Villages Vitality: Senior Life Unscripted

Easing Senior Living with Adaptive Clothing: A Talk with Jimmy Zolla

• Mike Roth • Season 7 • Episode 21

Share episode

Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.

0:00 | 27:31

Send us Fan Mail

Easing Senior Living with Adaptive Clothing: A Talk with Jimmy Zolla

Adaptive Apparel for Seniors: Innovations and Insights from Joe & Bella

In this episode of Open Forum in The Villages, Florida, host Mike Roth interviews Jimmy Zolla, co-founder, and CEO of Joe & Bella, an adaptive apparel company focused on creating stylish and functional clothing for seniors and individuals with disabilities. Jimmy shares his personal journey that led to the founding of Joe & Bella, inspired by his grandmother's struggles with getting dressed due to mobility issues. The conversation covers the unique features of their adaptive clothing, including magnetic buttons and hidden zippers, designed to make dressing easier and more dignified. Jimmy also discusses their product development process, the challenges they faced, and the future of adaptive apparel. The episode emphasizes the importance of catering to the aging population and providing solutions that enhance their quality of life.

00:00 Welcome to Open Forum Season Seven
00:47 Introducing Jimmy Z and Joe & Bella
01:10 The Inspiration Behind Joe & Bella
02:52 The Legacy of Joe and Bella
05:10 Challenges and Opportunities in Adaptive Apparel
07:33 Innovative Adaptive Clothing Solutions
12:29 Expanding the Product Line
15:21 Testing and Validating New Products
16:01 Consumer Panels and Product Testing
17:29 Prototyping and Refinement Process
18:48 Manufacturing and Stocking
19:49 Seasonal Bestsellers and Product Features
20:37 Sizing and Comfort Considerations
23:43 Company Growth and Team Structure
25:50 Sales Channels and Contact Information
26:53 Conclusion and Listener Engagement

Season 8 Introduction

Support the show

Open Forum in The Villages, Florida is Produced & Directed by Mike Roth
A new episode will be released most Fridays at 9 AM
Direct all questions and comments to mike@rothvoice.com

If you know a Villager who should appear on the show, please contact us at:  mike@rothvoice.com 

paula:

Welcome to Season seven of Open Forum in The Villages, Florida. In this show, we talk to leaders of clubs and interesting folks who live in and around The Villages. We also talk to people who have information vital to seniors. You will get perspectives of what is happening in The Villages, Florida area. We are a listener supported podcast, there will bePodcast shoutouts for supporters.

Mike:

This is Mike Roth

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

This is Mike

Mike:

in The

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Open for The Villages, Florida.

Mike:

I'm here today

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

here today

Mike:

Zola.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Jimmy Z.

Mike:

Jimmy.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

for joining us.

Mike:

Jimmy is a co-founder

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

is a co-founder

Mike:

and

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

CEO of Joe

Mike:

brand creating

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Brain, modern

Mike:

Adaptive apparel

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Adaptive for seniors,

Mike:

disabilities.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

with disabilities.

Mike:

that would be a

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Now, I thought that would be great

Mike:

on the show

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

to bring.

Mike:

A community of seniors

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

A community of seniors here in the village,

Mike:

some people

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

some people may need apparel that is easy to get

Mike:

Jimmy,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So Jimmy,

Mike:

made you

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

what made you get involved in the apparel industry? this is a space I never expected to be involved in. I was running a different startup during the pandemic, but I was also helping to care for my grandmother in a memory care community, and she was a wheelchair user the only way to effectively communicate with her was by FaceTiming one of the nurses at the community hoping she would answer and be able to run into my grandmother's room. the interesting thing about this experience was it gave us a lens into her life that we otherwise would not have seen. one day I FaceTimed. A nurse picked up, she ran to my grandmother's room and I gotta see what it was like for my grandmother to get dressed in the morning. it was a shocking experience It took about 20 minutes and she was crying and screaming from the amount of pain from just having to reach her arm back into her sleeve or lift up to have her pants pulled up. And I remember calling the nurse afterwards who. was kind, she was gentle, she was patient, but the clothes just weren't designed for someone who was living with my grandmother's ability at the time. And nurse said, yeah, this happens every single time your grandmother gets dressed. And she's about average for what it's like to live in a memory care community. I went online and found a couple clothing brands that promised to make dressing less painful. I ordered their items and sent them to my grandmother. When she received them, she refused to try anything on because she said the clothes were too ugly. that was the genesis of Joe and Bella. our goal is to make dressing faster, easier, more dignified, but do so in a way that doesn't sacrifice the way in which the clothes look or make someone feel about themselves.

