Twins create a 'breast lift in a box' tape which celebrities love
Celebrities go wild for £12.99 ‘breast lift in a box’ tape – created by twin sisters who are now making £1million a year
- Samantha Ryder and Charlotte Ryder, 28, Cheshire, started business in 2015
- Saw gap in the market when Samantha couldn’t find comfortable breast lift tape
- Celebrities Holly Willoughby and Lucy Mecklenburgh wear their products
Twin sisters have created a ‘breast lift in a box’ tape which celebrities such as Holly Willoughby and Lucy Mecklenburgh love – and now the sisters are making £1million a year from their business.
Sisters Samantha Ryder and Charlotte Ryder, 28, from Cheshire, started their business Perky Pear back in 2015 after they saw a gap in the market for tape which held bigger breasts up when not wearing a bra.
They started to develop the product, after Samantha, who has size E cup breasts couldn’t find breast lift tape that made her feel comfortable when she wanted to wear a dress or top without a bra.
Now celebrities such as a Holly Willoughby and Lucy Mecklenburgh are among the fans of their 12.99 pear shaped breast tape, which is stocked in online retailers – including Pretty Little Thing.
Here they reveal exclusively to Femail how they developed the product and how it became so successful, giving them a £1 million turnover this year.
Holly Willoughby’ stylist bought £200 worth of the twins’ products before she appeared at the The ITV Gala in 2017
Charlotte said about the launch of the business: ‘Samantha was 24 and had bought a variety of breast lift tapes and adhesive bras that were available online and in-stores at the time.
‘Samantha is an E cup and found that she was left feeling disappointed by what was available, and she wasn’t getting a lift or a nice shape from the products because they were uncomfortable and would even sweat off.
‘She went on the hunt to find a comfortable, lightweight and breathable material which then meant she could begin to develop the product before registering the company in 2016. Samantha then perfected the design so that the products didn’t just lift but also created a nice rounded, perky shape!
After many design tweaks, the Perky Pear® Lift & Shape Tape was born. The website launched in 2017 and then Charlotte, who had been working in the property world, joined the business.
Lucy Mecklenburgh is also a fan of Perky Pears for when she wears low cut tops or dresses
The twins admit that since they started the business demand has been strong for their product
Since they launched they have developed a whole range of breast lift tape styles, which start at £12.99 – making the business the world’s largest breast lift tape collection for A-G Cups.
‘Our aim was to create a breast lift tape which delivered results similar to a surgical breast lift, in one single step application for all cup sizes,’ Samantha said.
‘We also wanted a comfortable, breathable and long-lasting product which women would actually enjoy wearing, whatever their size.
The entrepreneurs revealed that the design works to well because of their tape technology and pear shape design.
Samantha, who had studied art throughout her life, attending art school after secondary education and then going on to gain a First-Class degree in Design and Marketing, designed the the product, as well as the website and print materials from scratch
Since they launched they have developed a whole range of breast lift tape styles, which start at £12.99 – making the business the world’s largest breast lift tape collection for A-G Cups.
Relaity TV star Vicky Pattison is a a big fan of the brand and poses (pictured) with one of the tapes
While Charlotte, who studied law and media used her combination of skills from contract creating, networking, media, design and marketing to help run a successful business.
Samantha says about the design: ‘Without giving away too many trade secrets, the products were developed over the course of a year, before the website launched.’
Samantha perfected the design through a year-long testing and development process that involved sourcing the material and adapting it for purpose.
‘We had to protect nine other variations of the shape and obtain the correct IP rights which was a crucial part of the process. We then sourced a factory within the UK to help finalise production. We are proud to say that the products and manufacturing process are fully controlled here in the UK, with more recent expansion to the US,’ Samantha says.
Ex-Love island contestant Malin Andersson shows how well the tape lifts the breasts, wearing one on her right breast and leaving the other one loose
Like most businesses today the women say that social media was paramount at the start when they were building the business.
Charlotte said: ‘We created all social media platforms six months before our website launched to give us the chance to build momentum and create a buzz.
‘By the time the website went live we had already obtained more than 4,000 sign ups who were waiting for our stock to go live! We also held an amazing launch party in Manchester city centre with celebrity attendees that created a buzz in the media.
