Secrets From Your Sister
560 Bloor Street West 
Website
Phone: 416.538.1234
 Profile |
 Map |
Secrets From Your Sister, when it opened 10 years ago, simultaneously updated, expanded and dramatically improved the experience and selection when buying a bra in Toronto.
It's only getting better, and more accessible -- as they recently opened a sister location (chortle) at Yonge and Eglinton that complements their flagship store at Bloor and Bathurst.
I spoke with Jennifer Klein, owner of Secrets, about bras in general, and the Secrets From Your Sister approach specifically.
How is Secrets different from other Toronto bra boutiques?
We are different because we really focus on empowering women. All too often even when women are put in the right bra, they have no understanding of what to look for when shopping for their next one. Knowing the whys and hows of what makes a bra fit properly is knowledge that can be taken with you -- when you're shopping at another store, or when it's time to help a friend, or educate a daughter, or even a mother.
Our primary goal is to find the best bra for a woman's body, by adhering to the basics of bra fitting. In an industry run by manufacturers who like to only make bras to DD when they actually go to K cup, it is really important to show manufacturers what sizes sell!
We like to educate on fit, washing, storage and wear, and how to adjust the bra over time so your investment lasts longer. Working one on one with someone is really a treat. Undivided attention until your needs are met. Those are some things that make us stand out.
How many bras do you recommend a woman have? Of which types and colours?
Minimum 3. One light, one dark and one FUN!!!!! I cannot tell you how great it is to have a red bra! No one has to know you have it on but you. It puts a smile on your face when you get a peek of that secret hidden underneath!
How do Secrets employees learn about bras and bra fittings?
The ladies here go through an extensive training program that I designed. A 3-month minimum is required, sometimes more. We conduct additional special training to teach maternity fitting.
What are your favourite lines (right now)?
My favourite bras are European, British, French and German. For fuller cups I'd choose Empreinte and Prima Donna, for smaller cups Betsey Johnson and Chantelle.
Do you carry any local or Canadian brands?
Canada does not make good bras yet! They do not recognize all the sizes at this point. They are a very young industry but I see great things coming in the future.
Are there any styles or "bra technologies" you think are especially cutting-edge?
As far as new technology there are always going to be gimmicks to amuse the consumer. What I think is really important is to build on the memory foams, and the ability to have more convertible options in everyday t-shirt bras. I know this is boring but the cutting edge award will go to the company who can make a comfortable, seamless, convertible bra that is sexy!
I do have to say though that we have an amazing push up gel bra that feels like nothing when you have it on. It is convertible, seamless, low back and plunge. It's awesome!
What is the balance in your store between strictly bras, and general 'underthings'?
I like to have a bit of it all. Right now we carry about 80% bras, then panties, slips, sexy chemises and pjs, followed by hosiery and garter belts.
Where do you stand on trade-offs between affordability and quality?
Quality is number one. Why invest several times over when one quality item can do the job? A bra is an investment but an important one -- it is the base of your outfit, a structural garment. Your clothes will look amazing with the right bra! Breasts up and in, torso lengthened, good round shape, excellent posture and best of all confidence. You don't feel the need to slouch when the 'ladies' are well fit.
We already spend on shoes and glasses, and bras fit in that category as well. They are a highly engineered garment with a serious function. Try your best to find a good quality bra. Take proper care of it and you will see why you paid more!
But p.s.: There are options for those on a tight budget, we work with you and your needs and just explain the differences.
What prompted opening a second store at Yonge and Eglinton, and how are you finding the neighbourhood?
I had a customer clientele there, and their needs weren't being met the way they wanted. Our flagship location was extremely busy and I thought a shift would be warranted. I love the new neighborhood. The women are wonderful, warm, welcoming and incredibly supportive.
How do you know when a bra fits properly? When it doesn't? Any tips?
It's best to work with a fitter as every bra fits differently depending on style, cut, company, sizing etc. I cannot stress this enough. When there are over 100 sizes there is no room to mess around, no time, no money to waste!
If your wires rest flush against your breastbone when your breasts have been lifted into the cup and there is no spillage above or on the sides, that's first and second. The band needs to be snug, not tight, not loose -- snug to hold the bra to your body.
Your skin will appear above and below because you are wrapping elastic around your body. The snugness gives support, it relieves the shoulders from having to do all of the work. The band must rest parallel to the ground on the loosest set of hooks so you can ease the bra in as it stretches out.
Signs of a poor fit include if the bra rides up in the back; you always want to pull it down; the straps are digging in; there is a lot of looseness in the cup; or you feel back or neck pain.
