Putting the 'Intimate' in 'Intimate Apparel'

Walking into Bra Garden, one is overcome by the sense of calming serenity its name might suggest. The walls are coated in relaxing tones of pink and lush greens. Colorful butterflies ornament the store’s walls, and floral curtains beckon customers into the quaintly furnished fitting room.

The experience is made only more inviting by a greeting from store owner, Kathy Zutz, who with each customer who enters, provides a friendly salutation and a welcoming smile.

Shopping for bras is not an easy task, as most women know, and it is made glaringly apparent by statistics that show that approximately 80 percent of women wear the wrong bra size. Zutz understands the anxieties of looking for a proper fitting bra, and she remains committed to making the search for the perfect bra as easy and enjoyable as possible.

"Every woman is as beautiful as a flower, and every flower is an unique as the one next to it," she said. "Every woman who has walked through my door, though they may have some similarities, they are not all the same."

Not only does Zutz help the average woman find proper fitting bras, but she also helps women who have been affected by cancer and who have received mastectomies. People who have been through this procedure often have difficulty finding suitable undergarments, and Zutz caters to women who may have difficulties shopping at other lingerie stores.

Zutz is passionate about helping women who are dealing with the strains of breast cancer and is dedicated to helping ease these women into a more confident place by supplying them with the equipment that can boost their images and self-esteem.

"I can help that whole person," she said. "So that person who gets her diagnosis and leaves the doctor’s office and does not know where to go or what to do, she can come here and I will walk her through that so she will not have to worry about going to any other places because I’ll have it all here."

Zutz became so devoted to helping women who have undergone breast surgeries because of her mother’s own struggle with breast cancer. Zutz has worked with the American Cancer Society for eight years, and also co-founded Expressions with Linda Secher at St. Jude’s Hospital in Fullerton, where she helped cancer victims learn to creatively manage and deal with the hardships of having cancer