Transcription

• Speaker #0

  It's just so hard for students to end up having what they need unless it's already on their body and already on their person. And that's definitely our goal.

• Speaker #1

  Welcome to NeuroDivergent Spot. I'm your host, Sam Marion. My pronouns are he, him, and I am a mostly neurodivergent therapist, speaker, and creator. My work focuses on all things neurodiversity with particular interest in autism, ADHD, learning differences, and learning disabilities. Today's guest is Julia Danai. Please introduce yourself to the listeners.

• Speaker #0

  Hi, yeah, I'm Julia Danai. My pronouns are she, her. I'm a former special education para and founder of sensory clothing brand Sensational You on a mission to increase inclusion and acceptance of sensory and neurodivergence through clothing that helps people feel comfortable and safe.

• Speaker #1

  Before we continue, I've got a quick disclaimer. This podcast is for information purposes only and should not be seen as a replacement for therapy, healthcare, or legal advice. Awesome. Julia, thank you so much for being here. I'm really excited to learn more from you and just get to know you a little bit today. We'll jump in with the first question. What has your journey with Nerdvergence looked like?

• Speaker #0

  Yeah, it really started in college, I'd say, officially. I was majoring in fashion design and ended up volunteering at a local autism preschool where I learned a lot about the kids there around sensory needs and around clothing. that a lot of people brought up to me. And I ended up making a lot of deep friendships there with a few different families whose kids ended up being my models. And later I ended up working in a special education, specifically in autism classrooms, because I really just fell in love with the kids I was working with and everything they were going through from figuring out sensory to learning about different communication styles. And it was a really cool journey for me because it wasn't something that was really... on my radar heading into college, but really just a whole world and community that I fell in love with while working with them and growing those relationships.

• Speaker #1

  Awesome. And that takes me to my next question. Someone's going to keep going. You went to Cornell, right? You're at Ivy League, studied fashion design. So I am curious, just like what all did your path look like? What you thought you were going to do studying fashion design to where you are today? Can you sort of Give us that picture.

• Speaker #0

  Oh, yeah. It was definitely a pretty crazy journey of figuring out along the way. I think I was always kind of split between my love of childcare. I started babysitting at the age of 10. And fashion design, this was a fun, creative outlet for me. But I always knew that I wanted to do something with purpose with fashion. But I had no clue what that was going to look like at 18, blindly heading into a major. And so it really divulged over time. And just I went along with different areas of interest. but I fell in love with children's clothing first. And then kind of through these personal relationships through this school and friendships I built, really discovered this whole side of adaptive fashion and functional fashion and how you could design clothing to serve these other purposes. And I kind of fell in love with that. And it was a wild journey of just following my instincts and ending up in different jobs because of COVID and following that journey. But it was definitely something I never... could have predicted. I just knew I wanted to do something really purposeful, but I loved the creative side of fashion design. So I had to find a way to combine those two.

• Speaker #1

  That's pretty amazing. I'm constantly fascinated how people end up where they are in their lives, sort of career-wise. I interviewed a couple of people in the first season of the podcast who do different kinds of design work. One of them is a toy designer, one does graphic design, things like that. And it's, it's interesting to me, the toy designer who, you know, she and her husband have a toy company and it started with their own kids needs to design toys for their own kids. And then it just got bigger. So yeah, that's, that's really neat. So next question is what would 18 year old Julia think about the path you found yourself on?

• Speaker #0

  Yeah, I think she would be really shocked. I think the one thing I said going into college at 18 was. When I was majoring in fashion design, everyone thinks of Project Runway and, oh, are you going to go on Project Runway and start your own brand? And I always said very strongly I was never going to start my own brand. I just wanted to have a job I could clock in and out of. I wanted to have a steady paycheck and never thought I'd create my own line or anything like that. So I think the biggest shock would be that I ended up creating my own brand and venturing out into entrepreneurship. But I definitely think 18-year-old me would be really proud of finding that purpose in fashion. I definitely... didn't want to do something frivolous, even though when you initially tell people, oh, I'm going to be making clothing, it sounds a little frivolous. But it's something that impacts everyone's daily life. And I knew that and I knew there was something there. But I'm definitely really proud that I figured that out. And it was something that 18-year-old me never would have even thought was an option.

• Speaker #1

  Uh, I'm glad that you think 18 year old, you would be so happy and sort of proud, even if surprised. Uh, I think I'm going to hold on. I've got some follow-up thoughts on some of, some of this so far, but I'm gonna hold off on this till we let's get to all the questions. Then we'll get back a little bit of deep dive. Uh, cause I do have follow-up thoughts, but before I give my thoughts, I'm last question I've got before we go deeper is what are the next steps for a clothing company focused on sensory friendly clothing and maybe give a little bit of a picture of. Where you are now, what you offer, and then maybe directions you're headed.