Is there anything else you'd like us to know about Secrets?
We host Bra Fitting Parties which are a riot! The host of the party organizes friends, food and beverages, and all the women receive a discount of 15% on their purchases. The host gets more of a discount with every new party she brings in. The women can shop in an after hours environment, privately and have a really fun time. We have bridal parties, bosses bringing their female staff out, friends and family. It's a great experience.
We also sell gift cards which is a really good gift to offer a woman or girl. Our 'wishlist' system makes gift giving easy because you can find all the bras you like and their size, we'll document it so someone can come and shop for you!
All photographs of Secrets From Your Sister courtesy of Patrick Smith.
Comments (36)
I went for a fitting at Secrets From Your Sister a few weeks ago and it was an excellent experience! I will never go back to shopping at the Bay for bras(mainly because it turns out I'm not a DD but an F - another reason to pay SFYS a visit, you're almost certainly wearing the wrong size). The ones I picked up were costly but of incredible quality and easily the most beautiful things in my wardrobe. Service was excellent - friendly, comfortable, skilled and knowledgable. I am recommending them to all my girlfriends.
My wife is a size E and recently purchased 2 bras from the store which cost her about $100.00 each. This may seem high but I must say seeing her fitted right and wearing such wonderful well crafted garments was worth every dollar spent. My wife also finds bra shopping to be a terrifying experience and found shopping at SFYS to be so easy. I was really impressed and thankful on her behalf. Ladies treat yourself right and get yourself a quality under garment, you'll thank yourself for it as will your spouse or significant other. Good luck!
I also recommend Melmira Bra Boutique which is also on Yonge Street, North of Lawrence. I haven't yet shopped at SFYS but Melmira was a wonderful experience. It may be aimed at more of the older crowd, as comparably the decor at SFYS seems hip & flashy - whereas Melmira was a pretty calm experience. Prices are also around $100 per bra, but WELL worth it.
$100 for a bra (especially in a larger size) is not that expensive. I've paid $200 per bra at Sofia's on the Danforth. Even that was a good investment.
I would also recommend beestung lingerie also on yonge north of eglinton. they have a smaller selection but always carry my size (which I can never find at another store) and know their products well. i go back to them regularly.
I first got fitted at SFYS nearly five years ago, and it improved the quality of my life enormously. Wearing a bra that fits you properly makes your clothes look better and makes you feel better.
I've encouraged many friends to get fitted (all found they were in fact wearing the wrong sizes) and I'll never go back to buying one that "sortof" fits.
I myself have purchased bras at SFYS that have ranged from $50-$120.
I cannot emphasize enough to every woman -- get professionally fitted! You will not regret it.
When I go bra shopping in Toronto, SFYS is where I go. That being said, there are both positives and negatives to the experience.
Positive: Great fitters. I have an unusual size/proportion, and the people who work there have always done their best to figure out something that will work for me.
Negative: If I come back 2-4 weeks later with a specific bra and size in mind, they WILL NOT LET YOU BUY IT. Not without getting yet another fitting. For which there is generally a 10-20 minute wait, or has been any time I've been there. This is a pain in the neck.
Positive: Great selection in a range of sizes.
Negative: Great selection comes with a highly marked-up price tag. Be aware that you can get these bras online for half to one-third the price charged by SFYS. I tend to go to SFYS when I'm desperate, get fitted, buy 1-2 bras there and then stock up further by ordering online.
Honestly, I think that the marked-up price tag is what aggravates me the most. I understand that special size bras are a "premium" product. However, I don't understand why I should be paying so much more for the same item as I can by going online. It's not like wearing a bra is optional.
That being said ... SFYS is still a good, comfortable, well-stocked shop. If you are very large cup size (G, H or larger) then this is a good place to go to find something.
Bibi, I was just curious as to where you are buying your bras from online? The only place that I've found is barenecessities.com and once you add in the shipping and duty costs, the prices are pretty much the same. If you have any suggestions, they would be much appreciated!
I tend to find "gourmet bra" stores intimidating because I'm quite small-breasted, and most of these stores seem to target women with larger breasts. The mannequins alone make me feel like an eleven-year-old again. The small-cup bras I find in bra shops are often push-up or padded bras; there seems to be a dearth of bras available designed with the assumption that the wearer might actually be content with her breast size. I suppose the folk wisdom is that smaller-breasted women don't really need a bra, so if they use one it must be for vanity or something. But man...I do need a bra, I just don't need it to come with fake breasts.
Anyway, if it weren't for Bare Necessities' selection of darting-free bralettes, I'd be trotting around with a sore chest.
