Breaking the Mould: How Daylilie Is Redefining Bras for Athletic Bodies

Co-founded by a 2x Olympian and a former Y Combinator-backed startup executive, Vancouver-based startup Daylilie is taking on the lingerie industry—one athletic silhouette at a time. With a tagline that reads “silhouette, not sizes”, Daylilie is crafting bras designed specifically for broader backs and shallower busts, filling a gap long overlooked by mainstream sizing charts. In this Q&A, we chat with co-founder Manuella about building a bra that actually fits, the power of grassroots momentum, and why their “Sisterhood of the Traveling Bra” campaign is more than just a clever name. —Noa Nichol

What personal or professional moments sparked the idea for Daylilie—and why did you feel this specific gap in the bra market needed solving?

I struggled with bra fit from the moment I needed my first one. I have what fashion calls an “inverted triangle” shape—broader shoulders, a narrower waist, and a proportionately shallower chest. Most bras weren’t designed for that silhouette, so I constantly dealt with digging bands, chafing, and discomfort.  Back then though, I blamed my body for it and saw it more as a personal frustration rather than a product design flaw in need of a solution. When Jenny and I first met, we started talking about the fit issues we’d both experienced—we looked at each other and said, “Oh my God!” We put up surveys in gym washrooms to see if other women felt the same. The response was immediate. Lats and broad shoulders came up again and again—often as the reason why traditional bras don’t fit well. Once we saw the pattern, we knew we had to go all in.

“Silhouette, not sizes” is such a powerful tagline. Can you explain what that means in terms of your design approach and how it challenges conventional bra sizing?

“Silhouette, not sizes” came naturally through conversations with dissatisfied women.  When we asked them about fit frustrations, they didn’t talk about size—they pointed to specific body parts and described their own unique shapes. In fashion, shape is often referred to as silhouette, so that’s how our tagline was born.

Conventional bra sizing was built around the body of a 1920s woman. At that time, women were generally more sedentary and their bodies reflected that— typically straight from shoulders to hips, with little muscle mass in the back. But women’s lifestyles have changed. Today, many more women are active, and with that comes a change in silhouette. For many active women — especially those who run, lift, or train regularly for a sport — the common shape is the inverted triangle.  You end up with a band that’s too tight and cups that gape. This silhouette is often seen in athletic individuals but it’s not exclusive to athletes. We’ve seen it in women of all backgrounds—sometimes shaped by training, and sometimes simply by natural build and bone structure. It’s simply a body type that’s been left out of the conversation—and that’s the gap we’re closing. That’s why we say the issue isn’t size, but silhouette. And that’s what our design approach is built around. 

With backgrounds in elite athletics and Silicon Valley, how do your experiences as a 2x Olympian and former Y Combinator-backed startup executive shape the way you build a product—and a brand?

From tech, I learned how to be scrappy with resources, test fast and often, and gather real feedback early. It’s often the smallest detail that sets you apart. Jenny is very performance-driven and brings intense discipline to the team. It actually scares me sometimes! Her work ethic is fierce and contagious—it’s the kind of healthy pressure that pushes both of us to level up.

Tell us about the journey to iteration six—what have been the most surprising or revealing insights from your wear-testers so far?

How crucial the fabric is. Fabric is everything. Without the right one, you can’t even begin developing the technical document that defines the bra’s shape, structure, and how each piece is assembled. We tested over 50 fabrics. It took us four months to decide on the right one. The other thing that surprised me was just how much a 2mm adjustment can impact fit. That level of precision is almost irrelevant in other categories of apparel, but in bras it makes all the difference.

You’ve created a custom sizing chart and tested with UBC varsity athletes—what did those fittings teach you that traditional lingerie brands may be missing?