Mike:

So

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So

Mike:

the name of the company,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

the name of the company,

Mike:

bella,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Joe and Bella,

Mike:

from?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Yeah it dates back to 2012. My grandfather at that point who was living with Parkinsonian Dementia, they were still living at home. But, they were falling and it was no longer safe for them to live at home anymore. one of these days they fell and fire department came out again despite having 24 7 in-home care. They said, Hey, it's no longer safe for them to be living here with care. The next day we had to move them into a care community that was Christmas Eve of 2012. We spent that day, setting up the room, getting internet hooked up, getting the TV set up, making sure things were on the walls, making sure everything was the way it was supposed to be. by the time we finished unpacking and finished the move, it was late at night. We were exhausted. There was a skeleton crew left at the care community, and we finally started getting a tour. as we're getting a tour of the facility two residents jump in line and slowly start taking over the tour. that was Joe and Bella. they ended up becoming a huge part of our life. They had every single meal with my grandfather until the day he passed. They would come over for Mother's Day, for Father's Day. They, were two widowed Holocaust survivors who had met later in life. despite what they had gone through, had just this unbelievable amount of happiness and joy that they would give to everybody else. And so we named it after them for two reasons. The first was, it's a legacy for us to live up to. Every single day I look at my computer I see their name, and so I know. Anything less than the best doesn't meet the level of legacy that they left behind. And the second is when we left the memory care community. we left with this. Tremendous sense of relief that, oh, thank God Joe and Bella are there. Thank God. There's some people for my grandmother who was tough to get along with at certain points. And she loved Joe and Bella so it was just gratefulness that they existed. when people find Joe and Bella now and our clothes for the first time, that's what we want to give back.'cause so often we get calls or chats or emails to our company saying, Hey, I just found out my. Dad has Parkinson's, or, I'm getting rotator cuff surgery or a hip replacement, or my uncle just had a stroke. What should I do? Or, I have this specific type of catheter. And so we want people to know, there are options out there. You're not alone. here's something that can make things a little bit easier as you go through whatever journey you're going through

Mike:

I understand this is not your

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

I understand this is not your first startup.

Mike:

In Chicago.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So that was my first startup that I started before that, I was at GrubHub in Chicago, the online food ordering app. Collabora was meant to be a. Data aggregator for smaller brands to compete with the giants of Facebook, of Amazon, of Googles, of the world who have a monopoly on consumer data. we were bringing multiple organizations together to share the cost of research and data working with. The NBA Reebok, Nike Disney and Ford. But our most important client ended up being A RP. And we were running an annual project with them called Hacking Longevity that looked at the future of aging, caregiving and longevity within the US among four different generational cohorts. And it became this massive passion project of ours and the most important work that we are doing. In some ways it also became the source of deep frustration in the sense that, it mattered a lot to A RP. It mattered a lot to large banks. It didn't matter a lot to pretty much anyone else we tried to talk to about it. Outside of those organizations, anyone who is developing consumer products or physical products of any type. Didn't really care. And we would go into meetings or conference and say, Hey, the demographics are really simple. 10,000 Americans right now are turning 70 every single day. Two thirds of whom have a chronic health condition. Two thirds of that number have multiple chronic health conditions. Boomers controlled over 50% of the wealth in this country. So if you're looking at this purely from a economic opportunity it's very clear that. there should be products or services that are coming up right now that are geared toward extending independence or that are geared to make the unique challenges of caregiving easier, but for the most part, brands would rather focus on innovation for younger adults. this really interesting and frustrating bias was occurring that we were going up against. And it really opened our eyes to, man there's not enough work being done and we are not moving fast enough as a country when it comes to solutions for aging longevity.

Mike:

The Villages being the fastest

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

being the fastest growing,

Mike:

community in America

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

in.

Mike:

80%, 55 or older,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

55 or older

Mike:

a lot of sense.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

makes a lot of sense.

Mike:

There are a number

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

there are a number

Mike:

living facilities around

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

living facilities around The Villages

Mike:

as memory care

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

as memory caregivers.

Mike:

now

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

now

Mike:

What type

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

What type of adaptive clothing

Mike:

for

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

have you developed for seniors that have mobility or arthritis issues?