This is to Bibi.. I love secrets, yes they do have an amazing selection and an amazing staff who work there but I find the prices a little to pricey as well.. Where do you find your great deals on line? Your help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
I recognize that the staff there are trained, but the bra that I bought from them is one of the worst fitted bras I've bought. The salesgirl insisted that particular bra's "snug" (even worn at the furthest clasp) is the proper thing, but it turns out that it was too tight after actually wearing it for a couple hours (so much that I'd be light-headed from the pain). It was actually poorly support - as most of the support was only from the underneath, and it makes me look much worst that I did before.
After wasting a $100 on a bra that I'll never wear again, I wouldn't buy anything from Secrets again, no matter what rest of you girls say.
It wasn’t until I went to SFYS that I got fit in the right size bra, it became my favorite bra store.
But over the last few years the stores "empowering women" mandate has changed. The store has gotten pushy with customers to buy the more expensive bras. Right now they have "Operation Empreinte" happening in the store, which is pushing customers to buy Empreinte bra. It's a high quality bra; as in made well. I bought one, but it hurts after an hour. They said that would go away but it hasn’t
Jen the owner also can be quiet rude to customers and to her staff. SFYS is now also discontinuing low costing bra complete for the store, such as change, fitfully yours and other. My Fitfully Yours T-skirt bra is one of my favorites. But I can no longer buy it there. Also I took my friend would couldn’t afford an expensive bra. She left with nothing and quite upset because the sales girl told her no other bra looked good on her, but an empreinte bra. How is that empowering?
SFYS went from being a beloved store, to a store when I felt pushed in to making purchases I didn’t want. I will no longer shop there.
Oh and for buying online figleaves is great!
Last weekend I visited Secrets with my fiance. I was sorely disappointed. When I walked into the store not one of the sales person greeted me, or even made eye contact. I decided to look at the "selection" and asked my fiance's opinion on a few of the bra's; niether of us could tell whether they would look good on me, and of course, with no sales help I could not even try them on. Needless to say after a fruitless 15 minutes we left the store. I have never been treated so horribly and will not return.
SFYS is a good bra store with well trained and really lovely staff and a good selection to choose from. The main problem I have is with the owner Jen. I've seen her be outright rude and really 'b*tchy' to customers and have encountered this myself with her on a # of occasions. I generally try to shop at Tryst now. Their staff are lovely and I much prefer the customer service there.
It's a shame about SFYS's owner's attitude and idea of 'customer service' b/c in every other way, it's a great specialty store. (It is definitely pricey though)
This is a worse place to go to. The customer service is very poor and this is due to the attitude of the Manger of the store ( She has a British Accent).The sales people tend to fit people correctly, but if the bra that you like is not in the store, they try to give you a smaller fit to get there sales up. I was sold a number of bars that were not correctly fitted to my body. I had to go to my doctor. They refused even replace them with the right size of bra for me. I spent more than $400. So please be careful with what you buy here. It is a hit and a miss.
This is a worse place to go to. The customer service is very poor and this is due to the attitude of the Manger of the store ( She has a British Accent).The sales people tend to fit people correctly, but if the bra that you like is not in the store, they try to give you a smaller fit to get there sales up. This was my case; I spent more than $400 & had to go to the doctor.
A long time Secrets From Your Sister's customer I just wanted to address some of the negative misconceptions floating around here.
First, if you talk to your fitters you will learn that they do not work on commission, so they gain nothing from putting you 'into a smaller size to boost sales'. Yes I am paying more for a bra there than figleaves but I also know it fits everytime.
Disappointed Customer I was there last week, and they still carried Fitfully Yours Tee-shirt bras, at least in my size 32C, however they did inform me that this particular style was not the highest quality. I still love that bra though.
And finally I may be misinformed but I was told Operation Empriente was one time event, to make staff and customers more comfortable with that high end brand. It is not the best fit for me so I don't own one, but then again no one has ever pushed buying on me.
Anyways I love this store, I recommend spending more time talking with your fitter if you are confused about you particular fit, they are very knowledgeable and tend to be very patient, even with a picky shopper like me.
I am a big fan of SFYS and their service. I am a clothing boutique owner myself, and one thing to keep in mind in response to your comment is that the stores have to pay import costs on products brought in from other countries. Similarly, if you order online and ship home over a certain amount, you will be charged duty when it crosses the border. The stores are not making an astronomical profit but "marking up" the price tag; they are getting the same profit that any store gets from a standard retail markup after factoring in the import costs.
Furthermore, the service and expertise gained from SFYS staff comes free of charge. The staff have told me before that they don't work on commission, so if you are going to take an hour of their time and then buy online, you're contributing to those very long waits.
