Founded in 2009 by Alexandra Popa, Bordelle occupies a distinctive position in luxury lingerie and bodywear. The brand is recognised for its adjustable strapping, technical construction and body-framing silhouettes, with pieces that combine specialist craftsmanship, sensuality and ready-to-wear styling.
Seventeen years on, Bordelle has retained a clear design identity while developing into a broader luxury business. Its collections sit between lingerie, fashion and bodywear, with customers increasingly styling pieces beyond traditional lingerie occasions.
Bordelle’s physical presence includes a private showroom in west London, alongside selected luxury stockists including Printemps and, most recently, Harrods. The balance reflects a wider shift in luxury retail: the need to offer personal, high-touch service while also creating visibility within established department store environments.
The business is also notable for the way it approaches production. Bordelle manufactures its collections at Atelier Bordelle Productions in Cluj-Napoca, Transylvania, a region with specialist garment-making and corsetry expertise. Established by Popa in 2019, the solar-powered atelier has grown into a vertically integrated production hub, producing for Bordelle and around 20 other brands.
Atelier Bordelle Productions now employs 70 people, the majority of them skilled women, and has tripled its workforce since launch. According to the company, salaries range from 15 to 55 per cent above Romania’s minimum wage, with additional benefits including meal allowances, transport support, partial remote working for women with young children and performance bonuses.
Looking ahead, Bordelle plans to launch the ABP School, a paid apprenticeship programme designed to train the next generation of garment technicians and help preserve specialist skills in the region.
In this Q&A, Popa discusses the market gap that shaped Bordelle, the role of retail and social media discovery, the limits of ecommerce and why human expertise remains central to the future of luxury production.
1. As Bordelle celebrates its 17th year, when you look back to the beginning, what gap did you feel existed in the luxury lingerie market, and what did you want the brand to represent?
AP: When I launched Bordelle 17 years ago, I felt there was a real gap between traditional luxury lingerie and contemporary fashion. Lingerie was often either delicate and decorative or overtly provocative, and I wanted to create something that felt powerful, architectural and design-led. I was fascinated by the way clothing can transform how a woman feels about herself, and I wanted to bring that same sense of confidence and self-expression into lingerie. From the beginning, Bordelle was about celebrating the body rather than disguising it, combining craftsmanship, innovation and sensuality in a way that felt completely modern.
2. The brand is known for its signature adjustable strapping and body-framing design. How did that design language first develop, and why has it remained so central?
AP: The adjustable strapping came from a very practical starting point. I was interested in creating garments that could adapt to different bodies and fit beautifully, but I quickly became fascinated by the visual impact of the straps themselves. Rather than hiding the construction, I wanted to make it part of the design. The way the straps frame the body almost like lines in an architectural drawing became a signature language for us. Seventeen years later, it still feels relevant because it’s not a trend. It’s part of our DNA. It combines function, fit and aesthetics in a way that is uniquely Bordelle.
3. Bordelle is known as a luxury lingerie and bodywear brand, but the pieces have a strong emphasis on craftsmanship, structure and design. How do you define the brand today, 17 years on from its launch?
AP: Today, I see Bordelle as a luxury design house that happens to work through the medium of lingerie and bodywear. We are driven by construction, innovation and craftsmanship just as much as by aesthetics. Our pieces sit somewhere between lingerie, fashion and body architecture. They are designed to be worn, collected and cherished. What excites me is that our customers increasingly style Bordelle, integrating pieces into their everyday wardrobes and expressing their individuality through them.
4. The products are highly detailed, with adjustable strapping, hardware, fit and specialist construction all playing a major role. When you are developing a new piece, what makes it feel unmistakably Bordelle?
AP: It’s always a combination of elements rather than one single feature. The balance of structure and softness is incredibly important, as is the way the straps interact with the body. Every line, every piece of hardware and every adjustment point has a purpose. When a design feels effortless despite its complexity, that’s usually when I know we’re getting close. A Bordelle piece should feel empowering, beautifully engineered and instantly recognisable without needing a logo.
5. Luxury lingerie can be a very personal purchase, but it also has a strong gifting element. How do you think about the customer — are people primarily buying for themselves, for someone else, or is that balance changing?
AP: The biggest shift I’ve seen over the years is that women are increasingly buying for themselves. Our customers are incredibly self-aware and intentional. They aren’t waiting for a special occasion or someone else’s approval. They’re investing in pieces because they love the design, the craftsmanship and the way it makes them feel. Of course gifting remains important, particularly around key moments and celebrations, but the self-purchase category has become much more significant and reflects a broader change in how women view luxury.
6. You have a private showroom in West London, alongside selected luxury stockists including Printemps and, most recently, Harrods. How do you think about the role of each retail channel, from private appointment to department store discovery?
AP: Each channel serves a different purpose and they complement one another beautifully. The showroom offers a highly personal experience where clients can spend time with the collection and receive expert guidance. Department stores such as Printemps and Harrods introduce the brand to new audiences and allow customers to discover Bordelle in a broader luxury context. One is intimate and immersive, the other is about visibility and discovery. Together they create a much richer customer journey.
