Celebrating all shapes and sizes
Innovative fashion brand Smash + Tess puts focus on style and comfort for all body types
When Ashley Freeborn started Smash + Tess in 2016 with the help of her mom Teresa and her best friend Mercedes Laporte, she knew she wanted to create clothing for women of all shapes and sizes that was, above all else, comfortable.
“When we started Smash + Tess, we started because we felt there was a hole in the market and we found there was an opportunity to create something that felt a little bit counterintuitive to fashion,” says Freeborn, the co-founder and chief executive officer of the Vancouver-based company.
“Fashion can sometimes be exclusive and hyper-aspirational. With Smash + Tess, we wanted to create an item of clothing, or a series of items of clothing, that looked good and felt good on all body types, and that really celebrated all of our beautiful shapes and sizes.”
Like any well-planned brand launch, Freeborn was taking the leap into business with a very specific customer in mind. That customer, she admits, was herself.
“For me, I’m not a typical Size 2 that you see in fashion ads. I’m a woman who is shapely — I’m a Size 12 — and I want to be able to wear things that I see on a Size 2, but I want them to look just as good on me,” Freeborn says. “In fashion, I think we’re really guilty in this industry of creating clothing that only looks good on a particular body type. And we leave out a huge portion of women out there who want to look good and feel good. And they want to feel like they’re a part of something.”
After first introducing a sleepwear range, Smash + Tess quickly evolved to include pieces that are built around the universal appeal of one key design: The romper.
“Although onesies and jumpers have been around for a really long time, I certainly think that Smash + Tess pioneered this look of the romper,” Freeborn explains. “A romper is usually a short little thing. It tends to be either lingerie-focused or summer-focused, and we reimagined and reinvented the term romper to mean really having a sense of fun and a playfulness.”
From shorts styles to full-length designs, the company’s offering of the all-in-one ensembles have expanded to include a comprehensive collection — including seven romper styles, each named after a day of the week — as well as options for men and children. The designs are available in a size-inclusive range of XXS to XXL, which fits up to a Size 24, along with petite options.
“For me, it’s a passion project. It’s something that makes me really happy. And, I get to reap the benefits of all my rompers,” Freeborn says with a laugh.
In addition to being an early adopter of offering size-inclusive styles, Freeborn has also piloted the small brand in an early effort to secure and promote collaborations with high profile influencers — a business tactic that has proven very profitable for the local company.
“Part of that inclusivity is that we work together and we celebrate other innovation,” she says. “For us, being collaborative is a key component of how we see our business operating and what our values are based on. We believe in working together and uplifting other women. So, we walk the walk. It’s not just about what we say, it’s about what we do.
“We think that partnering with other strong female, entrepreneurial minded movers and shakers is a very key part of who we are.”
In addition to a long-standing relationship with TV host and lifestyle influencer Jillian Harris, and a collection with Sesame Street, the company has partnered with tastemakers such as Real Housewives of New York City alum Carole Radziwill, Canadian fashion stylist Jessica Mulroney, and B.C.-based body positivity activist and blogger Sarah Landry of The Birds Papaya.
“We’ve been really fortunate that we have found really like-minded partners,” Freeborn says. “And we believe that there’s room for many different perspectives at the table. So, when you bring in new collaborators with fresh ideas, it’s amazing what you can accomplish.”
The past three years have seen exponential growth for the company, with their team of “just a couple of us, wrapping rompers and shipping them out,” according to Freeborn, expanding to more than 20. (Admittedly, the shelter-in-place practices of the pandemic have helped the business as more people look for comfy clothes to wear at home.) Recently, the company’s “every-wear” approach to creating style staples has also expanded to include jewelry design.
The evolution is undoubtedly one element of the Smash + Tess story that netted Freeborn the 2020 CANIE Entrepreneur of the Year Award for the B.C. region by the Innovators & Entrepreneurs Foundation, an honour that will be given out during an online ceremony June 4.
“Being an entrepreneur, this for me is one of the most exciting recognitions because the foundation celebrates innovation,” Freeborn says. “It’s amazing that I’m getting an award of this nature — and I was also named to (Business in Vancouver’s) Top-40-under-40 this year — which is also amazing because I honestly never thought that I would be an entrepreneur. I just really believe in what we’re doing.”
Partnering with other strong female, entrepreneurial minded movers and shakers is a very key part of who we are.” Ashley Freeborn