• Speaker #0

  Yeah, definitely. So we started off by just offering children-sized clothing. Since I was working with children, we offered a few different styles. A hoodie that helps block sound, has an eye mask that pulls down for a sensory break. A t-shirt with built-in compression so you don't have to wear a separate vest. And a bunch of styles that are just tag-free, flat seams, magnetic closures. So they're super comfortable and also great for people to... wear and dress independently in. And from there, we've been slowly able to add. So we've added adult sizes in our hoodie first, and now soon we'll have joggers also. So slowly expanding all of our designs to also be in adult sizes is like a huge next step for us. I also think adding more designs in is a top priority. There's so many different facets of sensory needs and so many different sensory systems and so many different preferences and fabric preferences. So... There's definitely a lot there to add new products in. And I definitely think that's where we're going. And I want to see relatively soon.

• Speaker #1

  Awesome. Yeah. Thank you for sharing that. That's admittedly, I've not tried any of your clothes yet. What is the, so, and normally I kind of kick it back your way, let you choose your deep dive, but I got follow-ups first. Then I'll let you decide if we need to go somewhere else with us. What kind of feedback do you get from people first try some of what you offer? Because it is unique in the spaces. You know, I work with so many families, neurodivergent families, autistic families, ADHD, and the sensory friendly kind of thing is a big deal. And some of what you're offering, I haven't seen anywhere else. So what are your common like initial reactions that you hear from folks?

• Speaker #0

  Yeah, I think one of the biggest ones that always makes my day is just the immediate positive impact they can have that people share. Like, oh, we got the hoodie yesterday and today he was able to eat in the cafeteria for the first time with his peers. Like some of that initial, like immediate change you can really see with, especially our hoodie that helps block sound. It's something that's so unique and not out there that it can really have that direct, like initial impact, which is really cool. It's not something they really have to get used to a lot. It's just something that can be helpful. I think the other feedback, honestly, because it is so new, is just always around different things we could change in the product, which I always love. It's like, hey, we love this, but if it were a solid color, that would be more helpful so he could wear it to school. Or, you know, it would be helpful if it adjusted in the front versus the back so they could do it. So a lot of that, like, product feedback is another one I get initially when people are trying it on. And that part I love because that's what helps us grow and make new products. And fix things to be better.

• Speaker #1

  How old is your company now?

• Speaker #0

  Just about two years.

• Speaker #1

  So you really are still early growth and people's feedback is really driving your growth in the future directions, it sounds like.

• Speaker #0

  Oh, totally. Yeah. And it's been two years, but I was also teaching full time for the first year, over a year, year and a half. So it's still so new that customer feedback is the only thing that's really... driving me because that's what the company was for and I want it to be something that everyone loves so

• Speaker #1

  I love as much feedback as possible what are your main avenues for staying connected with with those that you're serving customers but these are not these are they're more than customers because you're really meeting a need like so what how are you staying connected yeah

• Speaker #0

  definitely through online social media has been our biggest platform and community builder And people really stay engaged on our platforms, on our different videos, or just sending messages, which has been amazing. And I just also make my email really accessible anywhere on our website. And emails we send to customers, if they reply, it comes back to me. And I let them know that to share their stories, to email me, and I'll always get back. And that's been really cool and built a really cool relationship between me and the customers. Because you're right, they're more than customers. So it's nice to have that personal connection to them and communication line.

• Speaker #1

  Yeah, wow, that's... i appreciate you letting me ask a few more questions from stuff we talked about is there anything you feel like we really should go back and deep dive a little bit further what am i missing so far

• Speaker #0

  Yeah, no, I loved your follow-up questions. I think it's always great to dive back in and see where people's questions definitely are. I definitely think kind of the next steps for a clothing brand, I'm happy to dive back into kind of what our clothing is and like what sensory-friendly clothing is for people who don't know and may be interested.

• Speaker #1

  Yeah, go for it.

• Speaker #0

  Awesome, yeah. So sensory-friendly clothing as a whole is categorized largely by soft fabrics, flat seams, and no tags to eliminate a lot of those. irritants that can be painful to some kids or just overstimulating to others. So that are all the first things to kind of go. But we added more adaptations into our clothing to really support sensory needs throughout the day with what they have on them. So it's not something you have to separately carry around or remember or teachers have to always have stocked and on hand because you never have enough hands, whether you're a teacher, a parent, a therapist. So making sure a lot of these sensory tools are built. right in and always accessible. So kids kind of have that autonomy and control over their environments. And so that's really where we took sensory clothing to kind of that next level, adding in sound reduction. So you don't have to carry around or remember separate headphones. Or as kids get older, you know, I've met a lot of students who didn't want to wear them because of the comments they'd get in the hallway or at the cafeteria. So kind of creating that alternative that gives them control, but still completely meets their needs and always just kind of Considering those little things in the designs as well, I think things like bunched up pockets would really bother my students. We made sure on our joggers to always stitch down the pocket so there's no pocket bag bunching up and stitching down the elastic so it doesn't roll on the waistband. So all those little considerations that I think seem so tiny when you're designing clothing. And I've worked in internet companies that were bigger and those weren't really even conversations. You just let the factory make a pocket the way they make a pocket. But... I think those little things can make a big difference when kids are already going to be entering into overwhelming environments. And you don't want anything additional that could, you know, fill their cup too much and lead to overstimulation and them having a hard time.