Just food for thought.
I've been going to SFYS for years, and recently I took my mum there to be fitted. She was very anxious about how much she would be spending, and convinced she was already wearing something that was good enough. She found one great wireless bra for about $100 that gave her a waistline and a good lift. I have to say I feel a little smug when she tells me it's comfortable all day long.
Sandra is right, the staff don't make commission, so I think you can trust that the advice they give you is backed by good intentions. And some of their bras are definitely pricey, but I've never paid more than $130 there and I'm usually a 34F (I was wearing a 38D before). Plus, they're imported. And it costs money to employ the girls who have been really kind and patient with me every time. I've stayed there for hourstrying on bras and they don't mind. And Bibi, they don't want you to buy it without trying it on because they know that sometimes the bras are cut differently. I've made that mistake before and I had to make an exchange.
I've dabbled in other stores, which are fine, but I have never been as consistently happy as I am with SFYS.
I shopped at SFYS once at the recommendation of an acquaintance. Big mistake! I got a Chantelle bra & a Shockabsorber sports bra. The sports bra fell apart after about 1.5 months. The Chantelle bra is still in one piece, but turned out not to be very comfortable for wearing all day. I spent a lot of money on these bras & didn't see the worth of it. I was truly miffed when I went to the Bay a couple months later & saw the exact same Shockabsorber bra there for about half the price! Watch out ladies!
FYI the staff do make commission, after they sell a certain number of bra they get a free bra. So you can't alway trust them. The owner also has one of her staff place fake" happy customer" feedback on post like these.
I think bra fitting is very important and every woman should get it done. I just don't support a business like SFYS because the owner is rude and has the worst customer service. Some of the staff are great. But in the end only the owner is profiting and I'd rather it go to another store.
Two things:
1/ Getting a free bra and getting commission (ie a percentage of sales) is a pretty different thing. A free bra means that the staff continue to wear and promote properly fitting bras. At the end of the day, they are still retail employees most likely earning a normal hourly wage which is not necessarily conducive to buying a high end bra every few months.
2/ Since when does being rewarded for selling products make a person untrustworthy? It's a pretty pesimistic way of looking at the world. These girls don't get tips or a percentage of sales despite the fact that they are providing a wonderful service to women, sometimes spending upwards of an hour with an individual. You tip your waiter for giving a good service, why not think of this free bra system as a way of tipping the hard-working fitters... only at no additional cost to you!
I wanted to comment on the "putting you in smaller sizes to boost sales" comment. How does that make any sense? I am a customer of different bra shops in toronto, not only secrets. When I can't find what I want I move around. Nothing to do with the service, sometimes I just want a different bra from that season and being a hefty 38gg i cant be too picky.
It doesn't make any sense that they would put you into a smaller size to boost sales. Women aren't stupid, and they know that something is uncomfortable. And will not stand for it when it is as costly as a bra.
If they wanted to make more money and boost sales they would put you in the correct size, and kiss up to you so you would come back with friends... Putting someone in a smaller size does nothing but hurt the customer and the business. It doesn't make any sense.
You can buy bra's online at www.figleaves.com. You will save at least 40% of the high priced bras at secrets from your sister. Its easy and I do it all the time. I used to go to sfys but had such a bad experience with the Bloor st. manager that I refuse to go back. I enjoy Beestung on Yonge St. There are so many bra fitting places in the city, I rather spend my money somewhere else.
I totally agree...and I've also been treated rudely and poorly at the Bloor St. I think a course in customer service would help both the owner and the manager of that store. I would also recommend that certain staff quit smoking or something because theres nothing worse then trying on bra's with a sales person that reeks of stale cigarette smoke! ew
do you have to pay to get a fitting? say you want to go in and find out your bra size but wont definitely buy a bra after, does it cost anything?
In response to Aggie, absolutely not. Fittings are complementary, and we still offer the service if you don't think you will be making a purchase that. I would say to let your fitter know that your primary goal of the day is to be fit, and understand sizing, that way you both make the best use of your time.
Also Aggie we love to set up wishlists. When we create a customer file, any style that you tried on that day, that fit you well, that for whatever reason is no a option for you to purchase that day,we can 'wishlist' for you, recording in our system your size, style, and color preference. That way for yourself, and should anyone ever need to pick up a gift for you,the information is already there.
You all should be aware the SFYS keeps a file on you in their computer. They make notes commenting on you creating negative and often false judgments on customers. Did you disagree with a fitter? You will be branded as "confrontational". Sounds like the FBI, not a retail store!
RSS