Continuing my quest to finish the older items on my NetGalley TBR, here is one that, shamefully, I downloaded in September 2021 (it’s not the one I’ve had the longest, but it is the oldest publication on there). Every now and again, when I’ve finished my reads published in the current month, I’m picking one of these up.
Lisa Z. Lindahl – “Unleash the Girls: The Untold Story of the Invention of the Sports Bra and How It Changed the World (And Me)”
(25 September 2021; NetGalley)
I just find it so fascinating, and truly ironic, that the sports bra – a true gift to girls and omen – was to a great degree born out of such a contentious relationship between two women. It was powerful fuel for my own inner search and growth.
That quotation sums up the book, really. It’s a blow-by-blow account of Lisa’s, plus colleagues Polly and Hinda’s invention and development of the sports bra in the 1970s and the subsequent ins and outs of the company they formed to take it to market in the 70s and 80s. Very much of their time, Lisa, at least, concentrates on being woman-centric and personal growth, where Hinda is more confrontational and competitive. This leads to what sounds like a horrible environment for both them and their eventual employees, with disagreements and shouting and an eventual grudging acceptance of their different ways of doing things (Polly gets bought out early on but is still a presence in Lisa’s life), which then fractures again when they sell the company.
It’s interesting on the growth of “jogging” in the US and the mechanics of setting up manufacturing and sales, but there are also a lot of musings on the nature of power and women’s personal growth. Lisa has lived with epilepsy her whole life and it’s fascinating to read her insights into how that has affected both her personal life and her business practices. We do get an update on what happened next, and it’s an interesting story to read. There are reproductions of adverts and business documentation in the middle of the book which add to it, and are now archived in the Smithsonian!
Thank you to BooksGoSocial for approving me to read this book via NetGalley and apologies for taking so long to do so. “Unleash the Girls” was published on 9 September 2019.
Adventures in reading, running and working from home 
May 21, 2023 @ 16:02:33
Oh, sounds fascinating Liz – and probably quite a snapshot of the time when all of this happened!
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May 21, 2023 @ 16:43:38
It was interesting, although there was a lot about their battles!
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May 22, 2023 @ 08:05:24
Wow, what a fascinating memoir to read … I’m intrigued, not that I’ve ever really needed a sports bra but I do remember their appearing in the advertising and shops!
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May 22, 2023 @ 08:17:50
Oh, brilliant – they’ve always been there for me so I didn’t really think about how they started off. It’s such a 70s story, as well, three hippy women trying to run a business but be, like, all about self-empowerment and working together as women …
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May 22, 2023 @ 09:59:16
This one sounds fascinating, Liz! Had never given much thought to sports bras’ origins, but this sounds like a really interesting memoir.
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May 22, 2023 @ 10:07:57
It was also interesting in terms of it being set against such a different business environment, in the 70s, run by hippies!
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May 22, 2023 @ 14:34:45
I can maybe see why the subject matter isn’t an immediate wow factor. But important neverthless. Thank you for this Liz. I imagine they haven’t sent any of the first bras to a Museum somewhere! Haha. I remember thinking they were odd when they first arrived on the scene.
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May 22, 2023 @ 14:57:26
As a runner, the sports bra topic is why I picked it up – the ins and outs of infighting while trying to develop their personal selves 70s-style was the less-appealing aspect for me. And, in fact, the bras and documentation are all in the Smithsonian! They had to ask people to return originals to archive as they sold them all without thinking at first!
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May 22, 2023 @ 17:55:58
Not being the target audience I probably shouldn’t throw my tuppence halfpenny into the discussion, but still: I salute the fact that this particular form of liberation for physically active women the world over was conceived and promoted by women and doubtless appreciated for that.
With a wife and daughters who use/have used sports bras I know they’ve given them the freedom, confidence and independence needed to do what they enjoy and profit from.
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May 23, 2023 @ 06:41:57
I wouldn’t imagine they’d want to exclude chaps from reading the book so all good here! Yes, the bras are revolutionary and the story of how they developed them is pretty extraordinary. I agree wholeheartedly that they have allowed girls and women to exercise happily and comfortably and get all the benefits thereof. And yes, it is great they were designed by women, for women, and it shouldn’t be particularly disappointing that the two women who ran the company were constantly at odds, but they and I felt it was!
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May 23, 2023 @ 00:18:30
I didn’t realized that sports bra was invented since the 70s; I thought it’s more recent than that. We tend to take everything for granted, and never think about how certain things were first invented – the struggles, etc. What an inspiring read this must have been for you!
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May 23, 2023 @ 06:44:26
There was a massive craze for “jogging” in the late 70s and 80s, so it makes sense that more women were running and needed this. But you’re right, I just took them for granted and didn’t think or know when they were invented. As for inspiring, one thing it made me glad about is that I run my business on my own!
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May 25, 2023 @ 18:01:19
It’s always interesting to hear about women’s liberation, and this one is a slightly different take on that topic. Lisa sounds like an inspiring woman.
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May 25, 2023 @ 19:13:22
It was really interesting to read about women in business, although they were SO 70s, complete with yoga classes in the office!
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