Meet Tina, Founder of Aqua Bay Swim Co.

Tina, Founder of Aqua Bay Swim Co, designer swimwear canada | swimsuits canada| swimwear canada

FUN FACTS ALL ABOUT TINA

INSPIRED BY: Jennifer Lopez, Reese Witherspoon and Lady Gaga – they are such powerhouses.

HAPPY PLACE: At home or In the sunshine and anywhere near or on the water (probably in my Aqua Bay!)

FAVE SEASON: Summer of course, so obsessed with it that I said if I ever had a daughter her name would be Summer. However, I decided to stay an auntie only.

NEXT DESTINATION: On my wish list is any place with sun, white sand and tropical blue waters. 

LAST MEAL: Sushi, seafood and a good steak. Red Wine and Hawkins Cheesies, don’t dis it until you’ve tried them! Oh, and who doesn’t love fries. 

CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT: My Aqua Bay swimsuit collection, dresses, my garden and my iPhone, sigh.

STYLE MANTRA: I am a strong believer in shopping and supporting local. It’s a BIG NO to dupes and replicas for me, I’m an OG girl. I believe that quality always is the better choice over quantity because you know the saying: “you get what you pay for”.

About Aqua Bay Swim Co, quality swimsuits canada, bikinis canada, tankini swimsuits

WHO WE ARE

As you can imagine, growing up lake side on the beautiful west coast of Vancouver Island meant living in a swimsuit for at least 4 months of the year or if you were a water baby like me, you could stretch it a good 6 months or more. As kids, we didn’t have a care in the world and ran around in our bathing suits all day. Then, we started to grow up, our bodies changed, we started to develop insecurities thanks to media messaging telling us we should look a certain way. 

We slowly start to hide behind towels and clothing, forgetting the freedom of a positive body image… teamed with the fact that swimsuit options were not comfortable nor designed to fit a fuller bust and body, we began to avoid swimsuits altogether.  Sound familiar?

I can remember the summer this started for me. I was heading into grade seven and had wanted a bikini because all my friends were wearing two pieces yet I still had a one-piece swimsuit. I had convinced my Grandpa, who loved to go shopping for anything, to take me with him to Victoria to buy a bikini. I found two that day and I loved them but was scared to wear them. I remember going swimming with a group of older friends and jumping in with my jumpsuit over top of my swimsuit because I was too afraid to let anyone see me in my swimsuit. If I got brave enough to wear it without any clothes, I would hop out of the water and wrap up in my towel right away. 

I went through years of hiding, especially as I got older and my bust filled out while my weight fluctuated up and down. I gave up on swimsuits because I could never get any of the super cute styles to fit me and my curvy body with a fuller bust - I was tired of trying to squeeze into the suits that claimed to “shape” and made me feel like I was struggling to squeeze my body into a sausage casing not to mention leaving your bust looking squished and flat like a pancake. 

I think I dealt with every swimsuit trouble you could think of, from too small, headaches from ties around the neck, back and shoulder pain from ties around the neck, straps slipping off the shoulders, side boob, under boob, uni-boob, flat squishy boob, saggy boob... do I need to go on? You ladies know what I am talking about. 

Finally, I was done with bad swimwear, I was done with hiding, and body shaming myself. Conveniently, I was also tired of working in my high stress career as an accountant! I had spent 15 wonderful years as a CPA advising business clients on taxes and all their business needs. I was ready for a more creative avenue and longing to be that free-spirited kid running around all day at the lake without a care in the world. 


"FINALLY, D CUP & UP SWIMWEAR AND READY TO WEAR THAT YOU CAN FEEL GOOD IN AND ABOUT" 


Frustrated with the lack of options for curvy D cup and up women in the swimwear world, I decided to make the leap to my new found passion, designing swimwear and resortwear that would fit, flatter and support a woman’s fuller bust without compromising on style and comfort. 


We have spent countless hours, resources, fittings, redrafts and samples to get this right. The combination of smart and functional design, firm cups and/or underwire and criss cross lace up back design, has allowed us to provided swimsuits that will support your D cup and up busts while allowing you to look chic at the pool and be comfortable and pain free in your swimsuit all day, yes we said it, ALL DAY! You won’t be disappointed! SHOP SWIMSUITS 

Shop swimwear canada online at Aqua Bay Swim Co for one piece bathing suits, bikinis canada and tankini swimsuits

OUR WHY 

"A BEAUTIFUL AND HEALTHY BODY COMES IN ALL SHAPES AND SIZES"

On occasion, we all need to be reminded that beauty is not defined by size, we need to embrace the beauty in all body types. We want to contribute to making a change in how society is trained to view what is beautiful. 

We want to help all women feel great about their bodies, accept who they are, and feel confident in their own skin. That is why we say NO to Photoshop and use women of all shapes and sizes to represent our brand. 

I want the industry to change how they portray beauty; true beauty is confidence in who you are and loving the skin you are in. 

It was a long 5 years of development but finally Aqua Bay Swim Co launches its first line, a line up of swimwear that is designed to make you look as good as you feel.  

Aqua Bay Swim Co provides curvy bathing suits canada for D cup swimsuit, DD cup swimwear, F cup swimwear and G cup bathing suits

Aqua Bay “The Brand” Values

QUALITY

We use the highest quality fabric, lining, bra cups, elastic and trims for our bathing suits. Our swimwear fabric is imported from Italy because they are the experts and are well known for being innovative in construction and share the same values when it comes to their people and the environment. 

SUSTAINABILITY

As much as possible, we use natural fibers that have a low environmental footprint in all our ready to wear and our swimwear fabric is made from recycled materials. 

ETHICAL

We manufacture our swimwear in Canada. Our staff work in an environment with high  labour and environmental standards. They are paid fair non-exploitive wages for their expertise.  

LOCAL 

Aqua Bay Swim Co. is a Vancouver Island based swimwear and ready to wear line that is manufactured right here in Vancouver, Canada with a manufacturer known as the best in the west. Staying as local as possible and contributing back into the economies and communities we live in is a priority for us.

INTEGRITY

We love collaborating with influencers, photographers, media, other brands and artists and believe in ensuring everyone is compensated fairly for their services; Influencer marketing is the new age way of advertising, however, our paid campaigns will be reserved for those who love and support Aqua Bay. We won’t pay to obtain an empty endorsement.  We want you to hear the authentic opinions about our brand and our quality swimwear, therefore we will only collaborate with those who authentically love Aqua Bay as much as we do. 

DESIGN

We invest heavily into our design and we don’t compromise which means we don’t stop sampling until they are just right. We use models with a fuller D cup and up bust in our mid range fit and scale the sizes in both directions to ensure all the sizes get the best fit possible. 

Want in? We’re waiting for you over on Instagram @aquabayswim

#AQUABABEFOREVER