• Speaker #1

  I love the details you're talking about there. You can't see me fully and listeners obviously can't. I'm sitting here in a hoodie and joggers myself that I'm wearing soft ones. It's also cold as we're recording, but I'm wearing soft, comfy clothes. I'm not seeing clients today. And so this is how I'm dressed. But honestly, as a therapist, this is a hoodie I wear frequently to work. It's just the difference. I wear jeans instead of joggers. I dress up just a hair more.

• Speaker #0

  Just a little bit,

• Speaker #1

  yeah. And I tend to tie my shoes when I have clients. That's like the only differences. But, you know, the way you're describing the clothing and so people have to remember to keep up with stuff. I'm a big proponent when I'm working with families and consulting with schools. And coming up with... accommodations for students that don't really, they're not asking the school to do a whole lot. It's the school letting, so the teacher can just allow the child to advocate, or not even advocate, but just sort of self-accommodate. It is allowing the kid to pull the hood up, right? There's a student that I work with, the big game changer for her has been having kind of a sensory, like a texture thing connected to a zipper. on our jacket and it's wintertime right and so it's and so instead of like picking at nails things like that it's sort of rubbing on this little textured and the school doesn't have to do anything except for say you know that may have been a toy but it's in our eyes but we're gonna let it fly because and it's hanging on the zipper like it's it's fine this is uh it was you know it's just the teacher saying okay you can have what you have already and yep so that's what you're describing is where child wearing this hoodie can just be allowed to pull their hood up for a minute if they need to. And it's all there. And so it's, and in my experience, it's so much easier to get schools to say yes to things if it's making no demand or request of the school other than be permissive of the self-accommodating. And I think about for kids in their lifetime, you know, becoming an adolescent adult where... you know, in the academic world, we use language around self-accommodation or self-advocacy. I'm sorry. So advocacy because adults, we have to advocate for ourselves. Children don't as much that this is teaching them to meet their own needs by making accessible. So there's just, I don't know that I've read through your website in advance, but just hearing you talk about it, this is really powerful, Julia. I'm excited to hear about this.

• Speaker #0

  Yeah, no, it's definitely big. I think in the school setting, it's so hard to even when we, I was working in like a specific autism classroom, and we try to be as accommodating and have all the things and have those tools and don't mind the extra work. You do just kind of run out of hands and schools run out of resources. You know, we had like one compression vest for the three classrooms that were all together with autistic students. And so when your kid really needs it, I mean, it could be across the hall, and you can't leave the classroom and go get it. And It's just so hard to even have the things on hand, even if you're okay with that kind of extra work in the demands and understand the necessity of it. Sometimes it's the resources. So all that together, it's just so hard for students to end up having what they need unless it's already on their body and already on their person. And that's definitely our goal.

• Speaker #1

  Yeah. You know, the other piece in this is, you know, having us on the body already. And I think about how often adults... we can self-accommodate. And one of the people that I interview is an educator. And we talked about that for a minute, how in the classroom, the teacher can do whatever they need to do to self-accommodate, meet their own needs. And the students are stuck with whatever kind of gets permitted. And so providing more resources to be on the child already. So, right, like literally on the child, we're talking about clothing. That's so empowering. So that's, I'm excited. I am curious. I don't know how far this episode will go, right? If somebody listened to this and said, hey, we're interested, but maybe it is a school that's got a straight dress code or something like that. Do y'all partner? Are you open to partnering if an organization reached out and said, hey, we need this, but we need it to look a certain way or colors? Is that something that you're open to?

• Speaker #0

  Yeah, definitely. I think the. thing I'm focused on in our next production run is adding more of those school-friendly uniform colors like navy. You can just play navy. And then I have like contacted print shops that we'd be able to add like school logos to them or anything that would help it fit into the uniform code even further. So yeah, definitely always open to that and any sort of partnerships if the school wants to do a bigger run so that there are a lot of kids that want a whole uniform that's all the same. But even those like individual parents can definitely make that happen.

• Speaker #1

  Okay, awesome. Yeah, I think about... School organizations, just sort of a lot of different spaces. So I appreciate your openness to that. Because I'm definitely thinking about people that I'm going to say, hey, maybe this is a connection because I think this is maybe a fit. So, Julie, I really appreciate you being willing to join me today. I do want to make sure that people can find you at any, you know, your website, all that. We will link that in the show notes. But how can folks find you and learn more?

• Speaker #0

  Yeah, so our social media is sensational underscore you. And sensational is kind of a play on words for those listening. It's S-E-N-S-E-ational. So like sense, like your senses. And our website is also sensoryclothes.com. It's the best way to find it if you're listening, easier to remember. Otherwise, we'll have it linked as shopsensationalyou.com.

• Speaker #1

  Awesome. Julia, thanks so much. And again, all of these will be linked in the show notes, so check those out. So everybody, thanks for listening to Nerd Average Spot. I'm Sam Marion. If you enjoyed this or you know somebody who could benefit from hearing Julia's message, learning more about the Century Friendly Clothing, please share this episode with them. Follow the show, like, subscribe. You can find me online on Instagram at Nerd Average Spot. And from there, you can find all my other places. Thanks.