As a Canadian, women-owned independent business, InSchoolwear is rethinking how school uniforms can reflect both a school’s past traditions and its current values.
Kirstin Broatch has been in the independent school uniform business for a quarter of a century, so she knows when a new moment has arrived in the industry. Her company, InSchoolwear, in Oakville, Ontario, is one of the few remaining Canadian-owned uniform design and manufacturing businesses with a legacy of loyal clients. It’s been at the forefront of helping schools create clothing that reflects a school’s brand, culture, and tradition. But that doesn’t mean Broatch is stuck in old ways.
“I love change. I want to be changing all the time, continuously improving, and never stop,” she says.
So, when Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School (STS)—one of the largest independent schools in Alberta (just south of Calgary)—was ready to update its uniform, InSchoolwear was ready. After celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2022, STS wanted to update its blazers to better reflect its current student body, values, and culture.
“They have everything divided with green blazers for the girls and blue blazers for the boys. So, our update for them is coming from a place of gender inclusivity,” says Broatch. “We’re working on a design for a blazer for everybody, one that pulls all the old traditions together.” When Broatch says “everybody,” she also means “every body.”
“STS wanted to make sure the uniforms were inclusive of body types and choices,” she says. “Even though you want everybody to have a similar look, the students can pick what works best for them.”
“The consultation process was thorough and comprehensive, engaging all stakeholders,” says Carol Grant-Watt, the head of school at STS. “A professional facilitator assured that this consultation would be authentic so we could get the ‘why’ right, and then a thorough Request for Proposal (RFP) process assured we could get the ‘who’ and ‘what’ right.”
According to Grant-Watt, the “who” was an easy choice: InSchoolwear’s care and commitment to the project, their focus on customer satisfaction, and the passion from Broatch and her team “for all things uniform” made her confident they would achieve the goals of updating the design, meeting all the students’ needs, and upholding the school’s history and tradition.
“There are many things an administrator must look at [when assessing potential uniform providers]: their own context, community feedback, how to avoid trends and have a uniform that will endure, comfort, fit for function, responsiveness to changing needs,” says Grant-Watt. “Most importantly, look for a provider who cares about the school and wants to be a true partner. InSchoolwear does that very well."
According to Broatch, this is the beginning of a larger trend: coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic: independent schools have new requirements for uniforms, with an emphasis on inclusion, sustainability, and comfort. As a longtime user of sustainable materials and production methods, Broatch and InSchoolwear can’t wait to see where this movement will take us and what kinds of uniforms it will produce.
“The students are leading the charge and I'm so excited,” she says. “We are Canadian, we're sustainable, we love our staff, and no matter what, we will do the right thing. You can trust us because you can trust me, and I will make sure we do the right thing. And I think that's going to become more important to people—that we look after each other.”
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| Kirstin Broatch | |
| 905-334-4545 | |
| [email protected] | |
| inschoolwear.com |
