Meet Lucy Bramley, founder of Ruched & Ready

My name is Lucy Bramley and I'm the founder of Ruched & Ready, one of the UK's leading size inclusive fashion labels helping women embrace their curves and feel confident.

There's always a lightbulb moment before the beginning of a new venture. What was that moment for you?

Before starting Ruched & Ready I really struggled to find good quality plus size fashion that was flattering, particularly in partywear. I had a busy working and social life and loved getting dressed up but nothing on the market felt like it had been designed to flatter or celebrate the plus size woman. It got to the point where I was spending a fortune buying two of the same dress that I could take to a seamstress to cut in two to add length and adjust the fit to flatter my shape. I didn't think plus size women should have to go to such lengths so decided I would launch Ruched & Ready, one of the few plus size partywear labels designed with the plus size girl in mind. 

What inspired you to launch your business and what is the end goal?

Prior to launching the business it really felt like so many plus size options were an extension of the smaller sizes with little consideration to how each design would look on a plus size woman, or make her feel. I didn't want other plus size women like myself to feel uncomfortable in a poorly fitted dress that hadn't been designed for their shape. I had been working at Very.co.uk, and ShopDirect for several years before launching the business and was even running a side hustle fashion label with a friend. I felt so passionately about helping other women like me that I sold my half of the business to launch Ruched & Ready in 2019 and it's been a whirlwind since then. The ultimate goal for Ruched & Ready is to become the first choice fashion destination for the curve girl where she can shop everything from partywear to everyday basics that enhance figures and make her feel unstoppable! At the moment we have sell-out partywear and shapewear collections however we are moving into exciting new ranges so watch this space!

What does your business offer its target audience?

Ruched & Ready offers its customers a wide variety of gorgeous partywear and shapewear, all designed with the curve girl in mind. We have worked to develop styles which would look incredible on a wide range of body shapes and sizes (sizes UK 8-20.) Our designs flatter, hug curves and ruche in the right places. We have incorporated double lined super soft stretch fabrics across maxi dresses, waist cinching co-ords and pieces with drawstrings for an adjustable length in both timeless colours, gorgeous bright shades and exclusive prints. Every piece is designed by me and every sample is fitted on me to ensure every aspect is perfect for a plus size woman. 

What’s the most common problem your customers approach you with?

We've had a lot of customers come to us to tell us they don't feel confident enough to wear dresses, or show certain parts of their body like their arms or legs. We really want to help them gain confidence and once they try our dresses the feedback has been incredible. They love the designs and they make them feel confident and comfortable. We also always try to normalise wearing shapewear. Many find it shameful but I preach it all day! They smooth you over and give your body that smooth finish with no lumps and bumps. Personally it gives me so much confidence and I wear them under all my dresses!

How do you set yourself apart from other businesses in your industry?

All our designs and samples are fitted on me, I am a UK 14-16 so all my samples are fitted based on a curvier figure and then graded down. Industry standard is to fit on a UK 10 and then grade sizing up, this is why sometimes you will find flaws and feel the fit isn’t quite right in bigger sizes as it's been fitted on a UK 10 fit model. I am very passionate about the fit of our designs and it can sometimes take four to five samples to perfect. We don't budget on pricing when it comes to creating the perfect fit with our suppliers as it's so important to the brand that the fit, detail and fabric are right.

With all the success stories around entrepreneurship and how innovative people have to be to take the leap. How do you think you’ve innovated your sector and why?

My brand is very much based around body confidence, design and fitting from experience, how the outfit makes you feel and how we can improve the quality of fabrics to give you that confidence in an outfit. I know my brand is unique because I am the trial and error curve girl who has struggled with brands for years and finding clothing that makes you feel nice and confident has not been easy. I am no longer that girl who wears a dress and feels uncomfortable because the dress is too short and riding up as I walk, my dresses will never do that because they have been designed to embrace and support a curvier figure. I don’t believe there are many other brands who really care about the curvier market as much as I do because I know how it feels to be that girl who wants to be confident but doesn’t feel it due to an ill fitting dress. I was always the girl walking into stores and hearing "Sorry our biggest size is 12-14" and feeling let down and that I was the problem, that I needed to lose weight to fit into certain clothes. All the things I've been through have pushed me into building my brand for me and also other women and my customers.

What plans do you have for Ruched & Ready over the next two years?

In September we are very excited to be launching a ‘Basics’ collection which really focuses on snatching your figure and holding you while still being super comfortable and supporting curves. I can't wait to take the brand to the next level and expand our product range. I saw an influencer who I follow recently ask in a Q&A "Can anyone recommend bodysuits for us curvy girls that don’t suffocate your private parts?" I replied straight away and said ‘AND THIS IS WHY RUCHED & READY is launching Basics!!’ It's so needed! We are always looking at new areas where we can help curvy women feel their absolute best! Watching that evolve in the market will be really fun!

What social media channel would you say has worked the best for your business and why?

Definitely Instagram. We launched in September 2019 but then when Covid came in February 2020 so many people were needing to stay at home with little need to get dressed up. Our brand is so focused on dresses and 'going out' I knew that trying to push the brand at that time wasn't appropriate. Once we came out of the first lockdown, the beautiful Maya Jama wore a Ruched & Ready dress out to dinner in London. She got photographed wearing it and tagged and mentioned us in an Instagram story. Our Instagram following started building back up and we are now at 50k+ followers. The introduction of Reels has also really helped us reach new customers and followers. The videos really bring the brand to life and help give the customer a better understanding of the fit and fabric of the pieces and how to style them up.

Why do you think your business has had such a positive impact across your industry?

I really believe that a lot of brands are focusing on pushing body confidence and using curve models just to tick a box. I know my brand is having a true impact because of all the positive feedback we get from customers about how our pieces make them feel. As a UK 14-16 myself we have customers who can look at me and see a confident woman which can inspire them to be confident too and get ideas on how to wear our pieces and how to style them. I've always been a very confident person but I realise that being a bit bigger or curvy can mean that you don't always have that confidence and you can start comparing yourself to other people.

I think my business has really given a positive message that you can be confident and curvy, and there are little things you can do that can make you feel even more confident. If you don't want to show your arms for example, we have long sleeve dresses. It might seem unusual to wear long sleeves in the summer but that's what makes our customer feel confident then that's what we are going to provide them. Our designs aren't dictated by what's currently on the market. Every design decision always focuses on the curve girl. We want them to feel happy and confident whether they are on holiday, a night out or on a date night. I'm really proud at how positive the brand has come across and how it's making our customers feel. So I'm going to keep going and really hope that it continues to change the industry in a good way.