About Kate Swim
Kate Swim has been providing women with fashionable, original and fun customizable swimsuits since 2007. When you purchase a Kate Swim suit, you will never have to settle. Kate Swim allows you to select pieces that not only fit your body, but your personality, too.
Many of the suits in the Kate Swim collections have been sought after by those in the pageant and fashion show circuit and were prominently featured in the ultimate of swimsuit showings, the 2012 and 2013 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Whether you choose a suit straight from a collection or to create your own, your suit is guaranteed to fit and flatter your body type.
Every woman needs to love her own body, and every woman should own a swimsuit that makes her look and feel sexy, beautiful, confident and sophisticated. At Kate Swim, that’s exactly what you get.
Kathleen Bruening — Designer
It could be said that Kathleen Bruening, founder and designer of Kate Swim is a swimsuit savant.
She began designing when she was just nine years old and by 14, she was creating aesthetically pleasing formal and costume wear. This hobby quickly became a passion and two years later she sharpened her career focus and began attending Upcountry Sewing School in Maui, Hawaii. That was in 2005. Over the next three years, Kathleen developed new techniques and refined her area of specialization—swimwear.
She saw that women were faced with the arduous task of fitting their bodies into too few sizes, styles, cuts and fabrics. And as necessity is the cause for invention, Kathleen was inspired to help women avoid the negative experiences of buying swimwear and began to customize her first suits.
Kate Swim was founded in 2007 while she was still a student at Upcountry Sewing School. The following year, she completed her first collection with 25 different suit styles. The collection that followed in 2009 and 2010 featured 28 additional new suits. So, by 20 years old, Kathleen already had her own company and 53 innovative, customizable looks under her belt.
And these styles were well received. In 2009, five pageant winners throughout Hawaii were wearing Kate Swim designs. Then, in 2011, Sports Illustrated came calling and many of Kathleen’s styles were prominently featured in the magazine’s 2012 Swimsuit Issue, including the suit worn by supermodel Kate Upton as she graced the magazine’s cover.
Each style Kathleen creates is completely original while holding true to her own style design that can best be described as funky, fun, intricate, sexy and confident. She now provides a growing array of collections and customizable suits wherein the woman can choose her cut, color, fabric, size and style. So, what was once an idea swimming in Kathleen’s mind becomes the tangible, fashionable swimsuit on the woman’s body. Kathleen makes sure that each Kate Swim suit is designed for you, no matter who you are.
