SOL Takes Europe by Storm: 2013!

It's that time of year once again! This year's buying trip first brings us to Schellebelle, Belgium. This gorgeous little city is home to Van de Velde, the company responsible for some of your favorite brands:Marie Jo, PrimaDonna, Twist, and L'Aventure. 

Check out our Facebook page for up-to-the-minute updates, sneak peaks, and our miscellaneous finds during our travels! 

The next step on our European adventure? Paris, the City of Lights! Our agenda includes visiting vendors and attending SIL, Salon International de la Lingerie (plus some seriously amazing food and wine!). And don't get me wrong -- I love LOVE Denver but Paris steals my heart every time I visit!

Au revoir!
Cindy

More from Paris - Guest post from Jocelyn

Today's post is from Jocelyn, the amazing Buyer at SOL. She's been with us on several Paris trips and she not only makes it more fun to be here, she's a whiz at spotting trends so I love to have her around. She's a trooper, too - she's been battling the flu but still managed to smile and take in everything the show and the city has to offer. Enjoy!

xoxo, Cindy

It is wonderful to be back in Paris!

As soon as I get to Paris, I like to make time for a walk. It is the best way to jump right in and get inspired by this magical city. You get to feel the cobblestone under your feet, see the amazing architecture and smell the aromas coming from the bistros. It also helps keep the jet-lag at bay! My walk led me to Galleries Lafayette where they are having their annual sale (Coincidence? I think not!) I headed straight to the third floor to their huge lingerie department and scooped up two bra and panty sets from Antinea, one of my favorites.

The next morning we are off to Salon International de laLingerie. Each time I arrive at SIL, I am struck by how vast it is. Panties as far as the eye can see! There are brands from all over the world represented at this show. It is so inspiring to see what is new and to imagine how it will fit back in to SOL and be just the right thing for each of you. One of the big trends this year for autumn is patterns – from florals to stripes to polka dots and beyond. (You all are good! We've been asking our Facebook followers what they prefer and patterns have been the overall winner!) Another trend that is everywhere is retro lingerie styling – think 1950s, in a good way. And for color, it is rich jewel-tones as well as subtle nudes.

Our vendor appointments this year were really special because we got to meet some of the people responsible for the designs. At LiseCharmel, we met one of their new designers who showed us several new styles.

I love meeting my lingerie colleagues from around the world.

At Van de Velde, we had the pleasure of meeting the brand managers for both Prima Donna and Marie Jo. They were very interested in hearing what our customers love about the brands, and they wanted to know what could make these brands even better (is that possible?!) We also got to meet two of the designers at Aubade. It was so great to meet the people behind that perfectly fitting bra, that dazzling color combination, and that just right little bow.

Bruce and I exploring my favorite city.

I am inspired. I am ready to come back to SOL and bring a little bit of Paris back to share with you!
-Jocelyn

The SOL Man at Paris Lingerie Show

Today, my wonderful brother-in-law and SOL Operations Director speaks up about his first trip to the amazing Paris Lingerie Show... take it away, SOL Man!
xoxo, Cindy

My first visit to the Salon International de la Lingerie (four football fields of every mans dream, beautiful women in lingerie) actually started in Ghent, Belgium. It is home to Van de Velde, the manufacturers of Prima Donna and Marie Jo.

As you can see, it is a place right out of the Middle Ages!

My hosts cold not have been more gracious. I have really been treated like royalty - from extraordinary meals with Belgian beer to introductions to many of our Canadian colleagues and tours of the city. But the most important tour I took was of the Van de Velde distribution center. As SOL's Operations Director, I now fully understand the level of detail and expertise that goes into EVERY product they make. It's actually hard to fathom how they can design, create and deliver such quality lingerie for $150 or less! I can assure you that my time with them means that your bras will get to you even more quickly now.

My dreams come true.

I am jaded - everyday, I am surrounded by beautiful lingerie and beautiful women. You would think that I wouldn't blink an eye at seeing a show like this...but this just upped the ante by 1000! Imagine four or five football fields covered with gorgeous lingerie AND stunning lingerie models. 

As an example, here are two of the personable and lovely models from Marie Jo. Which bra do you like better? Go to our Facebook page and tell us which you'd want to see at SOL...and in your lingerie drawer.

Man, I love this job.

You can see I'm perfectly at home here at Salon International de la Lingerie. I'm headed out now to enjoy a delicious meal at Restaurant Maison Blanche with Cindy, Jeanie and Inge Van Hecke, the North American Sales Manager of Marie Jo and Prima Donna.

