What to Wear to Work (and Home): Sabrina Zohar Software Founder
In this bi-weekly series, we interview female executives, founders, and CEOs - basically boss ladies - about their "power suits," the clothes they wear every day to be ready for any job.
While many of us are adapting to telecommuting, one entrepreneur has it down to an exact science. Sabrina Zohar, founder of leisurewear brand Software (opens in new tab), is the one-woman team that runs the brand she launched two years ago from her Williamsburg apartment. She answers all her emails at her living room table, which has "about 60 plants" on it, and keeps an inventory of software clothes downstairs in her home. It's a two-story building, a rarity in New York real estate. The actual manufacturing and assembly of the software is done in Los Angeles and Brooklyn, New York."
Zohar started the company after several personal crises, including an unfulfilling career as a wholesale representative, discovering a passion for the activewear and health field, and nearly losing his mother to a sixth-degree brain aneurysm. It was during this time that Zohar began working for an athleisure brand, and one of the brand's items, a hoodie, became part of her mother's daily routine while she was in the hospital. [The brand was] very expensive and I started doing consumer research. Why is sustainable more expensive, why are locally made items instantly more expensive? My boss ended up embezzling the money and shutting down the company, and that's when I came up with the software." What the market lacked for me was high-quality, accessible, affordable, locally made leisureware."
With this idea in mind, Zohar's next step was to find a material that would be very soft to the touch and not pilling after repeated wear and washing. She started with modal, which is beech wood converted to cellulose, but after several wear tests, she found that this material caused pilling. After many re-dos, many tears, and many contacts with new (and current) manufacturers of software, Zohar arrived at a completely new fabric that does not fade, does not fluff, and is machine-washable. The fabric is completely software-only, and its production method is a trade secret. [What she can reveal is that the fabric is dyed, woven, and finished in a family-owned factory in Los Angeles, using sustainable and non-toxic dyes. The fabric is then cut and sewn in a factory in Brooklyn that also serves as a software warehouse. The building is equipped with solar panels, and during the summer months the rooftop becomes a vegetable garden, providing fruits and vegetables to the neighborhood. This space reflects Zohar's strategy to incorporate aspects of sustainability into its brand whenever possible.
To avoid overstocking, the software strategically carries only a handful of skews that Zohar calls core basics in its men's and women's collections, including pullovers, tanks, hoodies, and jogger pants. (Most importantly, she says, "people buy our software products because they feel like they're wrapped in a cloud.") All of the products are reasonably priced, under $100.
Like many companies today, Zohar's young firm is affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. When I first heard about what was going on, my first reaction was fuck. But then I thought, okay, how am I going to adapt to this, because I'm a solution-oriented person. 'I'm all about relationships, so not being able to see my clients really sucks. I can't sell wholesale anymore, so I'm focusing on driving people to my website.
One way she goes with the flow is to personally tie-dye her software lab coats when customers purchase them. 'I send pictures and work one-on-one with everyone to give back to the consumer,' she said. It's my job to keep the business moving forward."
Despite the current ups and downs, Zohar sees light at the end of the tunnel and has big plans for the brand down the road. She teases that in the fall there will be two new color variations in the software and three new skews for men and women. "My biggest hope is to grow and maintain our supporters for another year, and to get as many people as possible wrapped up in the 'cloud,'" she says.
Zohar is an expert on how WFH dresses and how she goes to work each morning. Spoiler alert: She lives in cozy loungewear pants and tops, just like the rest of us.
"When I wake up in the morning, I drink coffee with collagen and a superfood creamer. It's like a concoction to stay young and healthy. After I drink this, I go for a walk with my dog and do my walking meditation every morning. I get myself ready for the day and then I jump right into work. I don't touch my phone for two hours after I wake up in the morning. But yes, I do. First thing in the morning, I check my email, complete my online orders, and make sure I don't inconvenience my customers. Then I think about every single thing I can do that day. I do yoga, I box, and now I do yoga at home, or some form of exercise to keep me sane.
"Pick out an outfit the night before. I'll never forget what Steve Jobs said, that there's only so many decisions you can make in a day, so minimize the number of decisions you make. Because, as a matter of fact, if I put on the software first, I will not work out that morning. After that, I'll always pick a software outfit in a color that makes me feel better."
"I wear tanks every day. I have tie-dye and solid colors. I wear tanks all the time because they are just perfect for layering. In the summer I wear just a tank and in the winter I wear a software pullover or hoodie. I'm pretty minimalist when it comes to accessories. Everyone accepts and likes that I wear leggings and software items every day. Just to make them pop a bit, I always wear fun and cool socks (I like Stance) and sneakers (Vans or Lane Eight).
Stance has a lot of funky socks to play with. When I was in middle school, I wore high socks as a slightly punk kid. Now I often wear socks over jogger pants. Lane Eights are the most comfortable sneakers I've ever worn in my life, and I have a serious ankle injury, so sneakers are great for support. For work, I use either a canvas software tote bag or a State backpack. I take it with me when I go somewhere and want to look a little better."
"They are chic, tailored, and comfortable."
"There are several; this too shall pass" is one and "put one foot in front of the other. That's the only way you'll move on. My last words were something my mother always said: 'Everything is only now. I live by it. ' This discomfort and fear is only for now, it doesn't mean it will last forever."
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