Whispers Intimates, a body-positive bra and lingerie store in Chatham, stands as a testament to Sarah Drouillard’s unwavering determination and her commitment to herself and to other women, to feel confident and beautiful in their own skin.

A caregiver at heart

Drouillard was born and raised in Orangeville.  She was living and going to school in Waterloo when she met her husband.  They later moved to Brantford.

“I had finished schooling as a Rec Therapist. I worked in the long-term care and retirement sector, as well as recreation and rehab, for close to ten years, managing my own department right out of university”, Drouillard said.

Relocating…

“Being in Management meant that I was able to advocate for change and for better things.”

Her husband was head hunted for a position in Chatham, his hometown, which was his dream job. That was in December of 2019.

After moving to Chatham, Drouillard started as a casual worker at a long-term care facility, for about a year and a half and during this time they had two kids “in and out of the workforce.”

Frustration leads to Passion!

But she was unhappy. “My knowledge was being squandered, and I was getting frustrated.”

She began to consider a bold alternative. One in which she could share her greatest gift, her passion for helping people. She always had this idea of owning her own business.

Drouillard knew from experience that few stores offered a wide range of sizes for women’s bras and intimate apparel. In her early 20s she was a bra fitter in a boutique which she remembers as her favourite job so far.

She explained, “The idea was that I wanted to offer a bra store in Chatham.” Retail options were either high-end or low-quality and in the middle of a pandemic, she had to leave town just to get a nursing bra.

Business Training @ Small Business Centre!

She met Anthony Wilson of the Small Business Centre and presented him with data based on her survey of 150 Moms in support of her idea of opening a bra and lingerie store that catered to an under served clientele. “it was a small data set but if everybody I was talking to said there was a need, clearly there was a gap in service,” she said.

“I have never owned my own business before and I’ve no business background, so I thought I was coming to the table with nothing but an idea. Having someone in my corner was really motivating in the early days”, she explained.

After completing the Starter Company Plus business training in March of 2023 she decided to give it her all and move forward with her new business because “families cannot live on one pay cheque!”

“Everybody is like a snowflake”.

“Whispers Intimates” opened on July 29, 2023.

Drouillard believes that bra shopping should be fun and easy. She explained that “everybody is like a snowflake” we are all different and need to be fitted properly.

What a first year!

And what a first year it was!

Whispers Intimates was one of six finalists for “Best New Lingerie Store” of North America sponsored by Intima Awards.

Her Facebook followers’ number 1,000.

She has seen a 3%-5% increase in sales month after month, 60%-70% of which are new customers.

In March, in celebration of 2024 International Women’s Day Drouillard shared on Facebook:

“Two years ago, I was in a job that I was unhappy with, it paid the bills and was stable. Being a Mom of two I felt stuck. I felt guilt for wanting a career. But I decided to show my daughter you can have a family and chase your career dreams too!”

Drouillard has shown that with passion and perseverance, dreams can indeed become a reality!