Maidenform

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Maidenform is a brand of women's underwear, founded in 1922 by seamstress Ida Rosenthal, her husband William Rosenthal, and Enid Bissett who owned the shop that employed her. They rebelled against the flat-chested designs of the time and instead produced both dresses and support undergarments, particularly bras that accentuated the natural shape of a woman's figure, hence the name Maidenform.

The company was founded in Bayonne, New Jersey. Although no manufacturing facilities remain in Bayonne, the company's headquarters are still located there. In April or May of 2007 the company's headquarters will be moved to a new location in Woodbridge NJ.

After going through a long restructuring effort at the end of the 1990s and early 2000s, Maidenform became a publicly traded company in July, 2005.

[edit] Notable advertising

An imaginary situation of a partially undressed dream was exploited in Maidenform's advertising in the 1950s and 1960s - "I dreamed I was...[ doing some ordinary activity]... in my Maidenform bra."[1], with an illustration of the person wearing only underwear in a public place, and appearing proud and cheerful, rather than ashamed or embarrassed.