Former VC Quits to Replace the Underwire Bra, Now Nordstrom's Fastest-Growing Brand

Bree McKeen left her Silicon Valley job to solve a personal problem and ended up disrupting the $60 billion global bra market.

Mar. 29, 2026 at 9:55am by Ben Kaplan

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Bree McKeen, founder of Evelyn & Bobbie, left her venture capital job in Silicon Valley to try to fix a personal problem - the discomfort of wearing traditional underwire bras. With no fashion experience, she filed for a patent and developed a new bra design that provides support and lift without the pain of underwires. Evelyn & Bobbie is now the fastest-growing brand at Nordstrom, challenging major players in the $60 billion global bra market.

Why it matters

The underwire bra design has remained largely unchanged for nearly a century, despite the discomfort it causes many women. McKeen's innovation highlights the potential for disruption in a massive consumer market that has been dominated by a few major players. Her success also demonstrates the value of protecting intellectual property, especially for women-led companies, which receive a disproportionately low share of patents.

The details

After experiencing chronic pain and tension headaches from wearing underwire bras while working long hours at a VC firm, McKeen decided to try to find a solution. She filed for a patent and developed a new bra design using 3D-sling technology that provides support and lift without the discomfort of underwires. Evelyn & Bobbie now holds 16 international patents protecting its proprietary EB Core technology. The brand designs its bras using 270 fit models across seven sizes, rather than just scaling up from a single sample, to ensure a better fit for a range of body types. Evelyn & Bobbie bras retail for $98 each, positioning comfort as a new luxury in the bra market.

  • In 1931, inventor Helene Pons was granted a U.S. patent for the underwire bra design that has largely remained unchanged for nearly a century.
  • McKeen left her venture capital job in Silicon Valley to start working on a solution to the discomfort of traditional underwire bras.
  • Evelyn & Bobbie filed for its first works utility patent within a year of McKeen starting the company.

The players

Bree McKeen

The founder of Evelyn & Bobbie, a bra company that has become the fastest-growing brand at Nordstrom. McKeen left her venture capital job to develop a new bra design that provides support and lift without the discomfort of underwires.

Helene Pons

The inventor who was granted a U.S. patent for the underwire bra design in 1931, which has largely remained unchanged for nearly a century.

Evelyn & Bobbie

A bra company founded by Bree McKeen that has developed a new bra design using 3D-sling technology to provide support and lift without the discomfort of underwires. Evelyn & Bobbie is now the fastest-growing brand at Nordstrom.

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What they’re saying

“Here I am doing all this work to carry myself with authority and poise, and my bra, I find out, is totally doing the opposite. You don't have to tell your body to curl around the pain. It just does.”

— Bree McKeen, Founder, Evelyn & Bobbie

“Comfort is the new luxury. We spend money on yoga pants that make us look and feel great. I'm going to make the premium bra the bra of the future.”

— Bree McKeen, Founder, Evelyn & Bobbie

What’s next

Evelyn & Bobbie is currently developing a new line of sports bras that will incorporate the company's patented 3D-sling technology.

The takeaway

Bree McKeen's success in disrupting the $60 billion global bra market by developing a more comfortable and supportive bra design highlights the potential for innovation in a mature consumer product category that has been dominated by a few major players for decades. Her story also demonstrates the importance of protecting intellectual property, especially for women-led companies, in order to secure funding and scale a business.