Mike:

as

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So far we have a range of products. We've brought 16 unique adaptive apparel products to the market each of which serves a different use case And is unique to anything else on the market our goal is that there's no stigma to adaptive. I think a lot of times when people hear the word adaptive, they think, medical or institutional or something that someone wears because they're different. And I think what's important for what we're doing is yes, we are designing the product specifically for someone with changing needs and mobility changes and differences, We're designing clothes in a way that they're great for everybody. 40% of our sales for men's button downs are going to men below the age of 40 because they just want clothes that happens to be a little bit faster and easier to put on that still look really good. Yeah they find us online, whether that be through social media, Google SEO that we do, or we also sell on Amazon currently. So a couple examples would be I'm wearing one of our shirts right now, which looks like a traditional button down. But there are some clever tricks to it. we always start. with the fit, we do things that's known as dropping the shoulder and we also enlarge the arm hole. So the process of just reaching back into a sleeve is easier. We then look at the cuff. This cuff is lined with elastic, so it stretches really far relative to a normal cuff. the last and most important thing is. Yes, it has buttons, but the buttons are just ornamental. They're just for show.

Mike:

group.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

And so behind the buttons we have magnets that are stitched in here that you won't be able to see on the video, but someone can independently with one hand just snap on into place And so we use tricks like that, whether it be magnets for buttons or magnets for zippers or hidden zippers in places that are designed to empower folks to either dress independently with one hand or just make that process of dressing with a partner or caregiver a little bit easier.

Mike:

So, aside from the,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So I think the

Mike:

magnetic buttons,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

magnetic button,

Mike:

where would you put hidden zippers?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

The zippers let's say on a pair of pants. We have zippers that go down the side of the pants on both sides that can zip.

Mike:

Both

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

From both the hip down as well as up from the ankle. So if someone has swollen feet or ankles, or maybe they're wearing a cast, or maybe they just had hip surgery, they need access to a colonoscopy bag, a catheter, or a handheld urinal, the zippers give you greater access, and then we dye the zippers to match the color of the pants. if the pant is khaki, we'll custom dye the pants a dark khaki color. And we fold over the fabric a little bit as well to hide it in there. And then we have a special pair of pants that we call care zips

Mike:

do you

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

that has a care zips

Mike:

is.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Carrier zips. we have a patent on the pants. We are the only pant or shorts on the market that can use three zippers. the zippers go down both sides of the pant, and a third zipper is hidden on the inseam of the pant that wraps from knee to knee on the inseam, which gives full access it was originally designed for incontinence briefs. So individuals wearing an incontinence brief can have that brief changed quickly, safely, and easily without their pants, socks, and shoes having to come off. it was designed for assisted care because roughly 80% of individuals who develop dementia or Alzheimer's will develop incontinence at some point throughout that aging journey. And this is just something that can allow those folks to change in a more dignified, faster, safer, way.

Mike:

that makes a lot of

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Yeah, That makes sense.

Mike:

a short break

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

let's take a short break here and listen to an ounce I understand appropriate for the show,

Mike:

Curtis.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Dr.

Dr. Craig Curtis:

We now know that Alzheimer's disease starts about 20 years before the symptoms with the buildup of a toxic protein called amyloid. And so scientists have been on a quest to remove amyloid to see how it affects the disease. The medicine that was recently FDA approved to slow down symptoms in people with Alzheimer's disease memory problems. Works by removing this substance called amyloid out of the brain. And now we're attempting to use those medicines to actually remove amyloid before someone develops symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, such as memory loss and forgetfulness.

Mike:

So that's in that 20 year period before the disease is obvious.

Dr. Craig Curtis:

That's right. Scientists now call it Alzheimer's Pathologic change versus Alzheimer's disease. We're saving the term Alzheimer's disease for when someone is actually experiencing symptoms due to Alzheimer's disease.

Warren:

With over 20 years of experience studying brain health, Dr. Curtis's goal is to educate The Villages community on how to live a longer, healthier life. To learn more, visit his website, craigcurtismd.com, or call 3 5 2 5 0 0 5 2 5 2 to attend a free seminar.

Mike:

Thank you Dr. Curtis.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Thank you, Dr. Curtis.

Mike:

you mentioned shirts

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

you mentioned shirts and pants.

