Canada’s Kayla Alexander, who has stepped into the world of fashion, is trying to fill the gap
Being tall is one of the gifts of life for Keila Alexander.
It helped her educate, see the world, play the sport she loves to earn a living, and become an Olympic athlete.
Disadvantage?
Shopping for clothes.
The Canadian national team star is in a majestic 6’4 position, has set multiple career records at Syracuse University, and has eight WNBA seasons, but it’s a hassle to return to school and be empty. I still remember that.
“My mom looks like a low budget,” she recalls with a zoom call from Russia. So she is playing another season in the top leagues in the country. “And I was once very jealous [my sister], Keisha.
“She came back in cute clothes like cheap and fashionable jeans. I couldn’t really find the cute and fashionable clothes that suit me, so I came back with jewelry and a T-shirt. So I never enjoyed all the shopping in the new semester. “
Nicole Murphy is Alexander’s lifelong friend from Barry, Ontario. It was Murphy who saw a new tall girl in sixth grade class, invited her to the basketball team, and inadvertently started Alexander’s career.
Murphy grew to 6 feet and had her own challenges when it came to clothing and fashion.
“I was most dissatisfied with getting ready for the party or doing something with other girlfriends. They all wanted to go shopping and get their outfits. I’m Tag But I couldn’t find anything cute and flashy. I always wore basic clothes like jeans and T-shirts to suit me, “she says. “And I don’t know if I’ll be teased, but my friends will always say,’Oh, Nicole, you’re always very boring.’
“Or you could even share clothes or even shoes before you go out. I could never. I was a little calm while they were all preparing. Looking back, I was frustrated. “
The friendship between Alexander and Murphy and the annoyance of fashion shared with them prompted them to take action. The pair launched TallSize.com with Alexander’s sister Keisha, who topped the table at 5’10. This is a business in the retail industry for those who don’t, hoping to mitigate some of the challenges they and their peers face. Candidates likely to play the center of Canada’s Senior National Women’s Team at the Tokyo Olympics, as Alexander did this summer.
It happened in two stages. In March of this year, they launched a brand directory aimed at solving the shopping and fashion needs of tall women.
“We have found all the tall clothing brands possible around the world. Then we basically put in a filter. If you are in Canada and want to find jeans with an inseam 38 that ships to Canada You can basically filter it. Put all that information inside you and find a store where you can potentially shop to find those jeans you ship to you. You can, “says Alexander.
It was a quick and encouraging response. There seemed to be a need, and visitors to the site were pleased that their scavenger hunt was quickly simplified and more rewarding. Alexander didn’t have to go to test their ideas – she just asked her past and present teammates. The life of elite basketball played around the world has told her that her frustration is widely shared.
Murphy reached beyond Alexander’s basketball world and was even more convinced that they were working on something when she interviewed potential customers.
“that is, [frustrations] We all felt, but I’ve heard a lot that I wasn’t personally affected, “Murphy said. “But there is a lot of emotional weight tied to not being able to find clothes as a tall woman, especially when you are young.
“You are already taller than a boy, that is, it’s just not normal. In addition, you can’t find clothes that make your skin feel comfortable or confident, so the body associated with it. I think there are a lot of image problems … so it’s very reasonable and I’m thinking of it I was only able to point us in the right direction. “
As the brand directory gained momentum, they began to consider other opportunities and settled on an online marketplace that allowed buyers and sellers to meet online in one place.
“The next natural step for us was okay instead of kicking [users] Go shopping from all these different top brands [we identified], How do you create something that everyone can shop for in one place? Murphy, a veteran of multiple e-commerce ventures, quit his last job to commit to TallSize full-time this summer, says. “That’s where the market model partnered with various tall brands comes from. We put all our products in one place so that tall women don’t have to search the internet for hours. Fits.
“We wanted to create a space that women could trust. We could go there and know that it was a kind of scrutiny and become a really shopping item.”
The venture hopes to offer another way for 30-year-old Alexander after her playing career is over-a children’s book she publishes with Keisha, and in her art and public. In addition to talking.
But until then, nasty and frustrating trips to the mall no longer have to be that way, and with her sister and her oldest friend, they are actively doing so. I am happy to know that.
“I always liked the entrepreneurial spirit of trying to understand what I could do,” she says. “My big thing is to do what I’m passionate about. And this is what I’m passionate about. It’s about me and I’m creative. Because it enables me to continue learning [and] … I’m working now, so when it’s time to put on my shoes, I can smoothly move on to the next stage and my Tall Size… will grow. [we] You can continue for years to come. “