Bydee Swimwear: How the Aussie brand went viral on TikTok
Hollywood’s biggest names have been spotted rocking a viral swimwear line created by one young local designer.
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What’s one thing Millie Bobby Brown, Alessandra Ambrósio, Winnie Harlow, Bella Hadid and TikTok personality Alix Earle all have in common? They all love wearing Aussie-owned bikini line Bydee.
Starting the business back in 2013 from her parent’s kitchen table in Sydney, Bydee’s founder, creative director and CEO, Dessy Hairis, often reflects on her humble beginnings – when her mum was her only employee and she was juggling a full-time fashion degree with selling her designs at the local markets.
It wasn’t until 2020’s lockdown that the brand’s Sicily-inspired collection went viral and Dessy immediately had to upgrade her workshop to a space big enough to handle to rapidly increasing volume of orders.
According to Dessy, she went from a “three-by-three spare room, to a 220-square-metre warehouse”.
The warehouse upgrade seems to have paid off for Dessy, 28, as she recently celebrated a new milestone. She’s gone from selling one bikini a minute to two.
That’s right, Bydee sells two bikinis every 60 seconds.
So how did she do it? Dessy explains her first-hand experience with customers at local Sydney markets helped her to figure out exactly what people wanted from their swimwear. And, thanks to mingling with these customers, Dessy figured out how to close the gap of what was missing in the market.
“At the markets, the most common question was ‘I’m this cup size but I have quite a small underbust, how can we make sure it fits me?’” she recalls. “So I was actually doing alterations at the markets, then I knew as we expanded I’m like, ‘I can’t alter everyone’s bikinis! So I made sure that we did have adjustability in pretty much all of our styles.”
Dessy says ensuring her bikinis suited as many body shapes and sizes as possible was a key factor in her brand gaining traction.
“When you think of bra sizes, there are over 20+ sizes. Trying to fit that into 6 sizes is challenging” she explains, adding, “every top at Bydee is adjustable, whether it has a tie, [an] adjustable slider or [a] three-to-five hook adjuster.”
Such is her commitment to catering to all body types, Dessy has even included an underwire in selected styles (such as the Ventura and Riviera bikini tops from her latest Casa Del Sol collection) for a little extra support and comfort for fuller cups.
This small inclusion hasn’t gone unnoticed by her customers, with one reviewer raving that the bikinis are “so comfortable and flattering especially on someone with a larger bust” while another added that she is “a 36DD and purchased the XXL [and] it fits perfect.”
While her size inclusivity is certainly a large part of Bydee’s success, you can’t downplay the effects of having massive celebrities with huge online followings spotted rocking the swimwear. Netflix’s Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown (63.5m Instagram followers) and Victoria’s Secret Angels model and fashion icon Alessandra Ambrosio (12m followers) are among the star fans of the brand who’ve been seen wearing Bydee while on vacation.
Most recently, TikTok sensation Alix Earle who boasts 7.1m followers and is known for her viral “Get Ready With Me” videos, uploaded a picture of herself in the brands Prague Top in Salsa. Within hours, the style she wore almost completely sold out – though there are a few pieces left online, if you hurry.
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So what will it set you back to dress like Millie, Alessandra and Alix? The Bydee bikini tops ranges from $62 to $109 while the bikini bottoms are $55 to $89 each. While this is a higher price point for swimwear, when you consider the quality, the adjustability and the comfort of Bydee – this may be an investment you’re willing to make.
As for what’s next, Bydee recently launched their Casa Del Sol collection, which had pieces sell out within hours (rest assured, they’re now back in stock and available online). With no signs of slowing down, the swimwear brand has just teased “something new and exciting is coming very soon”.
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