Mike:

are there any other

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

any other

Mike:

items

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

We have adaptive socks as well. we have traditional compression socks and gripper socks. for our compression socks, we add grips to the bottom of them so they're not as slippery. you can walk around without your shoes, without the risk of falling and slipping on wood floors. we've added what we call a grab tab, which is essentially just a tab on the back of the sock to make that process of. Pulling up your socks a little bit easier. both our compression and regular grip socks come in wider sizes than traditional socks So besides the.

Mike:

shirts,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Pants and shirts.

Mike:

are in the line?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

What other products are in the line? We have a full range of products from socks to hoodies to other tops So our compression socks come with silicone grips. On the bottom to help prevent falls and slips. On the soles of the feet, they also have a grab tab, which is a tab on the back of the sock that's easy to grab on, to make, pulling up socks a lot easier. we noticed early on that searches on Google and Amazon on a daily basis. Easier to put on socks were something like 10,000 searches a day combined. And so we knew it was a big problem. We've got our first solution out there and we've got a few other ideas in the works. We also have hoodies and men's cardigans and zip ups that use magnetic closing zippers in the front, Looks like a traditional zipper. You can't tell anything that is different about it, but the latch itself, when it gets close enough just clicks into place by itself. And then we use a big finger loop so someone can stick one finger in and zip up a hoodie or zip up of any type. And so later this year, we'll probably work to come out with some outerwear using that same adaptive technology.

Mike:

Things like

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Things like coats

Mike:

You,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

You probably need that. Chicago. Yeah, it is. It is cold here. We unfortunately, do not get the same weather as The Villages.

Mike:

Now

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Now,

Mike:

the hoodies, product that you have, tell

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So that is our newest product, our magnetic zipper hoodie that uses this magnetic zipping technology. But it goes a bit further. So we have specialized pockets, so the pockets are extra deep and they're actually angled specifically For seating. if someone is seated most of the day, or if they're a wheelchair user, they're angled for that body position as opposed to a traditional hoodie We, adjusted the fit for an older body by doing things like dropping the shoulder and enlarging the arm hole, having the back of the hoodie fall longer behind it. And we're coming out with winter weights later this year hopefully by Q4.

Mike:

you call it?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Would you call it a winter weight? it's a mid-weight hoodie,

Mike:

of the

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

yeah it's probably a weight that would be perfect for The Villages. by Q4, once it's cold again in Chicago. We'll have a heavier version coming out.

Mike:

for the last few days

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Oh goodness.

Mike:

no snow. How do you test and validate

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

do you test and validate each new product? It is a long process. we track both quantitative data and do qualitative analysis to start. the first part is, as I mentioned with the sox we scrape data from Google and Amazon. Search console as well as Amazon third party data providers to see what are folks searching for that they need that might not yet exist. Are they looking for easier shirts or easier pants or access for certain types of medical products? once we analyze that data and see what products on the market are missing that we think we have an opportunity to win at we put together a few initial. Product ideas. we take these product ideas to three individual groups that we've put together our consumer panels. The first group includes older adults who live independently but perhaps living with some sort of physical disability that makes it harder for them to dress independently and they could use a little bit of help. So maybe it's individual who, has Parkinson's or someone who has arthritis or someone who recently had knee surgery. So we're talking to that group first. Then the second group are individuals that

Mike:

Would that group include

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

would that group include people who had

Mike:

surgery

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

surgery?

Mike:

shoulder replacement?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Exactly. Shoulder replacement. Hip replacement. folks who still are as active as they can possibly be. They want to recover, but that recovery process is hard and clothing shouldn't be. that second group of people we talk to are individuals who are helping a loved one get dressed at home. typically a spouse or in some case the daughter or the son who is caring for a parent living at home. maybe that individual doesn't have the physical or cognitive ability to dress independently, and they need the support of a family member to do that safely at home. the third group we speak to are professional caregivers in a care setting. nurses at care communities, whether it be assisted living, skilled nursing, or memory care. And we will present our initial ideas to these three groups of people. They'll say, Hey, this is why this will or will not work. we go back to the drawing board a few times and once we think we have a solution that will work for each one of those individual groups of people we go and make our prototype.

Mike:

How many

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

And we'll make a few prototypes. Sometimes we do well and only have to go through five or six rounds of prototypes until we feel good about it.

