Bra In A Box Is Making Pasties Convenient And Comfortable To Grow Their Popularity Beyond Proms And Parties

Product ideas often come from life’s stubborn annoyances.

Such is the case with Bra In A Box, the brand behind a patent-pending silicone box that holds nipple covers for easy storage invented by mother-daughter duo Penelope Przekop and Phoebe Horak. The nipple covers called Nipco consist of a thin layer of plastic filled with liquid silicone and feature a non-stick area surrounding the nipples.

“I went on this trip, and I lost the clear adhesive things for my pasties. I got frustrated and thought, ‘I need a little box to put this in!’” recounts Przekop. “Our mission is to develop products that support—no pun intended—women being comfortable through commonsense solutions. We want to establish ourselves as a lifestyle brand that provides any sort of help for the complicated lives of modern women.”

Bra In A Box aims to universalize nipple covers with its convenient container, tasteful marketing and affordable pricing. Przekop explains, “We had this vision for the box to be like a makeup compact, where you can adhere the nipple covers into the box and put them in your handbag or suitcase while traveling.” Bra In A Box’s products range in price from $7.99 and $45 for single purchases, and it has subscription options for $7.99 to $14.99 a month. It offers solo Nipco pairs and Nipco nipple covers with the silicone box. A luxe Nipco version is thinner and lighter than the standard version.

“Our mission is to develop products that support—no pun intended—women being comfortable through commonsense solutions. We want to establish ourselves as a lifestyle brand that provides any sort of help for the complicated lives of modern women.”

To determine Bra In A Box’s pricing, Przekop says, “We looked at our cost of production and what other companies were selling their nipple covers for. We also looked at the prices of makeup palettes to see what our customers were paying.” The pair researched subscription services such as FabFitFun and The Dollar Shave Club to ascertain its subscription pricing. Horak says, “Nipple covers aren’t expensive, but the value we bring to the table is our box.” Bra In A Box’s revenue goal for this year is $50,000.

Before launching Bra In A Box in April, Przekop and Horak were avid wearers of silicone nipple covers, but took issue with how they were being marketed. Przekop says, “We wanted something really classy and different. If you look at how nipple covers are marketed, you’ll see they’re usually borderline salacious images. We wanted to get away from that.” Horak elaborates, “With my mom being in her fifties, she felt nipple covers were not a product she would’ve ever bought. She was going through menopause and, when she discovered them, they changed her life, but she felt they weren’t marketed to older or professional women going to work, but rather for younger women for proms or weddings.”

Professional women and mothers are squarely in Bra In A Box’s target customer demographic. Przekop says, “We envision it on young to middle-aged women who are very busy. Phoebe is a nurse, and she gets up very early and wears these under her scrubs.” Horak chimes in, “We were consumers of this product first. We’re looking at women who are like us, and have kids and jobs. We think if this can bring a little bit of comfort to women running around, then we’ve done our job.”

“We had this vision for the box to be like a makeup compact, where you can adhere the nipple covers into the box and put them in your handbag or suitcase while traveling.”

Bra In A Box aims to raise awareness through trade shows, including Indie Beauty Expo New York next month, and event gifting. Beauty Independent parent company Indie Beauty Media Group owns and operates IBE. Bra In A Box has partnered with Posh PR to generate a buzz through influencer campaigns. The brand is exclusively sold online through its e-commerce now, but the mother-daughter founding team hopes it won’t only be on its website for long. Bra In A Box’s wish list for distribution includes the retailers Neiman Marcus, Sephora, Nordstrom, Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie.

No working or familial relationship is perfect, but Przekop and Horak have been able to manage both their professional and personal interactions well so far. Horak says, “We’re very open together. If I was working with someone who wasn’t family, I think I would have a harder time saying, ‘OK, I don’t like that.’” On their greatest challenges, Przekop says, “We both have full-time jobs. Phoebe has a toddler. I travel a lot. It’s been a little bit challenging carving out time to meet. We try to meet once a week. We talk and text a lot. It’s really important to get together in person and really focus on what actions we need to take next.”

Bra In A Box is planning to two to three more Nipco shades for holiday shopping this year. In addition, it’s been testing a Nipco iteration that lifts breasts, and a stick-on bra that lays completely flat and can be rolled up. In August, the brand is kicking off a recycling program with Terracycle enabling customers to recycle used Nipcos and silicone boxes, and it’s introducing new packaging for its silicone boxes that has a clear PVC window to allow for viewing the Nipco within. Along with the brand’s logo, each box reads, “nipple covers, reimagined,” and will be available in rose gold and silver.