Happy new year!

Whilst we're looking ahead to 2020 and working very hard behind the scenes on lots of new and exciting things for the upcoming year, we've also been reflecting back on 2019 and the whirlwind year that it was for Lanuuk.

We are so humbled and grateful for the tremendous response to our first collection and all of the support and feedback that we've had from our customers around the globe.

This time last year, we had already been working away for many months on our debut collection of full coverage swimwear which we finally launched in May 2019. When the idea of Lanuuk was born in 2018, we knew that we wanted to create beautiful and innovative swimwear designs that not only we would be proud to wear, but that our customers would be too. We set out to design a collection that would meet the needs of a range of women looking for an alternative to the 'traditional' swimsuit. Not only did we want our designs to be modest and sun-safe, but we wanted them to truly feel luxurious and perform functionally as swimwear, crafted only from the highest quality materials. We were passionate about catering to the beautifully diverse female body types giving women the confidence to live life to it's fullest.

At a time when full coverage swimwear, or the burkini (a term we prefer to stay clear of) was receiving alot of negative attention, there were also people and brands breaking boundaries and empowering women to choose how they wanted to dress. We truly wanted to be a part of this movement and were thrilled and inspired when Halima Aden made her debut in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit, becoming the first Muslim model to wear a hijab and modest swimsuit in the magazine. A huge moment for diversity and representation, showing the world that a swimsuit is not just restricted to a bikini or one-piece and that beauty is diverse. Halima's words truly stuck with us as two women about to embark on a completely new venture: "Don't change yourself, change the game!".

This couldn't have been timed more perfectly as we prepared to launch Lanuuk's first collection just a few weeks later, aiming to redefine the traditional concept of swimwear, introducing unique yet timeless designs for the modern woman.

Over the year, we have had the pleasure of working with some really talented bloggers and influencers who have paved the way and helped us to spread our brand across the globe. We never dreamed that our swimwear would be discovered by women from the US to New Zealand, Europe and the far-east. Our personal highlight has been being featured in the beautiful and kind withloveleena's modest swimwear review video. We've also loved working with all the wonderful bloggers and influencers who have beautifully represented our brand and our swimwear styling them in their own unique ways. Thank you to you all for your support.

Another highlight has been being featured in two modest fashion magazines, Gaya Magazine and Almaze Women, which gave us an opportunity to talk about Lanuuk's ethos and what modest fashion means to us.

We also had the opportunity to attend our first trade show, an exhilarating experience for us to showcase our collection and meet and learn from other brands and start-ups in the athleisure space. Having put so much thought into every aspect of our branding and design, seeing our designs hanging on the rack, displaying our brand proudly and giving people the opportunity to touch and feel the swimsuits was somewhat surreal.

All that said, our launch and being start-up has not come without struggles. For us as the co-founders of Lanuuk, embarking on a fashion e-commerce business is new and uncharted territory for us which represents a steep learning curve, with hurdles we are constantly seeking to overcome. But all of these challenges have been ones that we have embraced and sought to learn from to ensure that we are constantly improving and coming up with new ideas to keep our brand fresh.

Whilst the final products are of utmost importance, we are also very conscious about the way that our swimwear is being produced. Making a luxury and niche product requires an intimate understanding of the fabrics, the utmost attention to detail and a very close eye on the manufacturing process. Our design and manufacturing team work together very closely to constantly refine our designs (listening to customer feedback from the sales team) and improve the manufacturing process, all the while ensuring that we are creating products in an ethical and sustainable manner.

To top of the year, we are so proud to have been featured in HARPER'S BAZAAR Singapore's Top 6 modest swimwear brands. To be featured in an international fashion title is something that we would never have expected, and only something that we could dream of as the new kid in a new and evolving fashion space. We are so honoured and grateful to the editors and supporters who have taken an interest in Lanuuk.

We have started 2020 getting back to work on our next collection which we are so excited to launch this summer. Our designs will feature more unique silhouettes and fresh colours that we cannot wait to showcase. We have also been working on refinements to our swim turban and two new and fresh head covers, giving women more choice in how (and if) they choose to cover.

We'd like to say a special thank you to everyone that has supported us thus far. We could not have done it without you and we are truly grateful to all of you - Ayesha & Leya

An extract from HARPER'S BAZAAR Singapore's modest swimwear edit is included below:

THE RISE OF MODEST SWIMWEAR: 6 BRANDS TO SHOP NOW

While dressing conservatively might seem at odds with some of the latest fashion trends (we’re looking at you crop tops), more covered looks are becoming increasingly popular and not just among followers of faith. In fact, a quick search of modest fashion on Google produces around 149m results, while Pinterest UK reports that searches for the term are up 500 per cent since the beginning of 2019.

While retailers are starting to recognise the demand for fashion-forward modestwear, it seems as though very little attention is paid to swimwear. The shapeless black burkinis that currently dominate the category do not represent the changing tastes of modest women.

But the good news is there are a few brands out there who have got you covered—literally. Even better, you don’t have to choose between your personal style and your lifestyle.