There’s a clothing company for every occasion these days. Some are dedicated to business wear; others promise the most comfortable “athleisure” offerings; and some specialize in formal attire. But JoFit, which recently brought the company’s second brick and mortar store to Newport Beach (the first is in Florida), doesn’t stress too much about the occasion for which you’ll be wearing their clothes. Their goal is to make women feel good in them. With its roots in golf and tennis apparel, JoFit is now styling women to look and feel their best on the course and off. FORE recently chatted with founder and CEO Joanne Cloak after the opening in Newport.
FORE: What’s JoFit, and what makes the company different from other women’s golf apparel companies?
CLOAK: Our focus is fit. We don’t solely focus on one aspect of a woman’s life, like golf or tennis or lifestyle. We focus on a fit that makes her feel and look better. I started this company because I was frustrated about the way things fit my body.
Who is your customer?
Any woman with a body! We work with a lot of different women, we call them “fit committees,” to make sure we are making clothes that work for any age, any body type.
What made you start your own business? Do you have a business background?
It was a completely new venture for me. I was a physical education teacher and volleyball coach. A lifelong athlete. But even working as a PE teacher, I couldn’t find sweatpants to wear to work every day that fit my body. I figured there had to be others like me out there. And apparently there were, because we hit the ground running. In my opinion, running a business is all about common sense. The hardest part was waiting long enough to make a profit, that took time. But now we’re rolling.
We’ve heard you say that JoFit is a company not just for everybody, but for every body. What does that really mean?
Women’s clothing sizes struggle to fit most women. You can be an XL and be 5’3” or be an XL and be 6’2”. You can be an XL in the chest and have skinny little thighs. You’re never going to find the same body twice. But as a company, you have to find that sweet spot to accommodate these things. We’re now at the point where we can offer two different skews, for instance, for every one of our pants. One pant style or size, two different lengths. We offer a “middle management” style that offers more of a relaxed fit in the waist.
We are also focusing on addressing issues we hear from women about their clothing. For instance, you might have a big belly and big chest, but that doesn’t mean your arm hole needs to be the size of a tree trunk. It’s a never-ending puzzle, but it’s the world’s biggest pleasure for me to make women love what they are wearing, hearing their feedback and figuring out how to make this right.
You opened JoFit’s second retail location in Orange County. What made you want to expand into Southern California?
We knew where our pockets of consumers were, and this market has been great for us. We knew we already had a consumer base here, so we didn’t have to start from scratch as a brand. The ladies here know us. It was a safe bet. And it’s working, we’re really happy here. And for me, there’s nothing better than being in one of our stores when there are women there shopping. The opportunity to get that immediate feedback, whether it’s good or bad, and learn, go back and fix it, is incredible.
What’s next for JoFit?
We really want to tell our story. Get the message out that we aren’t selling a pretty skirt or a pretty outfit, but we are creating something for you to help you feel your best. We here at JoFit are all women of different ages, shapes and sizes. We get it. We want to have fun, dress up and look good. And then not have to worry about what we’re wearing.