Selma Koch, 95; Glance Told the ‘Bra Lady’ a Woman’s Size

Selma Koch, 95, New York’s “Bra Lady” reputedly able to ensure perfect fit with a mere glance who achieved celebrity status as a nonagenarian for continuing her vigorous sales career, died Thursday.

She had suffered a broken hip a week earlier in Manhattan’s Town Shop, where she had worked for about 75 years.

A New York native, the former Selma Rose Lichtenstein graduated from Columbia University and attended its Graduate School of Journalism before taking a job in advertising in the mid-1920s. The Town Shop was a client, and when the owner’s son flirted with her, she finally agreed to a date. She had been told that Henry Koch was “the most eligible bachelor around.”

They married in 1928, and Selma Koch joined the sales staff of the family business, learning to fit bras from her husband’s sister.

Herself a 34B, she said she never needed a tape measure and, after merely looking at a woman, never had to have a customer try on more than two bras before achieving a perfect fit.

Customers bought trousseaus from her, then in time sent their daughters and granddaughters to do the same.

A year ago, Koch was featured on national television shows, including “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” and in newspapers and radio interviews.

Although her ability to fit lingerie was noted, what gained her even greater fame was her stubbornness about continuing to work well into her 90s.

She usually logged six 10-hour days -- sometimes seven -- managing the shop each week, sitting behind her roll-top desk with a close view of the fitting rooms. Catering to all ages, she carried 8,000 styles of bras.