Underwear Expert Sewing with Love｜The life story of Baolian Lai
Hualien Markets - Exclusive Interview with Yongsheng Underwear Shop
#Fuxing Market
Text/ HUANG Chia
Translation/ HUANG Chia
Photography/ HUANG Chia
“The happiest thing in my life in this industry is to see that customers who can't buy suitable underwear because of their skin conditions, body factors, or any other reasons, have an opportunity to find suitable underwear.“
Lai Baolian is a handmade underwear sewing master, and her small underwear shop is almost hidden in a traditional market. At the same time, it is the only surviving traditional handmade underwear shop. That makes it popular even outside of Hualien around Taiwan. Regardless of North, Central, and South, she has accumulated a group of diehard customers, who regularly order her hand-made underwear to wear every year.
“Wearing this kind of underwear will keep the body from getting fat. The tight shape at the level of the abdomen is very helpful for stomach and uterine prolapse, and it can also correct the spine. There are a lot of features that people don't know. I have a client who is in her 80s. She has worn cheongsam and high heels from youth to old age, so she maintains a very lithe figure. But during the summer, when she feels too hot to wear it, she gains weight. So, then she can’t wear it when winter comes. When people don’t wear shapewear, they will let their appetites go and eat all the time. But if we dress well, we can keep our waistline at 25 inches, the most beautiful proportion for women.”
Japanese traditional craftsmanship
“My mother learned tailoring from a Japanese teacher in the early days. At that time, the teacher was going back to Japan. The teacher asked my mother if she wanted to open a handmade underwear shop, saying that she could pass on all the craftsmanship to my mother, and let her continue to run his shop. So, my mother relied on the support of this noble person to start the underwear business. At that time, the Japanese master taught my mother all the essential skills for sewing high quality underwear. Plus, in the early days, there was no ready-to-wear underwear. If you wanted underwear, you’d have to buy it made-to-order. Therefore, my mother's business was so good at the time, and she even needed to ask someone to assist with manual work to cope with the endless number of visitors.”
Craftsmanship from elementary school
Baolian remembers that it was about the second or third grade of elementary school that her mother was making underwear. The store was obligated to change the location once because of the reconstruction of a neighboring department store, but after moving to the new location, business was still very good. They provide high quality items, so the customers would look for it. At that time, “Yongsheng Underwear Shop” was the only handmade underwear shop in Hualien. Since Baolian started to do handicrafts with her mother when she was in elementary school, she only helped a little bit at first. After graduating from high school, Baolian officially started to work normally. When she saw the customers feeling happy with the underwear she made, she always felt a strong sense of accomplishment.
Early years : Blooming
At the age of 33, Baolian officially took over the operation of the underwear shop. “Originally, I just wanted to do a little favor, but at the same time I didn't think about doing other work. In addition, my husband was very supportive and hoped that I would follow my interest, so I later decided to devote myself to the production of handmade underwear.”
The predecessor of the early general market was the largest market in Hualien. At that time, food carts from all over the world came here to buy food, and residents of small towns outside Hualien City had to take the train to the city to buy food on a regular basis. “It was the period of earning as much as you wish, which was also the so-called period of Money-Swamped Taiwan: Taiwan’s richest era.” When Baolian first took over, she couldn't stop working because of the crazy amount of need. She experienced the sweet taste of getting rich in an instant.
The Savior of the Women Out-of-Shape
Nowadays, young people consider more about the look, so the fashion market is constantly changing. “Most of my customers are either elderly customers or women who want to maintain a certain figure. Otherwise, it is the guests who can’t wear ordinary underwear because of skin or body factors. Some are super fat. For example, I had a young, fat customer. For her, it is not enough to use this 150-centimeter tape measure to measure, so I needed to use the 180-centimeter one. There are also customers whose breast size is larger than F. In this case, custom-made products are required, and we make ready-to-wear underwear. Customers in need are often very happy when they find me.”
Once there was a customer who came to Hualien from Hsinchu to travel and wandered the street. When she found this underwear shop, she almost shouted with great joy. “I have been looking for such a shop, but I finally found it!” She ordered ten pieces at a time, but because she was from Hsinchu, after the first order, she asked Baolian to make new ones and send them to her by mail. “Sometimes I think that customers like this are really tired and pitiful if they can't find underwear to wear. If they don't have the right cups, they will feel uncomfortable here and there, and they will bleed. It's really pitiful. I hope that helpless guests can find suitable underwear!” Even if she sewed underwear with her original intention of making women's lives better, Baolian still tasted the bitter taste from customers in her underwear stalls.
The worst Encounter Ever with a Customer
When she first took over the store, Baolian was still a rookie. And there was one customer who treated her worse than any other. At that time, this customer took the newly made underwear home and put it on. Then she took it back to the store and said to Baolian, “What the hell you were making for me? What kind of material did you use to make it? How could the color fade to this point?” Baolian replied, “How is it possible?” The customer’s offended reply was too exaggerated. “They all use the same cloth. Could it be that your washing method was incorrect?” The guest replied, “What are you talking about? I’m much older than you and I know better about how everything works!”
In the end, Baolian decided to just apologize and let it go. She said “Okay, I will make another one for you, please don't scold me.” In order to keep the business flowing, Baolian chose to bow her head. After a few years, the customer returned to the shop with her old underwear and said to Baolian, “Hey Miss, I’m sorry! Last time the problem was due to my washing process, so the color faded. Would you mind making a new one for me?” For Baolian, it is necessary to insist on providing good service and never give up, so that finally success will be hers. “Some people say that I’m very good at making underwear. I’m always very grateful if people are willing to choose to come to my shop. Without my customers, I wouldn’t be me today.”
Warm Service
To run a successful underwear shop, you not only need to bend down, but also need to actively provide enthusiastic service. Baolian is the representative of the best service. “Usually, as long as there are pregnant women who need new underwear made, I usually go to their homes to help measure the size, and usually there is no additional charge. The price of underwear alone is the cost. Some guests live far away, for example some people live nearby Liyu Lake. When I know customers who don’t have their own vehicle, I normally propose to go to their homes to take measurements. In fact, for me, it's just like going on a trip. I get to know the environment there. I think being able to serve others is a very happy thing for me.”
Baolian often tells her customers, “If you are willing to wear the underwear I made, I am very happy. Thank you for your appreciation!” Some people are overweight, and their fat falls off of them like waterfalls. No one can cure this. So she will tell these people, “No worries, I'll help you with it!” For this kind of situation, Baolian will use elastic materials to expand the covering area, so that the flesh will not collapse. After receiving the sewn underwear, the customer is always happy and grateful, and they might say to Baolian: “Miss, I will share with my friend about how good your underwear is! So far I haven't found a tailor who can make such comfortable underwear. Please live to be 120 years old, otherwise I don’t know where I can find other people to do it!”
For Baolian, making underwear is not just for making money. The most important thing is to see women feeling more comfortable with their bodies. This is the meaning of her work. Even if she is always enthusiastic about serving and always does more than how much she should do, she is still never tired of it. She said: “We don’t need to calculate that much, even if we calculate, we won’t really receive as much as we want. Only by giving and sharing can we truly receive!” Baolian, the hand-made underwear expert who has been working for her whole life in the store, sews pieces with love to give women blessings.