Andrew Whittle may just be the first Australian to launch both a gender-free and sensory-considerate underwear label. And he did it in 18 months.
Called Being Wear, the brand was launched from a personal challenge. Whittle’s daughter Mads has high-functioning autism and ADHD, with sensory sensitivities. She is not a fan of scratchy seams, harsh fabrics and tags. And things came to a head when she started to question her identity and asked for a chest binder instead of a bra.
“With this we realised there were virtually no options in Australia that were comfortable, inclusive or designed with sensory needs in mind,” Whittle says. “That moment made it clear: if we wanted something better, we’d have to create it ourselves.”
And so, Whittle and his wife Amber Morris began researching, digging into local and global trends, chatting with friends, associations and groups.
“In doing so we discovered that globally, brands were beginning to move towards gender-free, sensory-considerate design – but in Australia, the category remained stuck in outdated ideas of ‘men’s’ and ‘women’s’ aisles. That gap between what people actually need and what the market offered was the catalyst for launching Being Wear a brand built for comfort, inclusivity, and for all human beings.”
The brand was self-funded by Whittle and his wife Amber Morris from their life savings. Whittle says this is not for the faint-hearted at 50 years of age. However, being self-funded has forced them to be even more disciplined than normal – working directly with suppliers, building an e-commerce-first model, and leaning heavily on Whittle’s background in brand building without a huge budget. Whittle is the former managing partner at Dynamix.
In the 18 months of building, the Being Wear founder started with local and global research, and customer discovery speaking with neurodiverse individuals, non-binary people and parents. "Then came fabric testing, design prototyping, and wear-testing to ensure comfort and durability. The goal wasn’t just to launch fast, but to launch right.”
The result was a range of products that, to Whittle, balances inclusivity with comfort, and ensures all styles work across genders, ages and body types, while also removing sensory trigger. This means no tags, flat seams, soft modal fabric and a universal sizing chart.
“The final clincher: it had to pass the test of our harshest critic, my daughter. If she wouldn’t wear it, it wasn’t right (and at the start, there was a lot of not rights to deal with),” Whittle says.
While numbers are hard to quantify on the sensory-considerate fashion market, gender-neutral fashion was valued at US$2.1 billion in 2023 according to Data Intelo, with that number projected to double by 2032, hitting US$5.6 billion.
Matched with a US$44.92 billion global underwear market, noted by Fortune Business Insights, and it seems Whittle has found a sweet spot.
This also comes as many brands locally have begun tapping into gender-free clothing. Bonds offers a range of unisex and gender-neutral clothing across intimates and casual. This is among a range of new entrants in the genderless fashion market in Australia.
On the sensory-considerate front, key Australian brands include JAM the Label, which designs for all disabilities, alongside a range of others including Jettproof, Comfort on the Spectrum and Sensory Friendly Clothing.
Being Wear is the best of both worlds.
“Our customers are anyone who wants comfort, inclusivity and sustainability,” Whittle says. “That ranges from neurodiverse kids to Gen Z shoppers looking for gender-free fashion, to parents wanting better basics for their families, to grand parents wanting some comfy undies.
“We reach them through social media storytelling, partnerships with advocacy groups, and our most surprising channel word of mouth. Our early growth both locally and internationally has been organic because the product resonates and people are sharing their experiences.”
Whittle is proud with how the brand is performing so far, since launching in July this year. But he doesn’t have global scaling plans just yet. His main focus is fine-tuning its basics range and trialing new concepts.
“We’re introducing additional colours across the range, developing bodysuits made from soft modal, and expanding our popular G-string offering, which, to our surprise, is resonating across all people,” Whittle says. “Our sock range is also growing, with a new blue colour we expect will be a hit with Gen Z.”
Longer term, Being Wear is aimed at being a full basics brand. Whittle adds that he and his wife are also looking at collaboration opportunities with schools, advocacy organisations, other neurodiverse businesses and health professionals to reach more of its people.
“For us, growth means staying true to why we started: helping all human beings feel good in their skin.”