-
Community Stories, Advocacy and Campaigns, Health and Disability, Students and Graduates, Staying in work, Self-Employment, Organisations, Spotlight Stories,Blog Views
131
Patchworker Spotlight: Victoria’s story
Victoria Jenkins is a multi-award-winning Adaptive Designer and Founder /CEO of Unhidden. We recently spoke with Victoria to find out more about her story, the growth of Unhidden, and her vision for the future of adaptive fashion and workplace accessibility.
To start, could you please tell us about yourself?
I'm Victoria. I’ve worked in the fashion industry for 14 years as a garment technologist (sort of like a clothes engineer). Ten years ago, I also became disabled. I live with a number of gastrointestinal and musculoskeletal conditions as well as chronic pain. It was this that has led to me founding my company, Unhidden, and my advocacy work.
Can you tell us a bit more about your story?
I studied fashion design at Istituto Marangoni, graduating in 2008 with First Class Honours, which truly feels like a lifetime ago! I then spent 14 years working as a garment tech for suppliers to Tesco, Primark and Phase Eight etc. I’ve also worked directly with brands like Sweaty Betty, Jack Wills, All Saints and Victoria Beckham.
As part of awareness building for Unhidden, I’ve become something of a public speaker! It was not part of my plan but it has been the only income I have had over the last 2 years. It’s been so amazing to combine what I care about with what helps me get back to financial security. I even did a TEDx talk in April this year, which was an amazing experience! Additionally, I can draw both by hand and digitally, and I love to sew but I am somewhat rusty at it (I used to make wedding dresses). All of this has been helpful as content creation is a huge part of what I do now. I’ve also been very privileged to take part in a number of courses to learn about business, start-up reality and PR.
Have you faced any workplace barriers due to your situation? Do you think the ‘conventional’ world of work most employers use needs to change?
Every year since my life-saving surgery in 2012, I would medically burn out while working a conventional job. This usually meant spending 10 days in the hospital. It was only after going freelance that this cycle ended - now it's just me pressurising myself to be productive, not an entire company, boss or team. The sense of freedom and relief was incredible when I decided not to work full time for other people on a permanent contract. I was consistently denied remote working and almost all the buildings I worked in weren’t great either. This involved long walks to the bathroom, heavy doors, lifts out of order or non-existent.
From my experience, I think employers need to cotton on to the hybrid working method. I love interacting with people in real life, but the days I have to travel are the days I can't work as many hours, it’s that simple. There’s a whole world of people who are fantastic, talented and truly passionate about what they do. However, for some, it’s better if they can work from home some or all of the time!
If you could change one thing about the world of work or the way employers saw accessibility, what would it be and why?
That the benefits outweigh any initial 'cost' and often the perceived cost is nothing compared to employee turnover - the return on better accessibility is massive.
What inspired you to start doing the work you currently do?
During another spell in hospital, I met a woman on my ward who had a lot going on medically after surviving cancer. She told me that she couldn't get dressed how she wanted, for work, at home, or for social occasions. She told me how hard she looked and I was so convinced I would find the right styles for her that I started researching from my own bed!
What I saw in 2016 was not enough. Not sustainable, not aimed really at the consumer but at carers of disabled and elderly people. It wasn't sustainable and there simply wasn't enough on offer - still the case now but it’s changing slowly. The UK is very far behind compared to other countries. So I’ve spent years researching and developing my designs and ideas. Funding has determined the 10 items for the first collection, but so much more is coming - once I have more investors!
What is the biggest lesson you have learnt from your career to date?
That I can ask for help, from peers, friends, and family! I don't have to do it all on my own (I usually do things solo, so this is a relatively new lesson to learn) and people are happy to help. I’ve learnt that I'm not an inconvenience and it usually leads to a better outcome (more content, better copy, exciting new ideas and solutions to problems). I’ve also found that networking is the backbone of small business life, and meeting with other small businesses will only help you grow. These businesses can offer so much amazing advice and there is much to learn from them when tackling different issues. It's been a pleasure meeting and getting to know people in this space!
Do you have a favourite quote or personal mantra?
I want to be in the room where it happens. Except the 'I' is the disabled community.
If you could change one thing about people's perception of disability, what would it be?
I want people to know it isn't all doom and gloom - it has been a gift for me and taught me so much. This community is creative, amazing, smart and a seriously untapped resource!
