The fashion industry often preaches styles for everyone, but finding the right clothes in trendy and in any size is still a challenge. input Lauren Gray27-year-old founder What do you wantonline clothing brands ranging from small to five times more. Her mission is to create confidence at any scale without compromising.
After graduating from Pitzer College, Gray’s journey into the world of fashion, including sizes. She initially got a job at a high-tech company that just launched an app for resale clothing. While helping to build a community of apps, she noticed a clear gap in the second-hand fashion market: the lack of size inclusiveness. That realization sparked the idea of her own brand. It’s something that ultimately offers the fashion she always wanted, but has struggled to find.
What LO wants has deeper meaning
name What do you want Carries a personal touch. The grey, affectionately called “lo” or “lolo” by close friends and family, found inspiration in a casual conversation with the friend’s mother.
“I was always talking to my best friend’s mom, ‘I want to wear this, or I want to wear it, I want to wear what my friend is wearing.’ He looked very similar to my mom and she was like, “That’s anything Lora wants.” She calls me Lolo, but no one else does,” recalls Gray. “And I’m like, oh, ‘What do you want?’ That’s so cute. On the plane coming back from Curvy Con, I just wrote it on a napkin and I kept it and now I have tattoos on my arm. ”
The big goal of fashion
In the case of grey, availability is not the only size inclusiveness. It’s about changing how people think about fashion.
“It’s funny because you want fashion to fit correctly, so it’s made for your body, but you don’t want them to style it for your body,” she explained. “I hope that fashion doesn’t tie into size in terms of style. For example, I choose what I want to wear, so I should be able to choose from all of these options. These are my options. This is what I have to wear.”
Gray admits that the industry has made progress, but he is noted with recent setbacks, particularly with increasing weight loss pills and increasing body size trends.
“Obviously, everyone knows that fashion feels like it’s backwards,” she said. “I think it’s definitely getting a little harder, and I think it’s a big conversation.”
As both a fashion consumer and a business owner, Gray observed an ongoing discussion about weight loss pills. She has not seen dramatic changes in sales due to these trends, but she remains in agreement with how body standards continue to evolve.
“Personally, I think it’s just anxious that it’s impressive and that they feel like they have to do something,” she said. “I feel very impressive. I was easily fooled, my friend would say. For me, I get it like, ‘Okay, do you feel like I need to lose weight because everyone else is doing it, or is there anything about my body that you want to change?” I am human. ”
“So I think everyone in this new era needs to be a little smarter. [with weight loss drugs]. But that’s still your choice. I think that’s what the physical positivity is. It’s anything you want to do with your body, it’s not my business. ”
Encourages confidence in fashion
Gray believes that fashion should empower people to feel better with their own skin, rather than force them to meet obsolete beauty standards.
“Previously, it was like, ‘Come on your body, dress the way you want, who cares about who’s thinking?’ But do I think it’s actually something that feels comfortable with you? ” she said. “If that feeling comes from ‘I’m worried about what other people think about my arm’, then it’s okay, tackle it and realize that literally no one is looking at your arm. I promise you, no one is looking at your arms. ”
She encourages people to take small steps towards confidence.
“You’re the first time, ‘Oh my god, I’m finally wearing a crop top, everyone is looking at me’ The second time, ‘I don’t care if they see me’ The third time, you’re like, ‘No one is looking at me.’ ”
The future of what Lo hopes for
As a direct consumer brand, What do you want Although it was successful, Gray is aiming for expansion.
“I love being a DTC brand. It works well and we are still manufactured in the US, so the price range is a little higher because we pay for US labor,” she said. “That means it’s difficult to distribute through other channels, like being in wholesale or Nordstrom, etc. But that’s where I want to move towards the future.”
With a mission to prioritize confidence, inclusivity and personal choice, Gray doesn’t just sell clothes. We’re reworking stories about fashion and size. and What do you want As we continue to grow, the future of inclusive fashion for sizes looks bright.
Source: The Curvy Fashionista – thecurvyfashionista.com