These Brands Are Working Towards a More Inclusive Fashion Industry

People with disabilities and the elderly benefit greatly from clothing designed with their specific needs in mind. Sometimes, accessible clothing options are shapeless rather than stylish. But today, more and more brands are embracing adaptive clothing with assistive technology, which enables people to wear the latest trends while still accessing adjustable and functional design.

What is adaptive clothing?

Adaptive clothing makes getting dressed and functioning within clothes more accessible to people with a wide variety of needs. The disability community is diverse, so designers embrace a variety of styles of adaptive clothing with one goal in mind: to create an innovative garment that makes life easier for the wearer. And, now, brands are also focused on showcasing the wearer's personality.

Runway of Dreams is a non-profit organization that works in conjunction with brands to create "a future of inclusion, acceptance and opportunity in the fashion industry for people with disabilities." Mindy Scheier created Runway of Dreams after her son, who has a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy, wanted to wear jeans to school but couldn't find styles without challenging buttons or zippers. She used her background in design to create a pair of adaptive jeans for him and saw his confidence skyrocket. When the Good Housekeeping Institute Textiles Lab spoke with Mindy, she emphasized the importance of designers working collaboratively with people with disabilities when creating adaptive clothing. Her biggest hope for the future is that more and more brands offer adaptive clothing as it helps not only customers but the companies themselves: "Nearly $3 trillion is left on the table by not including people with disabilities," she said.

Examples of adaptive clothing:

• Pants, shirts, dresses or skirts that open at the sides with magnetic closures instead of buttons
• Shoes that allow the wearer to step into them without forcing them on
• Pants cut higher in the back and lower in the front that are more comfortable for wheelchair users
• Clothes with easy access points for medical equipment
• Sensory-friendly clothing items
• One-piece outfits

There's still a long way to go for the entire fashion industry to be more inclusive and to produce more adaptive clothing, but you can shop these brands that are creating trendy options now: