Summersalt Wants to Rewrite the Way Women’s Swimwear Is Marketed

“The smaller female-founded brands are the ones to be brave in this way, to be about everyone in their advertising, and be a brand that’s made for all,” Jennifer DaSilva, president of the creative agency Berlin Cameron, told Adweek. “These brands are starting with inclusivity at their core. And we’re seeing a lot more of the big stores as well as brands follow suit.”

DaSilva pointed to Chromat, the swimwear label started by architect Becca McCharen-Tran in 2010. McCharen-Tran was plus-size when she started making swimwear for herself and friends after work. She didn’t have a big ad budget and “begged friends” to model.

“What you saw [on the runway and in campaigns] was a reflection of my community,” McCharen-Tran told Adweek. “I didn’t start Chromat with a mission to change what you see in the fashion industry or in modeling agencies. These are my friends; I was a part of the queer community, the plus size community and that’s what I was inspired by. It was very organic.”