Hinda Miller
"We said [...] that every woman, no matter what their size, shape or age, had the right to the benefits of fitness and exercise."
Hinda Miller, Lisa Lindahl and Polly Smith invented the sports bra, launching a global industry. The revolutionary Jogbra® advanced the health of women and girls by enabling them to more comfortably participate in athletics.
A native of Montreal, Miller learned to be persistent early in life. In an interview with the National Inventors Hall of Fame®, she said she learned from her father that she did not have to be perfect, and “if you didn’t have to be perfect, then you didn’t have to be afraid of failing.”
Miller earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental design from Parsons School of Design in 1972, followed by a master’s degree in theater design from New York University in 1976.
In the summer of 1977, as Miller worked alongside her co-inventor Smith as an assistant costume designer for a Shakespeare festival in Burlington, Vermont, Lindahl requested Smith’s help in developing her idea for an undergarment that would minimize discomfort while running. At the time, five years after the passage of Title IX, more women and girls than ever before were participating in sports and fitness. Miller, who had enjoyed being physically active since childhood and had developed an enduring interest in yoga during her undergraduate years, joined the project to help create an athletic bra.
When Smith sewed two jockstraps together and both Lindahl and Miller tested it on a run, they had their first working sports bra prototype.
Miller and Lindahl commercialized their invention as the Jogbra and co-founded their company, Jogbra Inc. (later renamed JBI Inc.), in 1977. As company president, Miller played a crucial role in securing investment funding, manufacturing, product design and marketing strategies. With the help of a $5,000 loan from Miller’s father, Miller and Lindahl had 600 Jogbras made and began pitching them to independent sporting goods stores.
It took persistence to convince store owners — many of whom were men — of the need for a sports bra. “It was our desire to get this valuable product out to women because we knew it would enhance a very important part of their lives,” Miller said. “We said [...] that every woman, no matter what their size, shape or age, had the right to the benefits of fitness and exercise.”
The Jogbra launched a multi-billion-dollar industry. Patented in 1979, the sports bra is now a staple in wardrobes worldwide. According to Smithsonian.com, “The introduction of the sports bra did more than improve athletes’ performances. It represented a revolution in ready to wear clothing, and for many women athletes, the bra actually made sports possible.”
Playtex Apparel bought JBI in 1990. In 1991, Sara Lee — owner of Champion Products Inc. — bought Playtex and formed the Champion Jogbra division. Miller held roles as president, CEO and vice president of communications for Champion Jogbra before leaving in 1997.
Miller holds six U.S. patents, served as a Vermont state senator from 2003 to 2012 and currently runs The Sultanas Group, a business consulting firm for entrepreneurs.
To empower the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs, she and her husband Joel established the Hinda and Joel Miller Scholarship Fund for women business majors at Champlain College. She has also visited the National Inventors Hall of Fame education program Camp Invention® to personally provide children in grades K-6 with encouragement and inspiration.
She also supports women’s rights, arts education for adults and children, higher education and social entrepreneurship.
