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Cozy Stone: Wake up and Lose the Whalebone
The following article ran in Las Vegas Woman Magazine June/July issue in a section entitled: “So You Want to Be an Entrepreneur?
By Erin Guernsey
COMFORT AND SUPPORT are two key elements for a sports bra because no woman wants to be tugging at a mischievous undergarment during her workout. After years of wearing uncomfortable bras and one very uncomfortable evening of attempting to jump rope braless, Cozy Stone decided to create her own sports bra.
In March 2002, Stone sketched a design for the bra she would eventually name The Cozy Sports Bra©®, but then put the project on the backburner for years. In January 2007, she decided to begin work on the bra again. Her first steps included finding a patternmaker and manufacturer. During the creation process, the bra went through only two prototypes. “When we made the first prototype, it did exactly what I wanted it to do,” says Stone. “The only thing I changed was my design: I made it more fashionable.”
In the search for funding, Stone approached to two friends. Stone had met Mike McCoy and James Horner while working for Lanier Dictation Equipment over 26 years ago. When she approached both of them about joining her business, they immediately became Stone’s business partners.
The Cozy Sports Bra©® is a compression-style bra that is made of 70 percent neoprene and 30 Percent nylon. It is structured like a vest with a zipper in the front and is reversible. The bra will be offered in a variety of colors, but is currently only available in royal blue/black and red/ black.
The bra is based on dress size instead of cup size because there is no under-wire. It is available in sizes 4 to 22 and offered in two styles: the short vest ends under the breasts like a typical sports bra and retails at $89, and the full-length vest goes down to the navel and retails at $99.
The bra doesn’t leave the wearer feeling sticky because the fabric allows for ventilation as the body sweats during the workout. “Unless your pit bull eats it up, It will never ever disintegrate,” says Stone. “It won’t tear. It won’t stretch. It will always do what it is designed to do.”
Several of the bra’s features have made it appealing to Las Vegas area plastic surgeons. The compression-style and the front zipper, which allows the wearer to easily take the bra on and off, is perfect for women who have had breast surgery as well as women with chest, back or shoulder injuries. Dr. John Manoli, certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, will carry the Cozy Sports Bra® in his office and will also be linking his Web site to www.cozysportsbra.com.
Currently The Cozy Sports Bra©® is available at Jazzee’s Women’s Boutique in Las Vegas.
On June 6, 2008 the bra will be available for purchase at www.cozysportsbra.com. Stone is currently negotiating with several other retailers in various parts of the country. “It is a sports bra for every woman,” says Stone, exactly what she had in mind from the beginning.
The Cozy Sports Bra© - Order Your's today at www.CozySportsBra.com
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