In 1995, fashion and textiles student Josie Bidwill decided to take a
stand against uncomfortable undies – so she and a friend started
making their own. “They were much more comfortable, featured
bright colours and lasted longer than the ones we were buying,” she
says. After selling some pairs to friends, the duo realised they were
onto something.
“In our flat in Nelson, we would admire our wonderful sea view and
plot our Thunderpants world domination,” Josie recalls. “We were
doing all the printing, cutting and sewing ourselves and launched
Thunderpants onto the market with an exhibition of the printed
undies in a gallery.” Before long, the internet had transformed their
business model, and Thunderpants began operating as an online
store; Josie’s younger sister bought into the company, and Thunder-
pants HQ moved to Wairarapa in the North Island: “It’s where we’re
from, and have stayed ever since.”
Nearly 25 years later, Thunderpants produce an impressive 50,000
garments annually. Alongside their signature pants, which come in
a variety of colours and prints (everything from artichokes and sau-
sages to cowgirls and goldfish), they’ve branched out into bedding,
leisurewear, swimwear and kids’ clothing – all made from Certified
Fairtrade Organic cotton. “I guess one of the key differences now is
I’m not sewing them, and I’d have to say that’s a very good thing for
everyone,” Josie jokes.
One thing that hasn’t changed over the years is the company’s val-
ues. “We’ve always liked to run things our way,” Josie reflects. “Our
mantra has always been ‘work to live, not live to work’.” Thunder-
pants channel their ‘people over profits’ philosophy into every area
of their operations, from how they make their garments to how they
build their relationships with customers and the community. They
source organic, fair trade cotton yarn from India that’s then knitted
into their fabric at ABMT – a leading sustainable textiles company
- in Melbourne. “Our supply chain is very small, and much of it we
know intimately,” Josie says. “Where we can’t visit the premises, we
rely on independent certifications such as Fairtrade.”
At the other end of this supply chain is the great undie-wearing pub-
lic, another integral element of the Thunderpants ethical business
equation. The brand isn’t just on a mission to produce comfy undies
that come with a blessed promise of wedgie-free wear – they’re
also committed to supporting meaningful initiatives. They achieve
this in part through their Philanthropants campaigns, which Josie
describes as having a “three-pronged approach”: Thunderpants
collaborate with another organisation that’s affiliated with a char-
ity, and then offer that charity either products or a portion of sales.
Over the years, Philanthropants campaigns have included covering
freight costs for books and medical supplies going to children in
Cambodia; fighting food poverty by donating bananas and profits
from banana-print pants to Kaibosh Food Rescue in Wellington; and
giving an ongoing, annual supply of underwear to Charlotte Clever-
ley-Bisman, a young New Zealander who suffered severe meningitis
as a baby and became the face of a campaign encouraging menin-
gococcal vaccinations.
The brand’s sustainability initiatives involve waste minimisation and
going completely carbon neutral. “We knew there were a lot of our
packaging bags going to landfill, and it was niggling at us,” Josie
says. Intent on finding a way to tackle the problem, Thunderpants
began using plastic-free packaging for all their orders and repur-
posing their fabric offcuts – they periodically sell ‘patchwork pants’,
crazy mash-ups of past prints that are guaranteed to liven up your
downstairs. They encourage customers to repurpose their Thunder-
pants undies into everything from craft supplies to cleaning rags.
“We get all sorts of emails and photos from people showing us their
waste creations – it’s great!” Josie says.
The brand is also almost carbon neutral, having signed an open
letter in 2018 to voice support for the New Zealand Government’s
commitment to reach zero net emissions by 2050. “We’re currently
looking at offsetting options,” says Josie, “and we’re hoping to have
it all sorted within a year.”
Who knew that so much good could come from the humble under-
pant? For Josie and her team, Thunderpants is more than just a
brand – it’s an opportunity to channel some good into the world
by putting people first. “Thunderpants is really an extension of our
personal lives,” Josie says. “How we operate as humans is how we
operate as a company.” Just like a comfy pair of pants, it really is as
simple as that. thunder down under
FOR SMALL BUT MIGHTY NEW ZEALAND BRAND THUNDERPANTS,
UNDERWEAR ISN’T JUST A DAILY NECESSITY ‒ IT’S A CHANCE
TO HELP CHANGE THE WORLD (AND FLAUNT SOME FABULOUS
PRINTS IN THE PROCESS).
words CARODY CULVER photos COURTESY OF THUNDERPANTS
..........
BEHIND THE SEAMS