Find out more about Victoria’s story and work:
Visit Unhidden Clothing’s website
Follow Unhidden Clothing on Instagram
Follow Unhidden Clothing on Twitter
Like Unhidden Clothing’s Facebook
Follow Unhidden Clothing on LinkedIn
Published: 24th May 2022
Tags
All Tags
Accessibility Accessibility int he workplace Accessibility ramps Adaptive fashion Advocacy All Saints Alt text Assistive technology Autism Awareness Blog Bullying Burnout Business Businesses Cancer Candidates Captions Cerebral palsy Characters Charity Charity sector Chronic pain Closed captions Clothes Clothing Cognitive disabilities Communication Companies Company Company Corner Confidence Confucius Consultant Consultation Content designer Data talent Diagnosis Difference Digital transformation Disabilities Disability advocate Disability advocates Disability community Disability confident Disability inclusion Disability Policy Centre Disabled Disabled people Disabled People’s Direct Action Network Disabled-led Diverse Diversity Diversity and inclusion Diversity Recruitment Platform Domestic violence Dysfluency Education Employment opportunities Empowerment Ethnic minorities Fashion Fashion industry Feedback Flexible work Freelance Game Gaming Gareth Walkom Garment technologist Gastrointestinal conditions Gender Guide dog Healthcare HR Hybrid working Inclusion Inclusivity India Inspiration Intellectual capabilities Interviews Invisible disabilities Invisible disability Istituto Marangoni Jack Wills Job descriptions Job interviews Job opportunities Learning disability Leeds Leeds trinity university Legislation LGBTQ+ Long-term health condition Long-term health conditions Maya angelou Meta Metaverse Migrants Motivation Musculoskeletal conditions Neurodivergence Neurodivergent Neurodiversity consultant Neurodiversity space Neurotype Neurotypes New Delhi Non-profit Partially sighted People Phase Eight Phone calls Physical disabilities Pirate video games Policy Poverty Presentations Primark Public speaking Puneet Singh Singhal Race Raising awareness Registered blind Remote work Rights School Scope Self-employed Self-employment Senior staff Sexuality Shaw trust Shaw trust power 100 list Sign language Social mobility Social-emotional learning Social-emotional learning platform Software Speaking situation Speech differences Speech disabilities Speech impediment Spotlight series Spotlight stories Ssstart Staff Stammer Stammering Stories Stuttering Sweaty Betty Tech industry Tech talent TEDx Tesco Think tank Underrepresentation Unhidden Unhidden Clothing Universities Vanessa Castañeda Gill Victoria Beckham Video game Violence Virtual reality VR Web accessibility Women Work environment Work from home Working conditions Working from home Youth Access to work Accessibility in the workplace Accessibility test Accessible work Acting Adhd Adjustments Administrative Adrian lord Advice Advocacy and campaigns Allparty parliamentary group for inclusive entrepreneurship American civil rights movement Android Anglonorman App Artificial intelligence Bad grammar Barriers to work Bbc Benefits Blind persons act Blue badge Blue badge service specialists Care Career Carer Celtic languages Center on everyday lives of families Ceo Cfs Chloe tear Chronic fatigue syndrome Chronic health condition Chronic illness Community Community story Community, community story, founder, feature, accessible work, disability employment gap, making a difference Companies house Compressed hours Computer science Computers Coronavirus Councils Covid19 Crystal mark standard Deaf Demo Design Dialects Dictionary Digital accessibility Disability Disability discrimination act Disability employment gap Disability rights movement Disability services Disabled peoples direct action network Disabled persons employment act Easy read Email address Employers Employment English English speakers Entrepreneur Entrepreneurship Epilepsy Equality Equality act Equality and diversity Equality of access Esources, disability, disability services, support services, community story, features, adjustments, social support network Eugenics Facebook Feature Features Fibromyalgia First world war Flexi Flexible working Flexitime Flextime Founder Francesco cirillo Freelancing French Gcses Gdpr General data protection regulation Good Good grammar Google Government policy Government support Graduate Graduates Grammar Grammar schools Health Health condition Health conditions Hearing impairment History History of language Holistic Ico Impact Imposter syndrome Inclusive entrepreneur network Inequalities Inequality Information commissioners office Information governance Instagram Internet Jacqueline winstanley Language Latin Law Learning difficulties Lexicographers Limited company Local councils Local government Making a difference Marketing strategy Mecfs Medical conditions Medical model of disability Medical vs social models of disability Medicines Mental health Middle english Mindfulness Mlm Mobility issues Multilevel marketing National league of the blind Neurodiversity Niya Normans Old english Old french Onboarding and retention Online Out of work Oxbridge Parent Passwords Patchwork hub Payment details Planning Planning for work Podcasts Pomodoro Preposition Private schools Psychiatric Psychiatry Punctuation React Reasonable adjustments Recruitment Remote working Resources Resources and support Rest Retinopathy of prematurity Sales Scam Search engine Second world war Shell shock Slang Social Cipher Social interactions Social media Social model of disability Social support network Socialising Spelling Spoken language Spotlight stories Standard english Startup State schools Student Students Studying Suffragette movement Support Support services Syntactician Syntax Technology The Disability Policy Centre The elderly Then barbara met alan Trafalgar square Turkish United nations Universal inclusion University University of arts london University of cambridge University of hertfordshire University of hull University of leeds University of oxford Victoria Jenkins Visual impairment War Ways of working West germanic dialects William shakespeare Windsor consultations WithVR Wordpress Work structure Workforce recruitment Working environment Workplace barriers World war one World war two Young carer
