! I certainly do not relate to the unachievable images that dominate the marketing of underwear and these are not images I want to inspire my daughter.
 

What can we hope to see from Liberty and Love in the future?

 
Lots of awareness for this vital topic – I have been invited into some schools to give talks about body awareness too.

We want to change the way lingerie is marketed. We had a fun photo shoot at the weekend – all real women of all ages… and we had such a fun time. We celebrated with pizza and wine afterwards too. See the images on our socials and website. We love hearing back from women about how we are doing things and the feedback so far has been incredibly positive.

And at Liberty & Love we are passionate about women feeling good every day. We want you to buy underwear for you, your body, your life, your choice. You can have beautiful nightwear for movie nights with the kids and still feel glamorous. You can have beautiful underwear when you are just being you, every day. Your body, your choice, your you. Love the skin you’re in.