From the vibrant coastlines of New England emerges a swimwear brand that is challenging the status quo of swimwear design, onewith. The innovative label is the brainchild of founder Hayley Segar, whose journey into the world of swimwear began not on the sands of a tropical paradise, but amidst a pile of unsatisfactory swimsuits on her apartment floor.
Segar’s onewith is a testament to her desire for swimwear that mirrors the comfort and fit of her favorite underwear. The brand is characterized by its seamless blending of comfort and style, a refreshing departure from the restrictive designs that dominate the market. Among the brand’s hallmark styles is the Woodmont Cheeky Bikini Bottom, a bikini with a timeless silhouette and raw-cut edges that promises a fit as comfortable as your favorite pair of no-show underwear.
Another standout piece is the Bellows Plunge High-Cut One Piece, a swimsuit that combines its lengthening high-cut leg opening with a sexy deep V-plunge front. Its patent-pending design ensures a seamless fit, living up to the brand’s promise of swimwear that feels one with the body. Then there’s the Westerly Tie-Front Bikini Top, an ode to the sunny beaches of the tri-state area, with a design that celebrates the body in all its glory.
The beauty of onewith lies not just in its designs, but also in the philosophy that powers its creation process. Every stitch is a manifestation of the brand’s commitment to body positivity. The swimsuits aren’t merely tailored to fit the body, but rather, crafted to complement every curve, every line, and every form. As we edge closer to another sun-soaked season, we invite you to dive into the brand’s latest collection. Through her swimwear line, Segar aims to usher in an era where women feel just as comfortable in their swimwear as they do in their own skin.
Be sure to check out our interview with Hayley Segar below, where she takes us on a journey through the creation of onewith, shares her insights on feeling confident in swimwear, and much more. Read on for our conversation!
How did the concept of “underwear that fits like underwear” originally come about?
So I was trying on a bunch of different swimsuits for a trip to Miami. Four years ago, I had a pile on the floor of just all these suits I had tried on that I hated so much. I literally said out loud, “I just want a swimsuit that fits me like my favorite no-show underwear does.” That was my lightbulb moment. I knew I’ve always had a really good relationship with clothes and a solid relationship with my body.
So I knew, for me to have this glaring issue in one category, was a commentary on the category itself. So I set out on a mission at that moment, then I researched extensively to see if there was anything like that on the market so that I could buy it. I knew that if I couldn’t buy it, I was gonna have to make it… not just for myself, but for women everywhere. That’s what I ended up doing.
How did you decide on the name, onewith, and how does it encapsulate the fit and feeling you wanted to create with your swimwear line?
I came up with the name in the days following coming up with the concept. I knew that I wanted the name to reflect the purpose of the brand; I didn’t want it to just be “Hayley Segar Swimwear.” I was trying to just ideate and figure out something that worked, and I said out loud, “It needs to feel one with my body.” And that was it!
I just loved it from that moment on. And also, there’s this JFK quote about being one with the sea. As a native New Englander and someone that has grown up on the shoreline, I also love that sort of expression, and that’s definitely the way that I view my relationship with the water and growing up by the water.
What was your relationship with the beach and ocean growing up?
Most swim brands focus on the tropics, palm trees, and hot destinations. I made it my mission from the start to really only feature New England, Northeastern tri-state imagery and novelty in the brand. So all of our pieces are named after places in the Northeast. You’ll notice any palm trees that would be on our Instagram feed would be because someone took a trip in onewith and we’re reposting their photo.
We really celebrate the definition of “the beach” and “going to the beach” that is true for so many people in America, which is going to the beach where they grew up, that’s not necessarily a tropical destination…much in the same way that onewith celebrates the body as it is and doesn’t look to make it something that it’s not. I love glamourizing the tri-state at any point.
Talk to us about your swimwear range—from bikini tops to different bottoms, how do you choose what to design?
So the first collection, which is six of the eight styles that you see on the website, are the original styles I drew up years ago at this point. I wanted really classic, simple silhouettes. We really don’t have any hardware on our pieces so it’s minimal. Again, it’s really leaning into that swimwear that fits like underwear vibe of just being bare necessities.
We’re obviously expanding upon our range in the near future, but I really wanted to set out with really classic, staple styles that people would recognize and gravitate to, so that the concept of our swimwear could shine, and not us trying to like, reinvent the wheel with some insanely complex one-piece design because that’s not the point of the swim. The point of the swim is the construction, not necessarily a cutting-edge actual silhouette.
Also, I love that your sizing ranges from XS to 4XL. When it comes to plus-size offerings, are there any extra steps that you have to take to make sure they fit correctly and offer enough support?
Yeah, so we definitely put a lot of effort into size grading. That’s something every brand says like, “Oh we we spend so much time working on fit and working on our size chart,” but I think one thing that separates us from the outset is we launched with a 3XL. Most brands will launch with just XL, and, by demand, add a 2X and so on.
It was really important to us to start out as a size-inclusive brand, and it really goes both ways. We’re looking to expand our inclusivity on both ends of the spectrum. So adding more plus and also looking at adding an XXS, maybe not stopping there. We don’t know what other innovations we will have in the sizing space. We do really look at our customers and see what they’re asking for.
Why do you think other swimwear brands don’t take the same approach?
It’s really expensive. The more sizes you produce, the more you have to spread your units out over that number of sizes. So for example, if you’re ordering 100 units of a certain style and you’ve got seven sizes, which I believe is what we have right now, that number per style is really low in terms of spreading that out over that many styles. It’s time, money, and capital that you have to invest with the factory and your design team to make it happen and fit. So it can be really time intensive.
Pivoting from the discussion of your core range earlier, what’s next?
In the near future, we’re launching our summer collection. I really do see us as being this community-led design brand in the sense of we came out with a thong, not because it was on my top priority as a founder to launch a thong, but because the people demanded it. Our fit and concept are so unique that I’m really excited to see the avenues that it takes us based on what our customers want and really lean into that.
The people speak for where they want to see onewith go and obviously, I do have my own vision. I know that one of my personal goals is for women everywhere to recognize onewith as a solution that is out there, that exists for them to feel better in swimwear, and maybe ultimately not just swimwear too. So really just having that sense of recognizability that we exist to help people feel better in their swim and beyond.
Do you have any tips for women regarding feeling comfortable in swimwear?
I’ve always been a really big proponent of body neutrality and dressing your body for the way it is right now. I’m someone that struggled going up and down in weight my entire life, so I have always had to look at my body in whatever state it’s in and just been like, “Okay, this is what I’m dealing with at this current moment, it isn’t forever. This is how I have to dress myself for the time being, or this is the size I’m wearing.” The great thing about onewith is when it’s sized and stretched properly, it won’t dig in.
So you know that if you have your correct onewith size, it can always be a garment that fits your body in a way that is really becoming. Personally, no matter how I’m feeling, I know I can put on my onewith and feel good in it no matter what, so I hope that we can kind of achieve that for women everywhere.
Define the ultimate onewith girl. Who is she, and what is she like?
I’m still getting to know the several types of onewith girls that exist. One of the most exciting parts of being a founder is seeing who is wearing my product and who’s loving it. It’s so cool and there was a time especially when I was super active on TikTok with the brand that we were skewing a little bit younger. Honestly, now, we were skewing more in my age range, which is the 25 to 34 demographic.
I’m loving that because it encompasses potentially a mom with kids, newly out of college, all things considered in the general scheme of life, like that age demographic is very exciting to me. I also love seeing the girls at TCU wearing my swimwear. We definitely have a really interesting, very balanced mix of millennials and Gen Z. So that’s been super interesting to explore.
