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Victoria's Secret in Bra Brawl with Single Mom
By
Jen Carlson
Published Apr 22, 2008
Modified Apr 22, 2008
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Apr 22, 2008
Modified Apr 22, 2008
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Like Kramer and Frank Costanza before her, Katerina Pew designed a bra made just for her -- except her biggest problem wasn't naming it (the Bro? The Manzier?). The 38-year-old struggling, single mom was sick and tired of bra straps, but her bra-making brainstorm only resulted in a lawsuit against Victoria's Secret after they allegedly stole her idea.
Pew thought of the idea in 1999 and materialized it a year later, saying of her design (pictured at top): "It's a versatile bra. You can wear it over 100 ways." After she patented her product, she sent a copy of the design to Victoria's Secret and had a meeting set up with the company in 2006. On her way to that meeting the company canceled and, voila!, soon after came out with their new "Very Sexy 100-way strapless convertible bra."
After seeing it in the store, Pew filed a patent-infringement lawsuit in Manhattan federal court, saying they stole her idea for the bold new brassiere; and in order to compare the two in preparation for her lawsuit, she even had to buy one (at 60 bucks a pop)! She is now seeking an unspecified amount in the lingerie litigation. Who will go down in history as the 100-way bra maker?
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100 ways
bra
Katerina Pew
lawsuit
lingerie
patent
victoria's secret
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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