How Tayo Studio Creates Size-Inclusive and Ethical Pieces
With sizes from XS to 4XL.
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(SPOT.ph) These days, a successful brand isn't just based on profit, units sold, or social media followers. It's not enough for your product to go viral and be sold out on all platforms. More and more people are looking into the heart of a brand—they want to support something that aligns with their personal values. But this philosophy-driven approach isn't just a trend for Tayo Studio. It's actually what it was built on.
In an exclusive interview with SPOT.ph, Tayo Studio's founder Yong Davalos talks about how she started the brand, how they design their size-inclusive pieces, and how they approach ethical fashion.
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How Tayo Studio started
Tayo Studio itself—as its name suggests—was already about togetherness right form the get-go. Yong recalls, "I've been in the fashion industry for quite a bit since I launched my brand around 2016. But then I was brewing this brand to cater to a wider audience. I wanted to create an inclusive brand for women because a lot of my clients were going to me and asking me if I have something that is ready to wear then."
Then, the pandemic happened. "There were bits and pieces of the Tayo label already starting to form." Yong continues, "Because I wanted my people to have jobs during the pandemic, I initiated for them to create clothes."
They started making PPEs and masks. "After a brief period of time, I said, 'Okay, so how can we make your livelihood sustainable? How can we push for a sustainable living during a pandemic for these women?'"
And so, Tayo Studio was formed. From protective gear, the skilled seamstresses started creating frilly dresses and colorful coords to be sold online.
They soft-launched in June of 2020 but it didn't really take off immediately. Then, Shopee came along and they sold out. They launched their new collection in October and quickly ran out of stock on the first day.
"I remember this: We just put stocks online without having real stocks because we didn't know that it would sell out that fast. And we were producing for the entire month of October. So we're not sleeping at night. The entire production team was producing every day. We were doing OTs. Everybody's helping out each other." This spirit of camaraderie and inclusivity also found its way to the pieces they were making.
Tayo Studio's size-inclusive designs made with dead stock fabric
Yong illustrated how a Tayo Studio piece is produced. "We actually start with our customers in mind," she says, "We always think, what do the customers want this time? What do the women want and need this time?"
It doesn't stop with just the design. They start with the right material to use. "From there, we source the fabric. If we can do dead stock as much as possible, then we'll do dead stock. Then we create from there."
It's not a one-size-fits-all kind of situation at Tayo Studio. "From the pieces, once we design it, we make sure that it looks good in all sizes. If the design does not fit well, or it does not look that well in a plus size, or in a bigger size, then we cancel it out," Yong declares. "Because we just know that's not an inclusive design. If it's not beautiful on a full-figured woman, then it doesn't hit our goal."
Yong reveals they don't even use in-house models for fitting. "What we do is use our seamstresses, everyone. Everyone is involved in the fitting. We believe that if we can make a regular seamstress look beautiful in her clothes, what more of the usual customer buyers."
She also strikes that balance between the craft that goes into the fashion and of course, making it accessible to more people. "I do have Yong Studio, which is the high-end one, where the designs are really eccentric and over-the-top pieces. Not even over-the-top," she clarifies. "It's still very much wearable, but it's just a designer brand," Yong explains.
As for Tayo Studio, she takes a lot into consideration because it's for a bigger target market who don't necessarily spend a much. "What do they want? What would they feel comfortable in wearing? It shouldn't be overwhelming. It shouldn't be too sexy. It shouldn't be too this. It shouldn't be too that. It really affects the creative process," she says.
How Tayo Studio advocates for ethical fashion
It's a strong belief system that ties everything together at Tayo Studio. "It just boils down to really responsible fashion. My personal advocacy is to spread out the support for responsible and ethical fashion in the Philippines because there are so many fast-fashion brands out there that not just harm the environment, but also harm the livelihood of others," Yong says.
Their multi-dimensional philosophy also includes their identity as a proudly Filipino brand. "We are pushing for the livelihood of local Filipinos—we manufacture for the Filipinos, by the Filipinos, and then comes these fast-fashion brands," Yong starts. "Eventually, if people keep supporting that kind of business, it might kill the ones that give livelihood to our people."
The "Tayo" in Tayo Studio stands for "us"—in a sense that they've always championed inclusivity and a sense of togetherness in the concept of their brand. But it also seems to mean "Tayo" as in "stand," since they've stood firm planted in these core beliefs.
Where to buy Tayo Studio
Tayo Studio is available online on Lazada and Shopee. They also have two physical stores. They're located at Level 3 of the Main Mall at SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City and at the Lower Ground Level, Central Walk at SM Fairview in Quezon City.
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