Dive Brief:

• Grammy award-winner Lizzo and Fabletics on Wednesday announced a partnership to launch a new shapewear brand, Yitty, according to information sent to Retail Dive.
• Yitty, which comes in sizes XS to 6X, will be available starting April 12 on Yitty.com, Fabletics.com and in shop-in-shops at 76 Fabletics stores.
• Yitty is a sister brand to Fabletics and is housed under the Fabletics Inc. umbrella.

Dive Insight:

Lizzo is making shapewear available for all body types. 

The singer said that she has been wearing shapewear since fifth or sixth grade and has been told her entire life she needs to "reshape" her body to comply with societal standards. 

"I felt that I was constantly being told through TV and magazines that my body wasn't good enough. And, in order to be considered 'acceptable' I had to inflict some sort of pain upon it to fit into an archetype of beauty," she said in a statement. 

Lizzo therefore set out to create her own "no-shame" collection that would fit on every body type, rather than having the pieces be scaled up or down. In a Tweet discussing the launch, Lizzo said that real change was disrupting an industry that has impossible standards, followed by an emphatic, "It's Yitty season baby."

Exactly. Real change is disrupting an industry that has held bodies to impossible, uncomfortable standards and break the rules. It's @YITTY SEASON BABY???? https://t.co/4XNfC6xIA9

— FOLLOW @YITTY (@lizzo) March 30, 2022

"I was tired of seeing this sad, restrictive shapewear that literally no-one wanted to wear. I had an epiphany like, 'Who can actually do something about this?' I decided to take on the challenge of allowing women to feel unapologetically good about themselves again," Lizzo said. 

The brand will debut with three drops: Nearly Naked, a lightweight, seamless collection; Mesh Me, which has mesh styles designed to wear as underwear or outerwear; and Major Label, an assortment of lifestyle pieces. 

Allied Market Research in a report this fall estimated that the global compression and shapewear market would reach nearly $7 billion by 2030. An increase in replacement of gym apparel with compression wear was identified as a contributing factor to the segment's growth.

Retailers are taking note. 

Nordstrom in 2020 announced that it would begin carrying Kim Kardashian's popular Skims label. (Skims in January reportedly doubled its valuation to $3.2 billion after raising $240 million in funding.) DTC brand Knix launched into the shapewear category in 2021, as did bridal brand Azazie.

One of the most well-known brands in the category, Spanx, sold a majority stake in its company to investment firm Blackstone last fall, which valued the company at a total of $1.2 billion.