About

It all started with a shirt I made for my best friend Maryem. Well actually it started way earlier when I was 10 years old, but back then I didn't know that I was going to build my own brand from nothing but a sketch in my diary.

I didn't think I was very talented back then, but which young girl doesn't like to draw? It did not matter to me if it was beautiful or not. It didn't have to be perfect and for me that's exactly the meaning of everything. Beauty often lies in the imperfections (Three fingers for a peace sign??)

In January 2018, I found my old diary which had a lot of sketches in it. I showed it to my friends and they all loved it because the sketches all looked so funny. But they also said that the sketches might look good as part of a clothing design. At first I wasn't sure, but then in April I decided to give Maryem a shirt with the sketch on it as her birthday gift, which she loved. I posted a photo on Instagram along with a poll to see if anyone would be interested in buying one. I was just curious, but to my surprise a lot of people said yes!

So I decided to start a clothing brand and made a limited run of 30 shirts to test the water and to see if people were serious about parting with their money. I wanted to make them colorful because back then I was part of the Color Experiment, by my good friend and talented artist, Cedric aka Aceko. He has been a constant source of inspiration for me, including in dancing, in my self-confidence and in helping me to shape the goals in my life.

That initial run sold out within a very short time, with support coming from people within my circle and also from total strangers. It is a nice feeling to see how many people have got your back and I'm really grateful for that. That goes for all my family, friends and supporters. 

That's the Stephlon Squad.