Playtex

It is a value pick with real staying power. Shoppers describe it as well-made and comfy, holding its shape for years, and many buy several because they prefer it to far pricier brands. Some long-time wearers feel recent versions feel less premium than older ones, so manage expectations, but for affordable, dependable everyday support it remains a strong buy.

Apparel and feminine care, most notably bras and tampons. The brand has produced and marketed the Cross Your Heart bra since 1954 under the slogan that it "lifts and separates," and its best-selling tampon, Gentle Glide, dates back to 1973. The Eighteen Hour bra has been sold on a comfort promise since the 1970s.

The name describes the design. It has been marketed since 1954 with the line that it "lifts and separates," and shoppers point to its iconic cross-chest structure, with the non-wired versions getting praise for comfortable all-day support. It is built for everyday wear rather than a fashion or push-up effect.

Playtex was founded in 1947 as one of four divisions of the International Latex Corporation. The name is a portmanteau of "play" and "latex," reflecting its original focus on latex products, and its early marketing helped shift women from custom-tailored undergarments to standardised manufactured sizes.

Yes, through its industrial side. In 1962 Playtex's industrial division was awarded a contract to develop space suits for the Apollo mission, including a customised suit for Neil Armstrong. That division was spun off in 1967, two years before the Moon landing that used its suits, and eventually became ILC Dover.

It is split across several owners by product category. The apparel business has been run by Hanesbrands, while the consumer products were acquired by Energizer and later spun into Edgewell Personal Care in 2015. Between 2017 and 2026 Edgewell sold off the gloves, infant care and feminine care lines, and global feminine care rights are now owned by the Swedish company Essity.

They emphasise different things. The Cross Your Heart, sold since 1954, is defined by its "lifts and separates" cross-chest structure, while the Eighteen Hour bra has been marketed since the 1970s squarely on the promise of all-day comfort. If support and shaping are the priority, Cross Your Heart is the icon; for sheer wear-it-all-day ease, the Eighteen Hour is the line built for that.

It did, twice over. Playtex was the first to advertise undergarments on national television, in 1955, and in 1977 it became the first to show a live model wearing only a bra in a commercial. Those firsts were genuinely boundary-pushing for their eras and helped define how intimate apparel is marketed.

The best-selling line is Gentle Glide, first introduced in 1973, and Playtex also makes the Playtex Sport tampon aimed at young athletes. Both are sold in regular, super and super-plus absorbencies, so the choice comes down to your flow and, with Sport, an active lifestyle.

At its core, yes. It is an American brand founded in 1947 as a division of the International Latex Corporation, which itself was founded in Rochester, New York in 1932 and later moved to Dover, Delaware. Although the various Playtex businesses have changed hands many times and some rights are now held internationally, its origin and identity are firmly American.