Lucy Jones
had an idea seven years ago for a range of accessories designed around the
requirements of wheelchair users who represent over 3.3 million US citizens, while 30 million have physical disabilities.
Since then she has worked tirelessly to realize that idea, balancing style
and function, with an eye for aesthetics instilled from her Parsons
training and the ear of members of the disability community who have
collaborated extensively on product development. Creators of fine leather
goods generally deliberate over the same matters––leather quality, pocket
placement, the finishing of the hardware––all of which Jones prioritizes
too. But with Ffora (Fashion For All) she places the needs of the
wheelchair user foremost, even applying her uncompromising vision to a
proprietary attachment system compatible with 21 different manual
wheelchair brands. Today marks the launch of Ffora and Jones talks
exclusively to FashionUnited.
Describe the motivation behind the creation of Ffora?
I created Ffora after several years of research and development,
beginning with my time at Parsons, where I was challenged by a professor to
“Design a solution that could one day change the world.” I turned to a
younger family member who has hemiplegic cerebral palsy, which means he has
limited mobility along one side of his body. After speaking with him about
clothing and his daily routine, I quickly learned that there were quite a
few things that were difficult for him, but some of those things felt like
unnecessary barriers that were the result of bad design. He challenged me
to think about the accessibility of my creations, and from that moment on,
that’s what I set out to do.
Your thesis collection was in garment design. Why did you want to
launch with accessories?
I had been thinking about accessories for mobility devices since 2012
but I was convinced apparel was my thing. Then when it came to my senior
thesis collection, a collaboration with a woman who uses a wheelchair, I
realized some of the functional hardware I wanted required the involvement
of an industrial designer, and I just did not have that skill set. A lot of
my ideas involved both the wheelchair and the body, which are both equally
intimate and integral to self-expression and independence.
Do you hope to expand into clothing later?
Never say never, but right now Ffora’s primary focus is to continue
developing tools and accessories for the disabled community. We are already
hard at work on other interesting products.
What did you learn had been lacking for the consumer and how did it
inform your design?
I realized that there was a vast need for wheelchair users to have more
control over their personal valuables when on-the-go, and to carry their
belongings more efficiently. People were hacking existing bags to make them
fit on their chairs, or tying extra straps so the bags wouldn’t fall off.
People were stashing cash in their shoes, or sitting on phones and keys,
and if they wanted to enjoy a hot drink, they had to balance it on their
chair or lap, one-handed wheel, or just forget it altogether. There simply
needed to be better options.I believe that the greatest brands are built on
a concise product offering, something hyper-focused or one iconic design.
Ffora has a hugely diverse audience, so I knew we needed something that was
modular in design and easily customizable to reflect our customers’ needs,
and this felt possible with accessories.
Your team mantra is ” you can spell accessories without access. describe the functionality of your designs and how they differ from anything on market.
The wheelchair market mostly offers nylon bags with velcro options which
over time wear out. All of the other products I’ve seen feel utilitarian,
with very little attention to design. Our audience is composed of people of
all ages who have a diverse range of needs and desires, and a wide range of
disabilities; there are people who have full use of their hands and people
who do not have fine motor skills, so our products needed to accommodate
both. Wheelchairs are robust pieces of equipment that are intended to last
5-7 years, so we needed to design something durable that could withstand
collisions, and different types of weather. The wheelchair’s lower frames
were identified as the most structurally safe to position a semi-permanent
docking system that would host an assortment of accessories.
And all of these considerations led to the development of your
proprietary design?
Our proprietary Attachment System is a clamp and open dock that is
compatible with more than 21 brands of wheelchairs, which is 170 models of
manual wheelchairs of several different tube sizes. This dock is the
building block that holsters an array of additional Ffora accessories,
including our cupholder and two cross-body bags. The bags can dock
vertically or be worn on the body horizontally with our cross-body strap.
Each accessory has a magnetic pebble-shaped counterpart embedded into the
design, which allows it to slide into the dock and hold in place. There are
a significant amount of wheelchairs on the market offering different seat
widths, backrest heights, tubes of varying angles and so on. By positioning
personal belongings on the tubes of their wheelchairs, essentials such as
beverages, phone, cash, lipstick, keys are all readily available within
arm’s reach. The bags have two-way zippers with ‘thumb-pulls,’ perfect for
those without fine motor skills. The bags also open flat like books for
easy organization.
How many people are in your team?
We are only two people full time, so it’s an incredibly tight ship.
