Sizing Up Inclusive Needs: Co-Founder and Designer Makes It Fit

Tanya Zhang says size inclusivity includes men of smaller stature.

One size does not fit all.

Tanya Zhang is filling a fashion void with her new clothing line of shirts. But it is not for herself or other women, but for her spouse, father, and other Asian American Pacific Islander men who say their off the rack shirts don’t fit.

“One size does not fit all. Tanya Zhang is filling a fashion void with her new clothing line of shirts made for Asian American Pacific Islander men. #Inclusion”

The co-founder of Nimble Made, a men’s slim fit dress shirt line, launched the inclusive line in March 2018 and is aiming to answer the fashion needs of men who cannot find well-made, slim fit dress shirts that fit them anywhere on the planet.

“#NimbleMade is aiming to answer the fashion needs of men who cannot find well-made, slim fit dress shirts that fit anywhere on the planet. #FemaleEntrepreneurs”

Growing up in Los Angeles, Zhang graduated with a design degree from University of California-San Diego in 2015, and went to work in New York. She began her career in advertising at Chiat Day, and later at Ernst & Young, working for brands such as H&M, Nissan, McDonald's, Michelin and more.

“I was very unfulfilled in my roles, so I tried entrepreneurship,” Zhang says. “I was contemplating maybe doing a product, thinking maybe I can be my own boss,” Zhang says.

“ “I was contemplating maybe doing a product, thinking maybe I can be my own boss,” Zhang says. #GirlBoss #WomenEntrepreneurs”

Around that time she met Wesley Kang (for the record they met on the dating app Coffee Meets Bagel)  who would become her partner in life and entrepreneurship.  They were a good match, Zhang says, as he was about data and finance and she was about design and marketing.

“Every day we would get home and think of different crazy stuff to do and then forget about it,” Zhang says.

The came the umbrella brainstorm. “He had this great idea to do umbrella sharing because you never have one ready when it rains. And then there was this company in China that has this idea and they went bankrupt. Because people were stealing the umbrellas.”

Their next idea is faring better. Inspired by the fact that Kang has a slim build, about 5’5 inches and weighing about 135 pounds, Zhang says he never could find a dress shirt that fit.

“He had to get them tailored,” Zhang says, “and he was complaining about that. So we said maybe we should make a dress shirt and maybe we could sell it on a website.”

The name of their self-funded venture, Nimble Made, came about as they were searching for synonyms online for “lean.”  

The life and business partners officially quit their full-time jobs in November 2018 and have been working on Nimble Made ever since. Sold only online, Zhang says they are looking at retail and business to business options.

Apparently this is a good time for men’s fashion apparel lines.

“Luxury brands are raising their game in menswear, which is expanding at a faster clip than women's clothing as styles loosen up and streetwear like hoodies find a new audience,” according to Business of Fashion.

According to Business of Fashion, Euromonitor “forecasts men's lines will outperform women's between 2017 and 2022, with sales expanding by a compound annual growth rate of 2 percent.”

"This is due to men placing a greater emphasis on their appearance, fueled by the rise of social media, and dress codes for men softening globally," Marguerite Le Rolland, a consultant in beauty and fashion at Euromonitor, tells Business of Fashion.

The future may indeed be bright for Zhang and Kang.

Acknowledging that “in our cultures entrepreneurship is an unconventional career choice,” Zhang says they began having their shirts made in China.  The outbreak of COVID-19 halted production them and required them to move their supply chain to the U.S.

“One of the hardest things for me was to quit. My parents wanted me to stay at my job for 50 years, but I took that leap of faith.”

““My parents wanted me to stay at my job for 50 years, but I took that leap of faith,” Zhang says. #Entrepreneurship #Ambition”

Zhang says she recalls growing up her father always complained about shirts being too baggy and not fitting him well.

“As an Asian American with immigrant parents, the truth is the clothing industry is for the masses and he didn’t feel included,” Zhang says. “Dress shirts for him were so baggy with long sleeves and he did not feel included. My mission is to have slim dress shirts to fit immigrant men and help them with their confidence.”

This size inclusivity trend—that usually focuses on larger sized women—must necessarily also address the needs of men whose sizes are outside the typical American male norm.

“This #SizeInclusivity trend—that usually focuses on larger sized women—must also address the needs of men whose sizes are outside the typical American male norm.

”

Retail Dive reports, “Design and manufacture of extended sizing for most any apparel requires extra attention and work with suppliers. In menswear, production takes pattern grading and knowledge about neck size, sleeve size, shoulder span, waist and all-around fit. Using creativity in patterns and fabric cutting, it’s doable without charging more. (Some)  see it as a socially appropriate gesture that also reaps benefits for the brands that make it.”

Launching a fashion startup as an Asian-American woman, Zhang says, the expectation culturally is to be risk-averse. “So how can I take that and get out of my own way?”

“As an #Asian-American woman, Zhang says, the expectation culturally is to be risk-averse. “So how can I take that and get out of my own way?” #CareerSuccess”

“According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s most recent report Survey of Business Owners, there are  1.9 million businesses owned by Asian Americans. Between 2007 and 2012, the number of Asian-owned businesses grew by 23.8%. In contrast, the total number of all U.S. firms increased only by 2%, from 27.1 million to 27.6 million,” according to A Partnership.

“What’s more, Asian-owned small businesses are inherently successful, earning the highest sales receipt of any ethnic group, with combined sales of $708 billion and average sales of $359,000 per business,” A Partnership reports.

For the time being, Zhang says Nimble Made is focused on men’s shirts, but is asked constantly on when they will venture into women’s shirts, jeans or pants.    

“Zhang says #NimbleMade is focused on men’s shirts, but is asked constantly on when they will venture into women’s shirts, jeans or pants. #StartUp”

But she is also focused on helping others leap into entrepreneurship. “My advice is to turn your side hustle into a full-time job.” She adds, “Be very practical, do a pros and cons list and ask, is it worth it?”

“Zhang is also focused on helping others leap into #entrepreneurship. “My advice is to turn your side hustle into a full-time job.” #StartUp ”

Zhang advises, “I really challenge other women to start their own thing and to really self-reflect and think about what validation do you need?  What is your backup plan?”

Thinking that through and planning what would make you feel comfortable moving forward, Zhang suggest you jump in.

“Think what is your worst case scenario. So in one year, no one buys the product or cares. The worst case is you get another corporate job.”

Zhang admits that along the way she has made mistakes on building Nimble Made, including hiring agencies too early to build marketing when they were not sending the right messaging. So she is doing that herself.

“I come from a creative space and I have ideas all the time,” Zhang says. “We need more size inclusion in fashion. And we need more startups in the Asian American and Pacific Islander space.”

““We need more #size #inclusion in fashion. And we need more #startups in the Asian American and Pacific Islander space,” Zhang says. ”

Using Asian American men as models for their line is helping to build a brand narrative, Zhang says.

“Using Asian American men as models for their line is helping to build a brand narrative, Zhang says. #Representation #NimbleMade #AsianMade”

Zhang says moving from New York to Los Angeles, where Nimble Made is based, also helps keep her parents involved.

“I think they are proud,” she says. “They didn’t realize this could really be something. We loop them in, and we name our shirts together.”