Donna Mesquita promotes ‘positivi-tee’ in fashion
Published:Friday | February 2, 2024 | 12:10 AMKrysta Anderson/Staff Reporter
In a world sometimes flooded with negativity, Donna Mesquita is pushing ‘positivi-tee’ with her T-shirt brand, Tee-positive.
“If you look around the world, what is being projected is mostly negative. And you find that the good things are struggling to have a voice or to be seen. With Tee-Positive, you’re a walking billboard of good energy wherever you go, so you can wear our T-shirts and still be in fashion because people will take notice,” Mesquita told Living.
Her positive designs include ‘Respect people with glasses. They paid money to see you’, ‘Like a tea bag, true strength is when you’re in hot water’, ‘Keep your head, heels and standards high’, ‘If plan A didn’t work, the alphabet has 25 more letters; and ‘If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door’, just to name a few.
“The desire was to create cotton shirts that resonate in the hearts of others; ones that persons would be drawn to, based on the words. Some of the quotes are faith based, some are motivational and others are just amusing by nature. It was also important for me to relay messages that are relatable to almost everyone,” she said. Her top two favourite shirts are ‘I’m expensive all the time. Stop asking me when I’m free’ and a design that says, ‘WTF’, which stands for ‘winning, thankful and fabulous’.
Although black and white shirts are available, Mesquita included other colours in the mix to bring vibrancy and variety to the brand. “I tried to make them distinct in [their] colours and cater to everyone in that respect.”
This fashionista views T-shirts as more than just an accompaniment for jeans. Tees should be the article of clothing designed to make a statement. When you’re looking to dress up, a T-shirt should be one of those clothing options.
NEW JOURNEY
This entrepreneur found herself in a predicament in 2022. While many would’ve been saddened by the news of redundancy, she saw the silver lining of that career cloud and thought it was time for a change.
“When I was made redundant, I thought about what I was going to do to make up for the income. T-shirts did not come to my mind initially,” the marketer explained. She embarked on a new journey of editing and proofreading and along the way, she came across the opportunity to create her own brand.
Her goal was to add unique designs that were either witty or provided comic relief. “I wanted to spread positive messages that would evoke positive reactions. Many T-shirts have words but there’s no design; no story around it. One way of making them more appealing and attractive is to have designs that are unusual.”
Operating for almost a year, Mesquita has placed focus on spreading the word through pop up events such as Night Market and the Art Walk Festival. “No one has ever said, ‘I don’t like this’. The shirts are unusual in design and colour. They’re very interested in what they see and they will take the necessary details. The plan is to convert that to sales,” she noted.
The business is still very new. And while she has sold some shirts, she is aware that as a marketer, it is more important to build brand awareness. “If persons know that the brand exists, then they will buy it. So, at this point in the business, the sales are good to have. So, we are very hopeful.”
Mesquita is currently working with three graphic designers who bring her visions to life. “I will give them the words, they will come up with a creative design and I will give feedback on the concepts presented. I like things that are conversational and that will stand out. Whenever they get the copy for the shirts, their ultimate goal is to come up with a design that’s unexpected, but that still remains in alignment with the words being featured,” she revealed.
Her hope for Tee-Positive Store is to create customised shirts for individuals seeking that wow factor when it comes to fashion and for companies who are looking to go beyond the logo for businesses. “I am happy to be playing my part in ensuring that positivity still makes a statement, in style and in outlook.”