by Shevon Simon, UK
From a very young age I’ve always wanted to serve. Serve humanity and help. I couldn’t wait to work, not only for the financial gain but to put my skills and willingness to the test. I began my first job at 16 in a shoe shop. I did well, as I always wanted to provide people with the best experience. I was honest, never sold them anything they didn’t really want just to get a sale, and I was one of the top sales people. I was soon inspired to move onto a company who paid their staff more and treated them better.
Working as a Bra Advisor
It was here I fell into the role of working as a bra advisor. I LOVED this job. It was like the light inside of me went on as soon as I knew I would be working in the fitting room. I was keen to know all about the different bras, and through our training and watching the more experienced bra advisors I wanted to know which bras would suit each woman. I had a natural flair for this and although shy, I held no trepidation at touching women’s bodies in a loving and caring way and assisting them into their new bras. I would stand proudly as I looked at them seeing whether the bra fitted well, asking them how it felt, adjusting the straps, getting more bras… it was sooo much FUN!
The icing on the cake would be when a woman could see for herself and feel how totally supportive a well fitted bra was. I would always see her stand up taller and straighter, with a sparkle in her eye and she’d end up buying at least one bra, sometimes more. It gave me such pleasure to see this and was a time in my life when it wasn’t about personal gain.
I remember a time when a customer searched for the manager of the store to tell her of the great service she received… I received a gift voucher for this. The feeling in me was just a JOY and confirmation that the woman had found the right bra for her and that I’d been a part of that process and it was easy.
With regards to my relationship with my own breasts they are classed as small size-wise and I always saw them as insignificant. However, in spending a year or two between the ages of 17 and 19 working as a bra advisor, I was delighted to see the array of bras for my size and I had some FUN with myself. I became less hung up about the size of my breasts at that time and considered they were of some value as there WERE bras that fitted my size in an array of styles. This was as far as my relationship with my breasts went.
From Bra advisor to Marketing at University
I left this job to go to university to study retail marketing. The decision to do this was not based on what I really wanted to do or felt was right for me – it was a calculated decision. I had a friend at school who was very good at art. She was very clear from a young age that she wanted to work as a fashion designer and she was clearly very good at this. Comparing myself to her I knew I wasn’t so good at art, but I wanted to be like her as she was popular and funny.
So I worked out that if I could work as a fashion buyer that was the next best thing. I was organised and liked working in retail, so I worked out that the two could work together. I negated all of my skills and experience to be like another.
I went to university and I remember clearly the moment when I realised that this was not for me. We were sitting in a Marketing Lecture and the lecturer was speaking about the principles of marketing. It became very clear to me that I could not continue with this as I could feel the lie and manipulation behind the principles and how it was all designed to trick people into buying whatever was on offer. Unfortunately I did not have the courage to stand up and leave the course gracefully. Instead I slumped deeper into depression, partied, tried drugs and flunked my way out of the first year.
Back to the Service Industry – not as a Bra Advisor…
Thereafter, I moved into working again in the service industry, but never felt satisfied. The need to do more or be more increased and I would push myself to work harder and longer hours. Always dreaming of my dream job as a bra advisor.
The same pattern arose at the age of 25-26 when I followed a friend who was very good at dance to a dance training course. Again this was short-lived, as after months of intensive daily training in ballet, contemporary dance and jazz, my body could take no more. I damaged the tendons in my right hip so badly that I could barely walk.
I left again and returned to the service industry but felt even more broken than before.
But I turned this around…
Related Reading:
My Dream Job as a Bra Advisor – Discovering the Esoteric Breast Massage
My Dream Job as a Bra Advisor – Reflections on Working in the Service Industry