Women over 50 prefer two-piece swimsuits.
Photo: Debenhams
Women over 50 prefer revealing two-piece swimsuits rather than more conservative one-piece swimwear, according to a survey by the Debenhams department stores group. Customers between the ages of 50 and 65 were interviewed, and 71% said their preference to bring along on a holiday was a two-piece suit.
Glamorous mature women role models seen in the media are credited for a 118% increase in bikini sales by the retailer of fashions. A Debenhams spokesperson, Sasha Nagalingham, said “Over 74% of the customers who now wear a bikini also said that they had been inspired by images of older celebrity women stepping out in a two-piece, with Helen Mirren’s red bikini the most commonly mentioned instance.”
The reference to Dame Helen Mirren recalls a highly-publicized photograph of the actress on an Italian beach wearing a revealing bikini when she was almost 63 years old, two years ago. Further examples of glamorous women over 50 include Madonna, Sharon Stone and Madonna, all of whom are 52, and Goldie Hawn who is 65.
Two-piece swimwear has become so closely associated with mature women that the term ‘grankini’ has been coined to mean a bikini worn by a grandmother.
“This is not about an older woman throwing on a string bikini and hoping for the best,” Ms. Nagalingham added. “Advances in swimwear technology mean that we can now create bikinis that flatter a mature shape.”
