Taiwanese designer’s sexy, edgy lingerie with touches of BDSM and punk – bodysuits, thongs, briefs and bralettes – can be worn by almost anyone, she says
- Bei Kuo went to extremes when starting her own fashion line The End in 2016, with racy lingerie pieces that celebrate an overt sexuality
- Not just for naughty nights out (or in), the pieces can be incorporated into daywear, she says, adding that most people are far more sexual than they think
Growing up in Taiwan, Bei Kuo didn’t question the societal and cultural norms imposed on her. She went to a traditional school where everyone wore a uniform. She was expected to wear her hair a certain way.
There was a path she was supposed to be on, and she adhered closely to it.
But everything changed when Kuo moved to New York to study fashion at Parsons School of Design. Now she was in a city where individuality was celebrated and self-expression was encouraged.
“It opened my eyes to a different way of living and dressing,” Kuo says. “Everything felt so much freer.”
So when Kuo started her own fashion line The End in 2016, she went to extremes: sexy, edgy lingerie with vague touches of S&M and punk – the sort of thing that a Taiwanese schoolgirl might never have imagined herself designing.
The End is a curated yet comprehensive offering of bralettes, briefs, thongs and bodysuits that celebrate an overt sexuality while being rooted in eco-consciousness: everything is made from organic cotton, while the sale of each piece supports reforestation efforts through the organisation One Tree Planted.
How Kate Hudson kept THAT Venice dress on – a simple thing called Yoobtape
The pieces are brash and bold – think a lime green bra and thong set with harness straps, or bralettes with nipple rings attached. While at first sight they could be mistaken for the tacky polyester ensembles in sex shops, look closer – each piece is rich with detail, secret clasps and closures.
Kuo founded the line after working for several ready-to-wear brands, including Nicopanda, Asher Levine and Profound Aesthetic, in both Taiwan and New York, which exposed her to the failings of the fashion industry and the degree of waste and pollution caused. She incorporated her affinity for Japanese manga – she used to draw the characters as a child – into her subsequent fashion career.
When she first conceived The End, she had already tapped into a burgeoning collective energy, one that did not shame sexuality. She says that her pieces are not just for naughty nights out – or in, as the case might be – but can also be incorporated into functional daywear: a saucy bra over a crisp white shirt, for example.
Sexiness is at the forefront, she says, adding that most people are far more sexual than they think.
The company ships worldwide through its website – and Kuo says there are few limits to who could wear it.
“We are all practising BDSM [bondage, dominance, submission and sadomasochism] on a certain level,” she says. “We just may not realise it.”
