American retail giant, Kohls, recently announced a new line of adaptive clothing for children and young adults, through three of its private kids’ clothing lines, including Jumping Beans, SO and Urban Pipeline.
Kohl’s adaptive clothing range is largely thanks to Kohl’s technical design manager for kids, Judy Koepsel, who has a daughter with developmental and sensory needs. When designing the new clothing, Koepsel and the rest of Kohl’s design team worked alongside families with children who have disabilities or complex medical needs.
“We aligned on what needed to be considered when fitting, such as how a pant fits when sitting down, could the pockets still be used, is the shirt long enough to cover in the back, and so forth,” Koepsel said. “Everyone involved was extremely thoughtful as to how the product would be used.”
“The new adaptive lines include features to make clothing easier and more comfortable for those with a wide range of needs, from sensory sensitivities to wheelchair use, medical ports, feeding tubes and easy dressing. Other features include flat seams, wider necks and hemlines, longer length, reinforced belt loops, abdominal access, velcro at leg openings and two-way zippers”.
Care was also taken by the Kohl’s design team to ensure the new adaptive designs were just as fashionable as the rest of the clothing each label creates.
“Just because we are creating clothing for unique needs doesn’t mean that it needs to be basic,” Kara Smoltich, associate product manager for Jumping Beans, said in a press release. “We have made every effort to ensure that the product looks as close to our core line as possible. Everything from graphic artwork to pocket detail is reflective of the brand.”
Kohl’s adaptive clothing is available online only through their website.
Kohl’s new Jumping Beans Adaptive Sleeveless Bodysuit has openings for abdominal access
The Kohl’s Juniors SO Adaptive Hoodie has two-way zippers
Kohl’s Urban Pipeline hoodie for boys has a wider neck and hem for easy dressing with a hidden opening for abdominal access
Photo Credit: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/06/12/adaptive-apparel-goes-more-mainstream-kohls-adds-options-kids/1415312001/
Cover Photo: The Mighty