‘Within two weeks we had attracted the attention of retailer Pretty Little Thing, who we welcomed as our first global stockist – it snowballed from there!
The twins say that they knew the business was doing well when they got investment from from the US
‘Social media is a great tool for any new business, but when you have a product that can help women look and feel good in styles they may have previously avoided, you know that women will be grateful to hear from you, celebrity or not!’
They admit that they built up a small celebrity following quite quickly and gifted them to celebrities who were interested in trying their products helped us
‘They then fell in love with the products and wanted to work with us. We have many celebrity stylists who use our products including Lucy Mecklenburgh’s stylist, they all seem very well connected so word spreads,’ Samantha said.
‘Holly Willoughby’s stylist, Angie Smith, once spent over £200 on our products right before the ITV Gala where Holly wore a black plunge dress!
The women admit that they built up a small celebrity following quite quickly- including Holly Willoughby
The twins say that they knew the business was doing well when they got investment from from the US.
Charlotte said: ‘We knew we had built a successful business and with the investment we could now push forward to new heights. We have recently opened up our first US fulfillment centre so that our American and Canadian customers can receive their products faster.
‘We are also in the process of setting up our production over in the states to keep up with demand as the US has always been our second largest market. We welcomed two new directors onto our board in the summer and are proud to say that we are all women and three out of four of us are under 30.’
However, with success comes copycats – which is a hard thing for them both to see, especially after how hard they’ve worked: We anticipated that it might happen but seeing your images all over the internet advertising something that is not your product is always difficult,’ Samantha admits.
The twins love working together and said that its great to have another pair of hands and a version of themselves around
‘Luckily our Intellectual property rights are strong, and we like to think on the positive side and take it as a compliment that people are willing to try and replicate what we do.
Charlotte went on to say: ‘We created a shift within our category as we filled a gap within the market when we launched Perky Pear®.
‘At the time of the launch, people were still using silicone or plastic based products or even strapping tape up around their shoulders so we’re also quite proud to be the seen as the brand that people are trying to replicate. I’d say that has been one of the hardest things we have had to deal with.
Most of us wouldn’t dare work with our families, but the business women think otherwise: ‘Working with your sister is great, especially when you are twins! Everyone wishes that they had another pair of hands or another version of themselves to get things done and luckily, we have.
Geri Halliwell is said to be a fan of the women’s product – which allows you to not wear a bra
‘Two heads are better than one and we love bouncing ideas off each other as we are always on the same wavelength. It does bring its challenges – we would be lying if we said it didn’t, but the pros definitely outweigh the cons.
‘Plus, since starting the company we now have our mum and my fiancé working at the company,’ Samantha admits.
The twins admit that since they started the business demand has been strong for their product: ‘On a normal month we have upwards of 10,000 units leaving our warehouse – that’s 40,000 ‘pears’ as each pack contains two pairs (of ‘pears’),’ Samantha says.
‘We are in the process of taking on more and more retailers too, so we have just commissioned our first UK logistics centre who can deal with the demand moving forward.’
Sisters Samantha Ryder and Charlotte Ryder, 28, from Cheshire, started their business Pearky Pears back in 2015 after they saw a gap in the market for tape which held bigger breasts up when not wearing a bra
Last year saw the girls have a turnover of £400,000, but this year, because of a 200% sales increase their turnover is just under £1 million.
‘This has all been organic growth as we only started advertising in August this year,’ Samantha said.
While their next steps are to grow further in the US and to start appearing physically in-stores, and not just online.
‘Our directors are well connected in the USA with contacts like Ulta and Saks Fifth Avenue, so we have big plans over the next year to grow,’ Charlotte admitted.
‘We are also looking to take on brand ambassadors and have exciting partnerships coming up with well-known celebrities alongside our very first TV advert for our #NOSTYLEOFFLIMITS campaign which is currently in production and due to air on ITVBe in the new year.
While Samantha has some advice for wannabe entrepreneurs: ‘Take the leap! It’s scary, but as long as you have a great support network and you are passionate about what it is you are doing, you will succeed!
‘From day one we fully believed that we were going to make a success of the business – our drive was huge because we wanted to provide women with great solutions, so our motives weren’t just money related; we wanted to give women the confidence to wear what they want!
‘Passion in what you are doing, determination and a strong work ethic are all required so if you have that, you’ve got what it takes!
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