Alanna Murray is a trailblazer in the women's swimsuit industry with her modest swimsuits that she designs and sells at her online store, "by Alanna." Her modest swimsuit styles have earned the trust of countless happy customers who have left glowing reviews. Her brand has become a phenomenon with virality on social media and coverage on news outlets. She is a determined entrepreneur and designer with proven success and satisfied customers. She understands the difficulty that women face in finding a modest swimsuit and is devoted to providing options that make a woman excited to wear a swimsuit. Her sense of style, creativity, and talent are unmatched by any other women's swimsuit brand.
Alanna Murray, Founder and Swimsuit Designer
Introduce yourself! Please tell us about you and your life so we can get to know you better.
Hi there! My name is Alanna Murray and I am a 31-year-old entrepreneur and founder of the women’s modest swimwear brand, “by Alanna”. I grew up on a farm in a small, rural town in the Midwest – just outside Chicago (aka the best city ever)! I grew up as the baby of the family with four older siblings and two loving parents. My siblings and I were raised in a Catholic household and would go on retreats in the summertime together to deepen our faith.
How did your experiences on Catholic retreats and mission trips shape your vision for creating modest swimwear?
So, there was a dress code at the pool of the retreat center that my family would go on in the summertime. And I remember, especially as a teenager, not necessarily wanting to abide by those rules only because the “modest” swimwear options in department stores were just plain ugly, to be frank. We’re talking tacky patterns and gross silhouettes. I also served on a mission trip in Florida in college and remember knowing that I would need a one-piece modest swimsuit or modest tankini. I think how you dress and present yourself is an important part of self-expression (seriously, who can’t be in a good mood when you have a killer outfit on?!), so it would pain me to have to wear a swimsuit that wasn’t stylish. I always wished there were not only more modest swimsuit options in stores, but more modest swimsuit options that were actually cute.
What challenges did you face starting your business during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how did you overcome them?
Honestly, I love that I started my business during COVID-19. Thanks to the free time and solitude, I dove into my creative side (like so many others during that time) and taught myself how to sew. I was so pleased by some of the encouragement I received from Instagram and TikTok when sharing my finished swimsuit product that I took the leap to expand. I had just moved to Manhattan, New York, at the time in January 2020, to be exact and hired a ma-and-pa sewing company in the heart of the Garment District. I have partnered with other manufacturers as well along the way since then. I think one of the biggest challenges is that the world was facing some serious supply chain issues at the time, if you remember. So, I remember being so frustrated with the many delays that came up in receiving my final products (it took almost a whole year to receive my swimsuits!). But in the meantime, I was able to continue to build my website and market my other modest swimsuits, too. It definitely taught patience and how to reprioritize.
Can you describe your design process and how you ensure that your swimsuits balance modesty with modern fashion trends?
There isn’t too much of a process in how I come up with the designs. I have always been really particular about clothing that I wear and oftentimes get a vision in my head of something I want to wear but know it will be impossible to find something like that in a store. So, that was pretty much what happened. I had a vision of the type of modest swimsuit I wanted, and then from there, I simply had conversations with the different manufacturers about what I was looking for and provided some photos of a similar style. I was also able to send them some physical samples of a similar modest swimsuit bottom so that they could trace the silhouette and make their pattern pieces. We were in touch throughout the process as they made their edits. In regards to balancing modesty with fashion trends, I think it is very simple. I knew that I wanted to provide modest swimsuit bottoms with full coverage (no cheeks hanging out, ha), and then from there, just make sure it’s on high-quality fabric, has a fun and rich-looking print or color, and has a classic silhouette!
What role has social media played in the growth of your brand, and how do you engage with your followers?
Social media really has been crucial in the growth of my brand. We all know that TikTok popped off during COVID-19, and many people had videos go viral. I am thankful to have experienced some of that virality when I started posting on the app in 2021. While virality certainly comes with some criticism and negativity, there were so many people who were so thankful for my modest swimsuit designs and had even made purchases through the app, which was huge for me! The virality definitely gave me the push that I needed to know that I had a good product and that people wanted to buy it. In regards to engaging with followers, I love responding to comments left on my posts as well as offering special discounts.
What are your long-term goals for “by Alanna,” and how do you plan to continue innovating in the modest swimwear market?
Oh, I have so many! I am definitely a dreamer, and I feel like the sky's the limit. I am currently working on getting my modest swimsuits into brick-and-mortar stores. I have been in touch with department stores as well as various small business boutiques. From a more technical standpoint, I am really doubling down on SEO and improving the overall authority of my website. It has come a long way over the years and I am certainly so very proud of the progress and where it is today, but there is always room for improvement. Specifically, I hope to continue to rank on Google for some keywords such as modest bikini bottoms, modest black one-piece swimsuit, and preppy one-piece swimsuit. Additionally, while I have already been fortunate enough to have been a guest on many blogs, podcasts, and new channels, I have plans to do even more PR in the future. I hope to be featured in Forbes someday, among many other publications. I have been in touch about having my modest swimsuit designs in a fashion show in Chicago, so I hope to do that, as well as host my own fashion show someday. Lastly, I definitely plan to design more cute, modest swimsuit styles and add even more to my modest swimsuit collection.
Tell us about your greatest career achievement so far.
Truthfully, when I have customers send me a private message after they have received their swimsuit in the mail, and they tell me how much they love it, that is my greatest achievement. That is what keeps me going and reignites the fire inside of me. I am also very pleased to have some of my keywords ranking on the first page of Google, such as our white tankini. Overall, I am so thankful to be on this entrepreneurial journey and providing modest swimsuits for women.
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