Designer Chat: ADAY

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A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of visiting the cute Soho showroom of ADAY  to not only view their amazing new collection but also to chit chat with Co-founder Nina Faulhaber. Fashion meets function with ADAY. A technical clothing company for everyday wear from office to working out. Aday believes in being comfortable while being ready for whatever the day may bring with elevated staple pieces. This brand is for the everyday woman who is traveling, working out, and killing it in the work area. They believe that everyday is a new day to do something.

Nina and her Co-founder Meg He started ADAY basically for themselves. They saw a lack in the fashion world for business and activewear; elevated staple pieces that can go to and from work to the gym. The duo met while working for an investment banking firm in London. Realizing they echoed each others views on life, they both were having trouble finding versatile activewear that would suffice their lifestyle. Clothing that can be worn everyday from work to going out, from special occasions and parties then quickly head to the gym or hop on a plane. They decided to create ADAY for themselves and as time went on it grew into the brand it is today.

                        *image from Aday

When I met with Nina I had a lot of questions about the brand aesthetics and their approach to entrepreneurship.

What brought you and Meg together to start a brand?

We originally met at Goldman Sachs. After leaving Goldman, we spent the past couple of years in the technology world at venture capital funds and tech startups, and saw a lot of friends doing really cool things, but no one was really innovative in the industry we were most passionate about: the clothes we wear every day. Nina grew up as a competitive gymnast and Meg completed her yoga teacher training in California, so both of us knew how comfortable activewear felt, but we wanted more from our wardrobes. We wanted our wardrobe to be working for us, not against us, so we started researching intelligent, technologically advanced fabrics and construction. We also wanted our clothing to last longer than our everyday staples – we needed them to be technical, beautiful, and sustainable. Ultimately, we got really passionate about what we think of now as “clothing of the future.” We’re reimagining everyday seasonless staples with intelligent fabrics, construction, and design to create apparel that simplifies life.

What is the inspiration behind ADAY?

What makes ADAY special is that our mission is to create apparel for women that they can do anything in, ultimately freeing up headspace for the things that matter. We don’t tell women what to do while wearing ADAY, but rather work to provide clothing that is comfortable that they will want to wear all the time. By combining technologically-advanced fabrics with contemporary design, ADAY creates better and longer-lasting clothing that eliminates the need to replenish wardrobes every season.

Why make staple pieces instead of seasonal?

We recently started going deeper into the daywear category by launching our Technical Tailored capsule collection. Our inspiration was drawn from two very iconic pieces: the dress shirt and the cigarette pants. If we look at each of them individually, they both struck a chord with us as some of the most versatile garments that have existed in history. Take the dress shirt, historically a masculine piece, but over centuries women have adopted it and made it their own. We designed the Something Borrowed dress shirt with a versatile side slit, and a sleek mandarin collar – it’s chic, yet effortless, and can be styled many different ways for a classic professional look, layered with leggings, thrown over a bikini or with a pair of culottes. The cigarette pants is another staple every woman should own as it’s such a flattering shape — our navy Turn It Up cigarette pant looks super neat with white sneakers, or rolled up hems and sandals, but equally nice with boots.

In our design process we ask ourselves, what does the clothing of the future look like? We want to set a new standard for wardrobe staples, one that lasts through the seasons and focuses on versatility. We’re allowing customers to consume less, which creates more focus on the things that really matter in life, rather than what to wear.

 What is it like running your own brand? Can you give any advice to someone starting their own business?

Everything is a bit of a challenge at first. For both of us, it was our first time doing anything like this. As previously mentioned, our backgrounds are in technology and venture capital (with bits of finance as well), which is a long way from creating and designing active apparel, forming and marketing a brand aesthetic and voice, and hiring a multitalented team. We were lucky enough to seek advice from some of the best people in the world, including people who had built billion dollar brands. Also, we have never been afraid to cold email or call which have resulted in us gaining mentors and investors. We complemented this with picking up our own skills — Nina completed a short course in sportswear design at Central Saint Martins, and Meg applied her travel photography background to art directing our first photoshoot. So there was, and still is, a lot of learning, growing and being spontaneous in applying quasi­-transferable skills to new purposes!

If you’re really passionate about something, if you feel timing is right and the opportunity is large and you think you’re the right person to solve the problem, then go for it! Many founders in the entrepreneurial space are very mission-focused, driven by a desire to help people live an easier and simpler life. That’s amazing, as I believe if you create something with a purpose, you’re much more determined, persistent and passionate about it. So my advice is to not just go after gaps in the market or profit potential, instead only make the leap if you feel all the above is fulfilled for you.

What is your current favorite piece?

We are loving our new For the Win swimsuit. We just launched swim. We first had the idea to create a swimwear collection in late summer 2015 when we asked ourselves the same question we always ask ourselves in our design process, “What are the pieces of clothing ADAY women want to spend all their time in?”. In summer, the answer to this was, “Our favorite swimsuit,” so we set ourselves the challenge to make the best swimsuit out there that was versatile and has sustainable components, which is now what we call our “Re-gen Capsule.”

Adding swimwear to ADAY’s current offerings was a natural extension to our philosophy of creating better quality staples that women could spend all their time in. In the summer season, we found ourselves investing in swimsuits and loving them on the beach or on vacation, but packing them right away when we were back in New York City or London. Alas, we wanted an “all-around” swimsuit that was seasonless and highly functional.

Favorite part about living in New York?

New York has such a kinetic energy about it. In a place of so much chaos, we try to find the balance of peace and self reflection. We strive to implement a daily life of well being. We find moments to do something active whenever we can, even if it’s small — from meditating on the subway for 10 minutes to taking a brisk walk instead of a cab (and always walk fast!). We both embrace a healthy living lifestyle anywhere and everywhere (which is so possible!). We have embraced outdoor running as a way of discovery. We have our favourite spots for running- along the East River and Williamsburg Bridge, as well as our favourite spots for “flow” (bouldering at the Cliffs in Long Island City, for example).

While I was chatting with Nina I discovered something about the brand that completely sets them apart from any other. The company has testers for new designs. This means they have regular, everyday women testing their clothing to see if it fits into their daily life. Did they love wearing it to the gym? Could they wear it to work? Where did they wear the piece to? I loved this idea. A brand that truly cares about their customers feedback. ADAY was generous to gift me with the Like a Boss sweater in navy and I honestly wear it once a week. It is perfect for me to wear around town and feel comfortable working from a coffee shop or hotel lobby and still look professional and elevated. I even wear it to work—it is perfect since it is a fitness brand but I also need to look professional. I want to pick up more items like this top and this pair of pants. I am basically a huge fan now and their simple pieces really reflect my style.

Right now ADAY is only E-Commerce but if you live in New York (or visiting) you can set up an appointment to go to their showroom and work with a stylist. If you do not live in NYC you can check out their collection on their website and at Spring.