Secrets of the boudoir: M&S lingerie

It may have been no accident that Soozie Jenkinson started work around Valentine’s Day in 1994, and this February the designer celebrates 20 years at the helm of lingerie at Marks & Spencer.

Jenkinson, who originally trained as a fashion designer, confesses that she fell in love with lingerie production from day one and adores working with heritage lace and embroidery companies. When she’s a parties her occupation turns into a hot topic. “I always get a reaction,” she tells me on a conference call from London.

“Most women are fascinated and want to and talk about the lingerie they love, or something they bought recently. Men are fascinated by the complexity and engineering. When you tell them there are 26 component parts in a bra, you are stepping into science and technology,” she says.

She works with Dubliner Pascal Little, head of quality and innovation and this summer they will launch a new and improved Light as Air bra, the lightest M&S has ever produced.

She points out that while the average bra size is getting bigger – up from 34B to 36D – garments, even briefs, are getting lighter and more like a second skin thanks to developments in technology. Sheer, lightweight fabrics combining performance and function are currently powering one of the most significant trends, the return of non-padded bras in all cup sizes.

Similar changes are happening in everyday shapewear with women looking for softer control and smoother seams – high performance fabrics embellished with lace. When I ask how Penneys can produce good bras for much less, a mystery voice on the phone interrupts: “We don’t comment on other retailers,” the voice says. It turns out that this is a member of the M&S PR department there to make sure that no intimate secrets of the design or sales process are divulged.

Most will agree, that when it comes to sports bras, M&S is in the premier league. “It used to be very functional – an area fashion wouldn’t touch, but since we launched Gym Slim, which supports and sculpts, it means you can look great while working out – you can show off in the locker room,” Jenkinson says.

Sleepwear is becoming more popular as a fashion category, with items such as silk “boyfriend” pyjamas (from Rosie Huntington Whiteley’s collection) and seductive alternatives to traditional dressing gowns including cashmere tunics or shrugs.

I’m curious as to how many dressing gowns M&S sells every year, but the same voice interrupts again. “We don’t give sales figures”. Right.

For spring/summer, long-line bras and higher waist knickers which M&S calls “the season’s essentials” shorten the gap around the waist, which may be good news for some.

Jenkinson argues that every woman should have at least five bras to cater for different occasions – a T-shirt bra (designed to be discreet and invisible), a sports bra (for yoga and workouts), a multi-way number using memory foam (to deal with different necklines in summer) and something glamorous for special occasions. “And it’s important to have a bit of fun – like floral prints to bring out your femininity.”

Overseeing more than 500 styles in the M&S range, she has to keep a close eye on trends worldwide. One collection that had a powerful influence was Marc Jacob’s autumn/winter 2013 for Louis Vuitton, with its lace-edged negligees and silk bras, its floral prints and antique shades.

Modern lingerie’s real foundation lies in that mix of fantasy and reality, as outerwear according to Jenkinson, becomes “more elegant, more pared back, more feminine.”