7. For a brand as tactile and technically detailed as Bordelle, can the in-person experience ever be fully replicated online? How do you use ecommerce to give customers confidence while still recognising what needs to be felt, seen or understood in person?
AP: I don’t think the in-person experience can ever be fully replicated online, particularly for a product as technical and tactile as ours. What ecommerce can do is remove uncertainty. We invest heavily in fit guidance, detailed product information, imagery and customer support because confidence is essential when purchasing luxury lingerie online. Ultimately, though, there is still something special about seeing the craftsmanship up close, feeling the materials and understanding the construction in person. That’s why both channels remain so important.
8. Luxury lingerie is often bought in a very personal way. How do you create a retail environment that feels intimate and considered, while still giving customers confidence to explore the collection?
AP: For me, it’s about creating a space that feels welcoming rather than intimidating. Luxury should never feel exclusionary. Whether someone is discovering Bordelle for the first time or has been collecting our pieces for years, they should feel comfortable asking questions, exploring different styles and finding what works for them. Education and trust are a huge part of that process. We want customers to leave feeling informed, confident and excited.
9. Your recent presence in Harrods marks an important retail milestone. What does being stocked in a luxury department store mean for the brand at this stage of its journey?
AP: Harrods is one of the world’s most recognised luxury retail destinations, so naturally it’s a significant milestone. For us, it represents both validation and opportunity. It reflects the strength of the brand we’ve built over the past 17 years, while also introducing Bordelle to an international luxury audience that may not have encountered us before. It’s an exciting next step, but it’s also part of a much bigger long-term journey.
10. With such a highly visual design language, how has social media changed the way customers discover the brand, and how do you maintain the right tone for a luxury business in such a fast-moving space?
AP: Social media has completely transformed discovery. Seventeen years ago, many customers would have encountered us through a boutique or magazine. Today, they might find us through a single image on Instagram. The challenge is maintaining depth in an environment that often rewards speed and constant novelty. We’ve always focused on showing the craftsmanship, artistry and people behind the brand rather than simply chasing trends. Authenticity is incredibly important, and I think customers recognise that.
11. As customers discover luxury brands across social media, ecommerce, private appointments and department stores, how do you keep the experience consistent across every touchpoint?
AP: Consistency comes from having a very clear sense of who you are. Every touchpoint should reflect the same values, whether that’s our visual identity, our customer service or the quality of the product itself. The channels may differ, but the feeling should remain the same. We want every interaction with Bordelle to communicate craftsmanship, confidence, expertise and attention to detail.
12. You have developed a strong visual identity over the past 17 years. How do you keep customers coming back while maintaining the sense of exclusivity that is so important to the brand?
AP: I think loyalty comes from constantly evolving while remaining true to your core identity. Our customers know what Bordelle stands for, but they also expect us to surprise them. We introduce new ideas, new categories and new interpretations of our signature design language, while maintaining the standards of craftsmanship and quality they trust. Exclusivity isn’t about being inaccessible; it’s about creating something distinctive enough that people genuinely value it.
13. Atelier Bordelle Productions in Cluj-Napoca gives the brand a direct relationship with production and craftsmanship. Why was it important to build your own manufacturing facility rather than rely only on external suppliers?
AP: Building our own atelier was about taking responsibility for the things that matter most to us. Our products are technically complex and require specialist skills, so having a direct relationship with production gives us greater control over quality, innovation and development. It also allows us to invest directly in the people making our products. We wanted to create an environment where craftsmanship is valued and where long-term expertise can flourish.
14. The atelier is also part of a wider story about preserving specialist garment-making skills, particularly around corsetry and construction. How important is that human expertise to the future of the brand?
AP: It’s absolutely fundamental. The techniques used in our products cannot simply be replaced by technology. There is an incredible level of skill, experience and intuition involved in corsetry, fitting and specialist garment construction. Romania has a remarkable heritage in this area, and I believe brands have a responsibility to help preserve those skills. The future of luxury depends on human expertise as much as innovation.
15. You have plans to launch the ABP School as a paid apprenticeship programme. What do you hope it will achieve, both for Bordelle and for the next generation of garment technicians?
AP: The goal is to create genuine career opportunities while ensuring these specialist skills continue into the next generation. Too often, technical garment-making knowledge is lost because there isn’t a clear pathway for younger people to enter the industry. By offering paid apprenticeships, we’re investing in people from the beginning and demonstrating that these skills have real value. For Bordelle, it helps secure the future of our craft. For the industry, I hope it contributes to a stronger and more sustainable talent pipeline.
16. To end on a lighter note: if you could create one dream retail experience anywhere in the world, perhaps a beach house, private members’ club, hotel suite, gallery, or something completely unexpected, what would it be, and what would you want customers to feel when they stepped inside?
AP: I love the idea of a Bordelle house somewhere unexpected, perhaps a beautiful modernist villa overlooking the sea, where retail, art, craftsmanship and hospitality all come together. Rather than feeling like a store, it would feel like stepping into the world of the brand. Customers could discover the collections, meet the makers, experience exhibitions and spend time in a truly immersive environment. More than anything, I would want them to feel inspired, confident and completely transported from everyday life.
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