Bra mishap turned business opportunity for two students

It started out with a glitch in the system of the Hollister clothing company.

A simple error on the company’s website allowed customers to order bras for free, with only a $5 standard shipping fee. Central Michigan University freshmen David Walter and Ian Elliott discovered the mistake and saw an opportunity for a business venture.

The pair ordered 116 bras from the company after hearing about the glitch in the system from one of their other friends, who discovered it when she was ordering her own bras.

“We’re selling all of them and donating a portion of the sales to the Women’s Aid Shelter,” Walter, a Chesterfield native, said while gesturing to the large cardboard box next to him filled with bras still in their plastic packaging. “It definitely started out as a business venture.”

Walter and Elliott were not the only Barnes Hall residents who took advantage of the Hollister system error and remember the day when the mail carrier arrived with all the orders.

"A lot of the girls in Barnes got theirs, too, and the guy who delivered them had to make multiple trips," Walter said. "And they're still not all here. They're still coming."

Walter said he thought it would be a great idea to help out the community by selling the bras.

He hopes that what started out as a whim will turn into a genuine business opportunity.

“A friend of ours had already gotten hers and she posted something about Bras for a Cause," he said. "She was going to donate them. So we were inspired to take our idea a step further."

Elliott, a Cheboygan native, said they might even get some of their female friends to help sell the bras.

“We realize that it would be kind of socially awkward for us to market them, so we are looking at getting a team of girls to help us disperse them,” he said. “We’re still working all that out.”

Walter agreed the duo is still figuring out how they’re going to sell the bras. With no set price, the two still plan on selling the free lingerie. The business partners are considering selling them for $5-10, but they’re still working out the details of their plan.