Today we had the opportunity to review all of Fall/Winter 2012.   Now I know all the items that I will be getting over to the floor for you.  It was also great to see where Cindy gets some of her creative inspiration for our ad campaigns.  I can't wait to see what Cindy is plotting for the next one.


Until then, head over to Facebook where we'll be posting more of what we're seeing here in Paris!


Over and out,
Bruce, the SOL Man

Janelle's European Lingerie Tour - Day Three

The tour of Belgian culture continues and I truly am smitten. What a charming and lovely place, such the perfect mix of old and new.

Today, we were about an hour from Ghent and took a detour to Brugge. Brugge is a classic old world city that is actually a  World Heritage Site due to its street pattern - which originates back to  medieval times. (!) For an American, this is almost hard to fathom. Do we have any streets in Denver more than 100 years old? Imagine 1,000! 

The city’s architecture is nothing less than fantastic. The city was spared from any bombings during the World Wars, and thus its architecture is completely original. In fact, it has not been attacked since the middle ages.  Some of you may be familiar with it from Colin Farrell’s dark comedy a few years back called “En Brugge.”  Of course, no one was thrown off the top of the Bell Tower on our trip. Well. That I know of.

Can you see me poking my head out of a window up there, all Rupunzel-style?  Well, except I have short hair.

If you go to Belgium you simply MUST experience their famous chocolate, and chocolate and also...their chocolate! There are fifty-five chocolate shops in this small town alone!

Must. Eat. It. All.

Godiva is the most well known but alas, there is much more to the chocolate world than that. Here I am getting up the nerve for the Sake flavored piece.  Tasty.  The Wasabi flavored piece??  Let's just say I prefer my wasabi with my sushi, when I'm expecting to have my mouth go on fire.

Any chocolate is a good chocolate.

I also saw bacon, fried onion and pepper flavored chocolates. They were created by a Michelin-starred chocolatiere called The Chocolate Line. 

To wash down all this chocolate?

My favorite beer?  Cold.

Beer.  Stella Artois may be one of their most well known Belgian beers in the States, but Belgium has more than 400 breweries. We visited a bar well-known for their huge selection of beers. When Pam asked if they had a blonde - or light colored beer our waitress responded, "Yes! 110 kinds!"

Travel is all about the adventure - getting out of your routine, seeing things you would never see at home. And I gotta tell you, this is something I never thought I'd see. Anywhere. I can't even explain it, really. Here. Take a look.

A woman's urinal. Yep. That's what it is.

And with that? We're off to Barcelona.

More tomorrow!
-Janelle

Janelle's European Lingerie Tour - Day Two

It seems like a big theme on this trip will be food. As someone who usually eats lunch at her desk and dinner while leaning on the kitchen counter...I am not complaining.

Today we were joined by Dirk De Vos, International Sales Manager from Van de Velde. He is the only man in our group of fifteen women.

He seems fairly comfortable with the male-female ratios, doesn't he?

We spent some time walking the lovely streets of Ghent where we saw a lot of beautiful lingerie!

This window features the new Marie Jo and Andres Sarda. Ruby Daisy alert!

Then we loaded onto a bus and took a short ride from Ghent to Schellebelle, where Van de Velde's design center, manufacturing facility, quality control center and shipping warehouse are located. We got to meet a lot of their staff - so warm and welcoming. 


I have to say, it is really exciting seeing the very first steps in the design process for something that ultimately becomes a bra, and possibly one that is one of your favorites.

Who says bras need to be black, nude or white?  Look at all these glorious colors!

Then, how does it fit?

They really do check and test every.single.piece. of EVERYTHING (fabric, lace, hardware) before it ships. Check out the attention to detail!

She was concentrating so intently she didn't even realize I took her picture.

 And then...time to eat! Yay!  

We headed back to the center of historic Ghent to the Ghent River Hotel.

Located right on the canal, it has a lovely dock where you can take evening boat tours of the city.

Is it really so hard to believe that a boat and canal offer a fantastic backdrop for sharing bra fitting tips and ideas?

Some of the very helpful Van de Velde customer service reps joined us. So fun.

Tomorrow? Off to Brugge, Belgium...famous for Godiva chocolate...Mmmmm.

xoxo,

Janelle

Janelle's European Lingerie Tour - Day One

Toto, we're not in Colorado anymore.

Lingerie is a European invention, and as such, most quality lingerie is still designed and manufactured there. Which means, for me to properly do my job at SOL (which for those who don't know me, is Marketing Director) ...sometimes Cindy has to twist my arm and force me to go to Europe.

Yes, I know. Poor me. (Squeal!) But I'm taking YOU all along with me!  I'll be blogging for the next 4 days, reporting back all that I've learned and experienced. 

