Austrian lingerie brand to storm UK

An Austrian lingerie brand with a reputation for saucy advertising is planning to launch in the UK later this year.

Palmers Lingerie has already appointed Bristol-based agency Rhythmm to handle the launch of the brand and its retail network.

The agency won the business following a four-way pitch against Golley Slater & Partners, BCLO, Corixa and Proteus. It is understood that Palmers, the largest manufacturer of textiles in Austria, is planning a significant investment in the launch of the range into the competitive UK market. It plans to have its first standalone store open by July, but it will also be available in department stores.

The Palmers brand is 91 years old, and makes a range of products including men’s bathrobes, pyjamas and boxer shorts. It also makes a full range of women’s bras and knickers with products in both the functional and luxury market. In addition it has a range of socks and hosiery, which includes functional stockings that release vitamins A, B and C into the skin when worn.

The brand is already available across eastern and central Europe and on the Arabian peninsula. It developed a reputation for using sexy advertising in the late Eighties after an outdoor campaign featuring scantily-clad women appeared overnight in Vienna. It has continued to use the sexy imagery as it has extended into new countries.

Palmers UK marketing director Claudia Lock-Fuerst says she is confident that the ad strategy will be well received in the UK.