Caledon authors embrace entrepreneurial spirit with new bathing suit line

Written By ALYSSA PARKHILL

A pair of local authors are trying their hand at entrepreneurship, launching a new bathing suit line that caters to older women. 

Best friends of 10 years, Velvet Haney and Rachel Manley were lounging with a couple drinks in hand, reminiscing on their days of wearing bikinis and enjoying the summer in their younger years, when they came up with an idea that changes the game for older women who want to cover their “jiggling bits and bumps”. 

From that - simple drawing on a napkin after a brief chat, and a business was born.

As the pair describe on their website, “Our suits are different – they cover your arms and legs with a cinched midsection disguised by a flowing top. Our goal is to help woman feel comfortable in their swimwear no matter where they are or what they are doing. Whether you are lounging by the side of the pool with a cocktail, sitting beach side for lunch, or washing the dog, we want you to feel dignified, stylish and confident.” 

They launched their suits last year in July, but struggled to gain traction. A recent article published in Zoomer magazine has helped bring them into the spotlight in recent weeks.

“We started getting orders out of dead silence for so long. This article made it come along,” explained Haney. “Some of the ladies have been saying exactly why Rachel, my partner, and I, came up with this idea, because we were shy about sitting around on the dock or whatever in a bathing suit. Believe me, when I was young, I was the first person in a bikini. It's just time to be realistic.”

Both authors and successful in their previous careers, their new journey has just begun with the Bathing Boomers. 

“We created it for ourselves, something that we wanted. The design took a lot of trial and error I initially drew sort of an idea on a cocktail napkin in a bar when we came up with the idea. Then we went to a person who makes bathing suits in Toronto, and she made up a prototype for us,” explained Haney. “We just went from there, and it has been a long process because I really had no idea what I was doing.”

Haney and her husband moved to a farmhouse in Caledon from their previous home in Toronto, where her basement has turned into her office, with racks of bathing suits waiting to be shipped. 

“We didn't expect this. We were only able to put in a certain amount of money, we were only able to order three different sizes and three different colours. We've had a lot of people ask for a smaller sizes or larger sizes, and I would definitely like to get our next order to increase that and maybe more colours or designs,” said Haney. “That's what we're right in the middle of trying to figure out.”

Their journey has just begun, and the ladies are hoping to broaden their business to cater to different shapes and sizes in the near future. For the time being, they are still learning about their business and how to take Bathing Boomers farther. 

“It just started off as a little drunken dream and we really wanted to make it work,” said Haney. 

For more information about Bathing Boomers and how to order, please visit bathingboomers.ca.