DESIGNER · FOUNDER · EDUCATOR
“Clothing should celebrate curiosity, never confine it.”
— Jaya Halepete Iyer
Founder and designer of Svaha USA. Former professor of fashion merchandising, PhD in consumer behavior, and lifelong maker, from my grandparents’ home in Dharwad to a brand for curious minds everywhere.
AS SEEN IN
The Kelly Clarkson Show (NBC) · Forbes · The Washington Post · Glamour · Inc. · MSNBC · Popular Science · Detroit Free Press · Authority Magazine · Hiscox
MEET JAYA
It began with embroidery stitches and doll clothes.
I grew up in India, spending every summer at my grandparents’ home in Dharwad. Both taught at a local tailoring institute, and at home they passed their craft on to me.
That foundation led me through degrees in Fashion Merchandising, work in apparel manufacturing and retail buying, a PhD in consumer behavior, years as a university professor, and a role as an apparel buyer at ThinkGeek.
Then, a weekly visit to the Air and Space Museum with my children changed everything.
THE DESIGNER
My son wanted to be a fighter pilot. My daughter wanted to be an astronaut.
Only one of them could find clothes to match their dream. So I launched Svaha USA on Kickstarter: science- and literature-inspired apparel for kids and adults, free of gender stereotypes.
THE EDUCATOR
A scholar of why we buy what we buy.
PhD, Iowa State University
Consumer behavior & Fair Trade
University of Georgia
Fashion Merchandising
Assistant Professor, Marymount University
Retailing, textiles, fashion history
Industry
Export manufacturing, retail buying, ThinkGeek
Author, Retailing in Emerging Markets
Fairchild Books, 2nd ed., with Shubhapriya Bennur
THE ADVOCATE
Clothing quietly tells children who they’re allowed to be. Let’s change the message.
Why gender stereotypes in kids’ apparel matter, and how design can open doors instead of closing them.
PRESS & INTERVIEWS
Conversations
The Kelly Clarkson Show, NBC · March 19, 2024
Get in Touch
For press, speaking, or collaborations, send me a note and I’ll get back to you.