Gift Shop Plus Summer 2024

Meet the Maker: Lara Smith By Carly McFadden

A business that is led by the heart often makes the greatest impact.

In 2012, Lara Smith’s younger sister was diagnosed with breast cancer. Smith, who at the time was an executive at one of Canada’s largest specialty retailers, was in search of a sleepwear brand that could provide her sister some relief, comfort and self-care during treatment.

“Among all the other side effects of her treatment, she was thrust into menopause effectively,” she said. “With her hormone treatment, the chemo and radiation, she was having horrible night sweats every night. I found that criminal that she was fighting for her life and then couldn’t sleep, knowing how important sleep is to health.”

Smith searched far and wide for pajamas that were made with quality materials, featured cooling and comfort technology, and were beautiful. But instead she found a gap in the market and decided to found Lusomé to fulfill that need for women.

“I really started the company as a love letter to my sister and all the women suffering in silence from extreme health conditions that brought about night sweats,” Smith said. “But beyond that, there are over a billion women in menopause that are suffering in silence. So that was the genesis of the company.”

Lusomé — whose name means “desirable” in ancient Scottish terms — creates sleepwear that is both luxurious and powered with moisture- management technology. Smith strives to keep women comfortable through night sweats with Xirotex fabrics, which pulls moisture from the fabric to the surface, cools to retain an ideal body temperature, and dries skin within seconds.

Smith also designed Lusomé sleepwear to be worn in an act of self love — helping women feel confident and beautiful while addressing their physical needs.

“The essence of our brand and inspiration has come from iconic French princesses, royalty and supermodels,” Smith said. “I just love the French design aesthetic, which is very timeless and elegant. From Grace Kelly or the famous French modelInès de La Fressange, there are these French, iconic women that inspire the overall creative treatment and the details — whether it’s the real shell buttons that we use or the type of lace. Down to the colors that we choose, the trims and even the branding — it’s all very high-end luxury inspired.”

The “absolute bestseller” at Lusomé is the Eva Night Shirt, which fits every body and can double as a swim coverup or comfortable day dress. Smith said this has been top-performer for 10 years.

BRAND EVOLUTION

The core of Lusomé was built on independent boutiques, where the owners are on the sales floor interacting closely with customers. After the company’s founding, Smith began approaching stores that sold high-end lingerie or swimwear with free samples of Lusomé T-shirts.

“Very quickly within the first year, we had 125 boutiques signed up throughout North America,” she said. “They became the devoted base of our brand initially. A few years later, we were in Oprah Magazine and our business took off.”

While sleepwear remains a constant for the company, Lusomé expanded its reach in 2022 to introduce luxury bedding and sleep accessories congruent with the company’s original mission.

“We launched the only luxury cotton sheet that can manage temperature up to five degrees,” Smith said. “… The sheets are a luxury experience to me — it’s actually emotional. It’s part of a self-care ritual, when you start to think about going to bed and knowing that I can crawl into these luxury sheets that actually do give me a better night’s sleep. It’s the highlight of my day.”

To round out the sleep experience, Lusomé also launched a collagen-infused sleep eye mask. The blackout sleep mask is essentially wearable anti-aging because it delivers hydration properties against the skin due to the collagen fibers.

A LABOR OF LOVE

What started as a company of Smith and her brother-in-law evolved into a 24-person team over the last 12 years. Lusomé — which will exhibit at Summer 2024 Atlanta Market — has grown its distribution channels since its founding, but its primary business remains in specialty retailers rather than direct- to-consumer.

“We wake up in service of women and helping them feel better and be more comfortable,” Smith said. “We want women to feel desirable for themselves and beautiful, no matter their health circumstances. Social impact really drives us as well. We have a campaign twice a year where we devote proceeds and care packages of pajamas and other essentials to women’s emergency shelters throughout North America. That is the forefront of what we do, just being in service of women.”