Mike:

a prototype,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

make a prototype

Mike:

pieces?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

test

Mike:

test pieces,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

typically the first round we'll make three test pieces, and the way we do it is we'll make 'em in three different sizes. So we'll normally do like a medium, large and extra large. And often one of those we'll essentially say. Half of the product is version A and half the product is version B. So maybe we'll try some things on one side of the product that we won't try on the other, so we can really see what works and what doesn't, and we'll bring those products here. We'll test them, get them in the hands of these groups, and then go back to the drawing board it's about refining and saying, oh, this, we thought these buttons were gonna be strong enough. They're not strong enough. Or, we thought this fabric was gonna be really soft and stretchy. maybe It's soft, but it's not soft after we wash it 30 times. it's just a matter of going until we get to the point where we're like, okay, this will hold up from a wash. This feels good all day. maybe it's stain resistant, maybe it's antimicrobial. the right weight of the fabric works with the weight of the zipper. And eventually we get to a point where we check off all the boxes that we need to bring that product to market.

Mike:

you,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Now

Mike:

these prototypes

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

We build the prototypes in America, then do our full manufacturing in China.

Mike:

Do you

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Do you have a representative in China.

Mike:

that

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

we used to have a representative in China. We ended the relationship with the agent in China. that's a role that's now gone to someone local here in Chicago, who has manufacturing experience, who has been handing those relationships with us and will travel there a couple times throughout the year.

Mike:

You stock Product in America.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Product here in America. All of it is stocked here in America. We're actually stocked in Virginia. Now, we recently moved, we used to be in a couple different warehouses, but we're now fully stocked in Virginia. But everything is designed here in Texas, tested in Texas and Iowa and Florida, in Chicago and elsewhere in the US and then Stockton, Virginia.

Mike:

I would imagine that,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

I would imagine,

Mike:

climates like Florida, where we're

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

You

Mike:

shorts,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

where we're wearing shorts?

Mike:

Eight, nine months a year.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

eight, nine months a year.

Mike:

months a year.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

10 months a year.

Mike:

it's

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Than,

Mike:

or

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Chicago or Cincinnati, where long pants were

Mike:

year round.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

common year round.

Mike:

What is the best selling

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

what is the best selling product you have?

Mike:

piece of

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

It changes season to season. This winter our number one selling product was a version of our men's button down, that warmer button down in a flannel was. By far our bestselling product this winter, I have a feeling this summer it will be the exact opposite, we have a short sleeve version of our button down that does great. we're coming out with some really fun prints and patterns for this summer which I'm sure will be our bestselling product

Mike:

have

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

it depends on the season

Mike:

Like a

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Depends on like a t-shirt. But with buttons up the front to make it easier to put on.

Mike:

Buttons up

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

someone who has limited mobility, who can't lift their arms up or have the ability to put something on over their head is the idea with our shirts.

Mike:

Are the ones with

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

these are the ones

Mike:

three zippers

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

three zipper.

Mike:

Is the waistband stretchy

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Is the waistband stretchy It is. And that's key. So all of our waistbands for our pants are lined with elastic and they can stretch. if you're traditionally a medium they can stretch to about the size of an extra large, which is by design. there's several reasons for this. Number one is comfort. I pretty much only wear pants now that have an elastic waist unless I have to look a little bit nicer and put jeans on the most important thing is having that comfort. The second is that we know there are meaningful body changes that happen as we transition. if someone's moving into a memory care community for the first time they might put on a lot of weight or lose a lot of weight when they move on into that care community. They might like the food a lot. They might hate the food. They might be on a new medicine. They might be moving there because they just had a fall and they're not gonna be as active. we know the individuals we're trying to serve have changing body types. making sure the pants adjust for that is key.

Mike:

Are your pants sized

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

are you by waste?

Mike:

to

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

28?

Mike:

that

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

How does that work? So right now our pants are size small to three xl. We probably will be moving to a more traditional sizing system by the end of the year. we're trying to test out sizing right now to get it perfect for the legs.

Mike:

Usually?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So they do come in scene.

Mike:

buying 'em,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

I'm them,

Mike:

a 38 waist.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

waist. 2029 length.

Mike:

aggravation is that,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

aggravation is it

Mike:

of the manufacturers

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

a lot of manufacturers

Mike:

29 inch in seams. They're selling. 20 eights or thirties.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So right now they do come in two different in sea lengths. The goal is as we grow and as we're able to help and serve more people, that we're gonna be able to add more in sea lengths

Mike:

is the

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

And be able to serve more people

Mike:

that you have on

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

shirt you have on.

