This Friday is International Women’s Day, a day to celebrate womanhood and everyone who identifies as female. So what better way to begin the week than with the news that iconic Australian underwear brand Bonds has fronted their new Intimately campaign with none other than Aussie transgender model Andreja Pejic?
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The move is historic – Australia has never had an underwear campaign fronted by a transgender woman, so it’s a huge move for representation and diversity. Andreja is joined by New Zealand-born Victoria’s Secret model Maia Cotton and Shanaya Peters, one of Rihanna‘s picks for Fenty Beauty.
“I’m happy [with the campaign],” Andreja told PEDESTRIAN.TV. “It’s a nice was of celebrating. I feel like I went through my female puberty later in life, and it’s a nice way for me to see my body in an underwear campaign.”
It’s Andreja’s second underwear campaign after coming out as transgender in 2013. She said that while her career journey hasn’t been easy, she’s proud of her success.
There were definitely a lot of obstacles along the way, and it wasn’t easy in the beginning. Especially to be taken seriously and to not be seen as a gimmick. I would say things on that front are changing now in a big way and a lot of the work I put in – I think sharing my story and being open with the world is coming back to me in a good way. I think if you send positive energy out there it comes back. I’m excited to just keep living my life as a girl.
The campaign comes off the back of Andreja’s Hollywood debut, playing a cis woman in The Girl In The Spider’s Web last year. She said she’s committed to sharing her story in the hopes that public opinion in regards to the transgender community continues to progress.
In terms of public opinion, it has changed but it has a way to go. But I want to keep spreading some love out there and I wanted to open my story up and my heart I guess to the world, and share some really private things in the hope that it helps change the image. Just to be a Bonds girl, I’m very lucky and I think it’s going to be a really beautiful campaign. It’s nice for Australia to come on board with this stuff and to give me this opportunity to expose me to my whole market I guess. It’s kind of like a coming home, I guess.
The Bonds Intimately range in on sale now via Bonds Online and in stores.
