At Malia Mills we strive to improve the swimwear experience -- from the way swimwear fits to shopping for swimwear and the way it all makes you feel -- in order to empower women to see themselves from a positive perspective. Ask nearly any woman and you will hear all too often how swimsuit situations test her confidence and the conviction of her unique beauty. Why? Because when a swimsuit doesn't fit a woman, it really doesn't feel right. And if her suit doesn't fit or feel right, she doesn't feel right. In fact, she feels like something is wrong with her. At Malia Mills we are passionate about empowering women to recognize that if the suit doesn't fit, it is the suit that is flawed, not the body.
We specialize in fit. Because when a suit fits you beautifully you're free to see your one of a kind beauty, just as you are. How many times have we heard, "I'm not putting on a suit until I lose 5 pounds"? This notion that we are "not good enough until we lose, we glow, we firm, we change?" to enjoy the experiences when we're in a suit is crazy! We don't need to qualify for "swim season"! We encourage women to focus less on fretting about their bodies and to focus more on the fun to come when you're in a great fitting suit. After all, a swimsuit should represent sun and fun not fear and loathing!
•
Perfecting the fit of a style can take up to a dozen fittings. We all know friends who wear the same size as we do but have a very different shape. This is why we make the extra effort to fit and fit and fit again. As the style evolves we see how adjusting the fit also affects how it feels both physically as well as emotionally. We want to be sure that each style you choose fits, flatters and feels good so you feel like your version of a vixen!
Some of the details that make our suits fit so well are easy to see. Like the seaming we use to give shape and support. Other details are hidden -- sometimes behind a layer of fun colored lining. To create a style we work with as few as 3 components for some while we incorporate as many as 48 components for others. Combining the components -- fabric, lining, elastic, boning, hooks, straps, etc. -- with fashion for flattering fit is a science! (In fact, Malia earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell where she learned how to design everything from maternity clothes to chemical warfare helmets to scuba suits!)
We find most of our fabrics in Europe. Most of the European fabric mills are set up to work with smaller companies. (In the US, most of the fabric mills think big -- they're set up to sell to companies who supply loads of suits to bigger stores across the country.) The mills we work with dye fabrics in our exclusive colors and will make prints especially for us. The finest cotton fabric from Liberty of London as well as the highest quality polyamide and Lycra from Italy are only a few of the fabrics you'll find in our collection. Our suppliers let us buy as little as 70 meters of a fabric -- this costs us more per meter but it means you won't see the same Malia Mills all over town!
We choose to make our suits in America. And for this we pay a premium. It costs us much more per unit to sew our suits locally but supporting our community is worth it. The mostly women who sew our suits do so with extra care -- we visit them often and they know how important quality is to us.
We opened our own Malia Mills stores especially to redefine the experience of shopping for swimwear. We strive to create a shopping environment that is anxiety-free and liberating. We want women to enjoy the experience as much as they might enjoy treating themselves to new shoes or lipstick. We can't afford the biggest stores but we make our cozy spaces look more like a living space so you feel comfortable when you're getting undressed. The gals in our stores are passionate about inspiring women to look in the mirror and to see what is right instead of what is wrong. Our gals are "fit and philosophy" specialists. Tthey will show you how simple and empowering shopping for swimwear can be. No need to work your way through a cluttered rack -- we do the fetching for you. We'll show you why some styles will suit you better than others. And if we don't have a style that makes you feel fabulous we're happy to suggest other designers who may have just the thing for you. Or, you can email Malia with your suggestions -- our best ideas often come from the women who visit us. We're not satisfied until you are!

As part of redefining the swimwear experience, Malia Mills articulates a new voice on the subject of women and beauty. No matter which brand of swimwear you choose to wear we hope we have inspired you. At Malia Mills, we don't want to change the way you look, we want to change the way you look at yourself.

Love thy differences!™