- Kim Kardashian West just launched her new brand, Skims Solutionwear.
- She talked to Cosmopolitan earlier this summer about the line, a People’s Choice Awards red carpet faux pas you probably missed, and, yes, “Kimono.”
When you think of Kim Kardashian West, you probably think of mansions, reality TV, Yeezys, neutral toned biker shorts, and Instagram. And that all checks out! But up until this year, part of her ~mystique~ also included Kim not-so-glamorously DIY-ing all her undergarments. Kim said she’s essentially spent the last 15 years of her life cutting up and dip-dyeing shapewear to put under her clothes at events, which inspired her latest venture, Skims Solutionwear.
Imagining Kim Kardashian West—a beauty mogul with a reported net worth of $350 million—hunched over a hotel sink dyeing Spanx with tea bags kind of feels like a fever dream. But as Kim said at a press preview back in June, there was a method to the madness. Although when it didn’t work, it really didn’t work.
“I have pictures of me at events where I can see [shapewear lines] as clear as day,” she said. “Like at the People’s Choice Awards, we were in L.A., the fires happened, and I grabbed one pair of shorts. We were in a hotel and had to go to the People’s Choice Awards, and [I] didn’t have time to dye it...but you can see the line. Had I had time to dye it or if I had one of mine with a different color, it would’ve made a world of difference in the outfit.”
You can see exactly what she’s talking about in this Instagram:
Because she is Kim Kardashian, daughter of legendary businesswoman Kris Jenner, once Kim realized there was a need, she started working on her own brand to fix it.
“I know what I want in this area, and that’s not the case with every project I work on,” she said. “I do get insecure and just ‘Oh, I hope you like it, I hope people understand this and it’ll translate.’ But this one, I’m like no, I got this. I know exactly how to make it comfortable and even a bit sexier.”
While Kim’s been cooking this up for a while, most people probably know this line best because of its old controversial name: Kimono.
During the press preview, which happened before sh*it hit the fan, Kim was asked about it. “It was honestly the first name that we picked and I really just, it’s obviously a play off of my own name and without being too KKW, you know?” she said. "And ‘ono’ means one, and I just thought that I want something for everyone, and it just vibes. The first time that we were coming up with names, it was literally our first name, and I loved it.”
Of course, as well all know now, “Kimono” is no more. Kim listened to the trademark backlash, delaying the launch in order to make some necessary adjustments.
“You would think we would have obviously thought it through a little bit deeper,” she admitted after the fact in an interview with WSJ Magazine. “I’m the first person to say, ‘Okay, of course, I can’t believe we didn’t think of this.’ I obviously had really innocent intentions. But let’s listen. And I want to really listen. And I want to really take it all in.”
Now that the name drama has settled, there’s only one question left: Does her size XXS–5X solutionwear actually work on a range of body types? For that, check out Cosmo’s try-on video review above, or click through Kim’s website for more info on all things Skims.
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