Mike:

a nice greys.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

What colors,

Mike:

you have?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So for our button downs, they come in our traditional colors. They come in the greys, they come in a nice blue as well as a solid white. And then we have a few patterns. So we have a plaid navy check, a plaid white, a plaid green. and then they come in four different colors for our flannels in four different colors for our short sleeve. So a short sleeve comes in a solid navy in a solid white, as well as a blue tile is what we call it, which is like a nice printed blue color.

Mike:

Okay.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

And the last one is a stripe print we have coming out

Mike:

Yeah.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Yeah.

Mike:

you,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Now

Mike:

The

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

The pants are stretchy material.

Mike:

about the shirts

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

What about the shirts

Mike:

you as well?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So our cuffs, we have the elastic lined in here, and we also add a little bit in the shoulder as well to allow that to stretch. These shirts do have what's known as four-way stretch on top of them, which is by design, so that it can help fit multiple body types, but also make sure you're comfortable throughout the day. And they come in two different fits as well for a shirt. So we have what's known as our more tailored fit, That more traditional look if someone wanted to wear a suit or like a business use And then what I'm wearing today is what we call a relaxed fit, which is more a comfortable, looser fit relative to our tailored fit

Mike:

Now.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Now.

Mike:

in,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

a

Mike:

in

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

This is our third year selling our own products right now, so we're still very new. it's been quite a journey to get our different products to market

Mike Roth ai5:

What advice would you give to yourself three years ago based on what you know today?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

I we should narrow our scope. we launched some products in the first 18 months of the business that we no longer carry. And I think we are perhaps overly ambitious to the aggressiveness of releasing new products. We would've been better served. Focusing on our button downs, focusing just on our pants and coming out with multiple colors of those as opposed to a wider variety of products. Now I think we're at a different spot where we've figured out a lot of things from the marketing side, figuring out more on the product side, and have a more efficient time rolling out new products. But early on, I think we were a little bit too aggressive.

Mike:

how large is your company?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So we have three of us full time. I have someone from a marketing standpoint, and my first hire was a former memory care nurse who was in charge of answering our phones people would call in and say, Hey, I'm wearing this sort of catheter, or I have this sort of. Colonoscopy bag. will your pants work with it? And to me, it felt necessary to have somebody on our team who is able to answer those questions who had really lived that experience. But then we have a full apparel design team. We have a fractional accountant, a fractional financial person, a fractional operating person. We have a marketing agency. a third party warehouse that we work with as well.

Mike:

So if I

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So if I were to

Mike:

your product through Amazon,

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

product through Amazon,

Mike:

or is it

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

from your warehouse

Mike:

the

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

it depends. about 70% of our products are stored at an Amazon warehouse, all of our products are available on Amazon, but the ones that aren't our best sellers we ship from our own warehouse.

Mike:

Great.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

If you have prime, you're able to get most of our products same day, next day through Amazon.

Mike:

So if someone

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

So

Mike:

looking

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

was.

Mike:

to see your catalog

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

to see what your products were,

Mike:

to?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

you should go to Joe and bella.com, J-O-E-A-N-D, B as in Bella, BELL a.com. You can search for us on Amazon under the same name or across any of the different social media platforms as well.

Mike:

And if someone wanted

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

And if someone wanted to.

Mike:

What email

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

What email

Mike:

use?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

My email is Jimmy, J-I-M-M-Y, at Joe and bella.com.

Mike:

Great.

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Great.

Mike:

that I

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Are there any questions that I failed to ask you today,

Mike:

wanted to

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Jimmy, that

Mike:

our listeners?

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

I don't believe so, but if anyone has any questions we're available. Please feel free to reach out. We appreciate the opportunity to share what we're building here and thank you for having me today, Mike.

Mike:

Thanks for being on Open

Jimmy - Joe & Bella:

Thanks for being on Villages,

paula:

Remember, our next episode will be released next Friday at 9:00 AM. Should you wanna become a major supporter of the show or have questions, please contact us at mike@rothvoice.com. This is a shout out for supporters, Tweet Coleman, Ed Williams, Duane Roemmich, Paul Sorgen, and Dr. Craig Curtis at K2 in The Villages. We will be hearing more from Dr. Curtis with short Alzheimer's tips each week. If you know someone who should be on the show, contact us at Mike@RothVoice.com. The way our show grows is with your help. Text your friends about this show. If you enjoyed listening or just tell your friends about the show. We thank everyone for listening. The content of the show is copyrighted by Roth Voice 2026, all rights reserved.