Everyone else has been contracted or hired on a project basis. My goal is
for the brand to be successful, so that we can continue to create jobs and
make the appropriate hires. After a year of running the company alone, I
brought on our Head of Industrial Design, Joonas Kyöstilä, whose skills
have been invaluable and our design aesthetics have merged seamlessly. We
have two engineers based in Boston, as well as stellar advisors and
mentors. Most importantly, we have a group of excited individuals who have
supported us in testing the product, reviewing designs, critiquing our
brand messaging, and have been integral to the development of this
company.
Start-ups inevitably encounter challenges but were there particular
challenges associated with your product that you had not foreseen?
There have been many panicked, sleepless nights and bouts of nervous
laughter. We invented and created this product from the ground up and
produce overseas, so we have had tooling issues, post-processing issues,
communication issues, shipping issues, tariff issues, packaging issues,
sizing issues, unforeseen delays — the list is truly endless, and the only
thing that has kept us going is the belief in the brand and the vision. The
process to come to market has taken tremendous patience and will-power.
And as with most startups, there have also been financial concerns. In
the investment world, I am an unproven founder with no track record of
success, I don’t come from a family of wealth or entrepreneurs, and I don’t
have an operational or financial background. There have been times where I
have questioned my ability, so I knew I had to get smarter and learn
quicker and absorb as much as possible, to keep dusting myself off, to try
and try again. All that said, today we have come a long way and I have
learned so much, I am beyond proud to have a wonderful group of supporters
who have dedicated so much time and energy towards coaching me and sharing
the belief in what we are building. Now, we continue to attract more
people, which I believe can only be a good sign.
Your designs have appeared in exhibitions at MoMA and MAD. How did this
come about for a designer only recently graduated?
Hazel Clark, who was the co-curator of “fashion after Fashion” at MAD
alongside Ilari Laamanen, a professor at Parsons who served as the interim
Dean of Fashion when I graduated in 2015 saw me present my work at multiple
panels, and asked the most thoughtful questions. She and Ilari invited me
to participate as one of six international designers to exhibit at MAD,
commissioning site specific work which was an evolution of my thesis
collection. Around the same time, Paola Antonelli, the senior curator of
MoMA, was preparing the alphabetized list of designs for “Items: Is Fashion
Modern?” and she had researched my work. She invited me to create a
prototype based on my “Seated Design” work.
As a solutions-based creator and former Eileen Fisher resident designer
who is launching a product that will serve a previously neglected consumer,
do you also feel an obligation to address ethical sourcing, use sustainable
materials, provide repair services or other provisions to ensure both
product and planet’s longevity?
Eileen Fisher is the ultimate leader in sustainability. Working in her
company was a dream come true, and once you have been immersed into that
“EF” mindset, it’s hard not to think about it. For us, designing a product
that has quality material, craftsmanship and longevity to be truly
cherished by our customers is very important. We didn’t put this much
effort into our creations to have people throw them away mindlessly.
You have received invitations to the White House and international
awards, but what has been the most rewarding experience of your design
career so far?
When I look back at some of my achievements, it doesn’t feel real. My
life moves so quickly and I haven’t stopped since graduation, so I don’t
think I’ve ever had a moment to take it all in. Exhibiting in museums will
always be something incredibly special, something I have wished for since I
was a young girl. It’s that freedom to trial new concepts, take risks and
test ideas that are perhaps not quite fitting for consumerism, but more so
about speculation.
But for me the highlight is a personal one. When filming the Ffora
campaign video back in March, I had my videographer friend come from Wales
to shoot. This was a major milestone for us and it felt crucial to get it
right. We finally brought all the people together including those who have
tested the product, who I look up to and who motivate me. I have never felt
such collaboration, excitement, energy, movement and joy. My vision was to
film people in various locations using the product––a cinema, dance studio,
basketball court, café, bookstore, each location reflecting the personality
of the individual we had gotten to know. On the last shoot day, I had to
leave early for another obligation, and couldn’t stay to watch Jerron
Herman (a very talented disabled artist) dance in the studio. I was in the
car heading downtown when the team FaceTimed me, all gathered around to say
“Lucy, it’s a wrap!” It was the proudest moment of my life. Everyone felt
that they had been involved in something truly special and magical, and in
my eyes, I think we were.
Fashion editor Jackie Mallon is also an educator and author of Silk
for the Feed Dogs, a novel set in the international fashion
industry.
Photos Ffora.
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