For athletic silhouettes, sister sizing doesn’t solve the problem because the proportions are fundamentally different. That’s why we had to build our own sizing chart. Fit isn’t binary. A large bust doesn’t always mean a large frame and a small bust doesn’t mean someone is petite. Traditional lingerie brands often expand size ranges but overlook proportions.  We think that’s because their foundation is based on a “straight-from-shoulder-to-hip” silhouette. And that’s outdated. Women’s bodies have changed, especially with more active lifestyles. Our custom sizing approach is designed to reflect those shifts—starting with the athletic silhouette.

Another misalignment we see is the idea that one bra design can fit everyone. Bras aren’t like t-shirts or baggy jackets. They sit next to skin and must conform to every curve and muscle.

Daylilie’s upcoming “Sisterhood of the Traveling Bra” campaign sounds clever and meaningful—can you walk us through the idea and what you hope it will showcase?

It’s a play on The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, where one magical pair of jeans fits friends with completely different body types. We’ve said it before, and we stand by it—bras don’t work like that. But we wanted to borrow the spirit of that story to showcase inclusivity and show how our sizing actually works in real life.

We’re sending one bra to four women.  To give you a sense, two of them are Jenny and me. Jenny is 5’9” and a professional athlete. I’m 5’4” and, at best, a weekend warrior. She’s lean with visible muscle definition, while I have a more relaxed, less sculpted build. Still, we wear the same size because our upper body proportions are nearly identical. Across the four of us, you’ll see the same size worn on different heights, muscle masses, fitness levels, and degrees of skin elasticity. It’s a way to help customers visualize real-world fit and to reinforce what we believe deeply: it’s about silhouettes, not sizes.

How are you navigating inclusivity in your designs, especially for women who may have felt overlooked by traditional sizing models?

To us, inclusivity isn’t just about offering more sizes.  It’s about recognizing the full range of body shapes, not just numbers on a tag. We’re starting with silhouettes that are often left out—like broader shoulders, wider backs, and shallower chests—because that’s where we’ve seen the clearest gap in the market. We’re beginning with one specific silhouette to deliver a more accurate respectful fit, but we plan to expand thoughtfully into other underserved body types from there.

You’ve got a dream team with experience at Lululemon, Arc’teryx, and Aritzia. How does that collective product DNA show up in your bra?

We’re not making a sports bra but we approach the design process the way you would a performance product. No detail is too small. That mindset shows up in everything from fabric choice to stretch direction to stitch placement. Nothing is accidental. At the same time, women want more than just function. We gravitate toward certain clothes because they make us feel good—they complement our shape and give us confidence in our own skin. That’s why we’re just as intentional about how the bra looks as we are about how it performs. Behind that design philosophy is a team that understands the nuances of the female body—how it evolves over time and how silhouette affects not just fit, but confidence. Your body at 50 won’t look the same as it did at 20, 30, or 40, or after pregnancy, or after training for a marathon. Our approach honours these changes with care.

With Asian Heritage Month underway, does your cultural background influence how you show up as founders—or shape how you design, market, and tell your brand story?

Definitely. I grew up in Indonesia, where the economy runs on small businesses. Western franchises are rare. Most businesses are homegrown and deeply tied to the people and the place. Everyone hustles with a smile and puts real care into what they create, because it comes from the heart. Because of that, marketing isn’t overly polished. People simply describe their product as it is—sometimes with a witty tagline, sometimes shockingly bluntly, sometimes seriously—but always authentically. It’s not about convincing people. It’s about connecting with the people who already see the value in what you offer. That stuck with me and shaped how Jenny and I are building Daylilie.

Looking ahead, what’s your bigger vision for Daylilie—and what role do you hope the brand plays in reframing what “fit” looks and feels like?

We’re starting with bras because they’re foundational.  They’re the first thing you put on, and if they don’t fit right, they throw everything else off. We want to build a wardrobe that meets women where we are—not when we “finally lose the 5, 10, or 15 pounds,” or after we’ve somehow managed to “spot reduce” a part of ourselves. Our vision of reframing fit starts with helping women understand their bodies—so they can choose pieces that complement them, not fight them.