Free shipping on orders $85+ ✨ Shop now

How we work

Our Guide to Community-First Design

We want to give the underwear industry back to real people and forget the one-body narrative that has plagued this business for so long. In talking to some of our community members, it turns out many are starting businesses in sustainable fashion. So, we thought it might be helpful if we shared what we’ve learned along the way as we built Parade.

Our Product teams come from some pretty big companies in fashion and apparel design (we won’t name them). At these traditional places, they pick one model (a size medium cis gender “base size” person) and scale the design up or down based on that size. This approach doesn’t take into account different needs that come with having different bodies – so we created a different process.

Download the Guide

“We released ourselves from the idea that each garment should fit the “same place” on everyone. Instead, we adapted to the comfort that fit best on each body type.” – Adriana Lewis, Technical Design Lead

Community First Design

  • Find your “Community.”

    Talk to real people, wherever they are. And always ask -- who isn't in the room that needs to be?

  • Design with more people in mind.

    We use more fit models, expand "base" sizes and deeply engage community to understand how they feel in the product -- not just how it fits.

  • Really listen.

    Truly listen to the people who are wearing what you’ve designed. It sounds easy, but it might mean checking your ego and what you “think” is right. Turn what you hear into actual product improvements.

  • Try new things.

    We wanted to keep what makes Parade unique – comfort, fit, sustainability and fun – but adapt these attributes for new people who might be wearing us for the first time.

A short list of what we added to New:Cotton styles based on community feedback:

  • Styles that are playful and cute – not just either oversized and sexless or super sexy.
  • Colors that went beyond primary and basics. Give us the Passionfruit!
  • A balance between traditionally masc and femme styles within the collection – designed for the best expression of yourself today.
  • No adjustable slides on the Micro Cami straps.
  • Give the people the Flex High Rise Thong!
  • We didn’t need a pouch, just double-lined for support.
  • We didn’t need a functional flap in the Boxer.
  • Underwear that works as a low-rise and as a high-rise

More to learn.

This is just the beginning – of our new styles, our new ways to design for more people and of sharing what we know with you all. Check out the Guide to Community-First Design to learn more about how we design at Parade.

Download