First stop...Belgium!

Van de Velde is a Belgian company that designs some of our most popular brands. They’ve invited bra fitters from six of their top stores in North America to Ghent, Belgium and on then to Barcelona, Spain. We'll get to meet their staff, tour their design centers, do some sightseeing and…most importantly...meet each other to exchange ideas and enthusiasm about bra fitting.    

Have I mentioned yet how much I really love my job?

That's me in the red glasses - just after we arrived.

Inge van Hecke (front right) is their fabulous Director of North America and our welcoming guide. Hi Inge! The women represent stores from Vancouver, Toronto, South Carolina, Connecticut and, of course, SOL!

Look how hard we are all working! Okay, maybe this was taken during a break.

We dined at the Belga Queen and  I shocked a few of my colleagues by ordering steak tartare. It was a good idea, as it just happens to be a Belgian specialty.

Beautiful, no? I love artful presentation almost as much as food!

See that little thimble in the middle of the meat? It held a tiny serving of a special Belgian gin called “jenever."

  
Read more about it here... but suffice it to say, YUM. 

Ghent is a picturesque medieval city, with cobblestone streets and fantastic architecture.

We learned, though, that the weather is usually gray and rainy, in fact, it rained all summer. Fortunately for Ghent, we North Americans brought along some beautiful Denver blue skies with us and our first day was their warmest October day in NINETY YEARS. Yes, NINETY. We are kind of their heroes now.

See, they even had Guards for us!

The outdoor cafes were packed, canals were full of boats and happy people lined the canals and streets, soaking up the sun.

You are welcome, Ghent. Anytime.

As in many parts of Europe with small streets, the main mode of transportation in Ghent is the bicycle. People of all ages and sizes ride around on bikes of all types... but they're mostly older single speed models.

I love his bell!

And a little rain can’t stop you!  Tie on your scarf and you are ready to go! 

 She just pulled out a scarf and kept pedaling!

Even the public art encouraged a bimodal lifestyle. So cool. I love Belgium!

Jet lag kicking in, time for bed. I can't wait for tomorrow. We're going to tour the Van de Velde factory, see more sights, and eat more heavenly food. 

xoxo,

Janelle

Inspiration on every corner...

Incredible day! We started with Lise Charmel. Nicolas and George are always gracious hosts, New York or Paris! We were reminded of just how gorgeous Spring Lise Charmel looks but, the fun of Summer is just minutes away. Pictures of the collections weren’t allowed, but suffice it to say, the laces, as always, are magnificent! We were able to photograph an exhibit in their booth: 2 of the seamstresses who construct samples were at the show demonstrating their craft – sewing together the 42-58 pieces that make up a Lise Charmel bra. Galloons of lace and the inspiration for the collections are shown as well.

What is a galloon you ask? It is the width of lace before a pattern is cut from it to become a part of a bra.

 We zipped off to Le Bourget to bring a quintessential slice of Paris back to Denver. Great News All! More Paris tights on the way and incredibly sexy stockings for Valentine’s Day and beyond!

For instance – Ooh La La!!!

Our perennially favorite stop – spending time with Van de Velde, our Belgian friends that bring the Daisy to our doorstep – oh and all the other incredible items from Marie Jo, Prima Donna, L’Aventure and Twist. Innovations and supreme colors and laces abound! Sneak peek for FW2011 –

but don’t despair, the Daisy in royal blue will grace SOL’s doorstep soon enough! Thank you to Dirk and Inge for a fantastic afternoon and providing Ananda with great opportunities for an inside understanding of Van de Velde’s design world.

There are still many of the Van de Velde family actively involved in the business, including Prima Donna brand manager Elsbeth Van de Velde. Family businesses rule! – We are reminded of just how much fun they can be when we get to spend 3 days working together – the sisters in Paris ahhhh.

A busy, congested ride on the Metro delivered us to a sublime dinner at La Societe in St Germain des Pres with Inge Van Hecke, US country manager for Van de Velde. Lovely conversation, exquisite cuisine (fois gras, oysters, escargot, steak tartarte and perfect wine and coffee!) and off to bed we go but not without some Django Reinhardt on Itunes – if you are in the mood for a Paris moment:

Step One
Download Nuages (by Django Reinhardt)
Step Two
Pour a glass of red wine
Step Three
Snuggle up in some divine SOL silk and a Cashmere Robe (we unintentionally happened to bring matching silk gowns . . . and robes too) and you’ll channel a bit of our moment – don’t forget your slippers :)

 

Sleep tight!