Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Karin Christoff. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Karin, thanks for joining us today. To kick things off, we’d love to hear about things you or your brand do that diverge from the industry standard

In general, the industry is trying to be more inclusive to bigger sizes; however, they are making clothes for the ideal female figure. They are making clothes bigger, but they aren’t thinking of the necessities of a woman as she gains weight and attempts to lose weight. They require coverage, not many want to show the growing bellies but they want more than a T-shirt. They want to look sexy but don’t want to compromise comfort. The majority of women gain weight in their mid section and most of them are not a pear shape. The industry seems to have fallen in love with a pear shaped female body and they make clothes for that type of body…. This is why when you buy a pair of pants that should be your size, fits everywhere but not around the waist. I’m changing that distorted illusion and making clothes for women sizes.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Karin de Lourdes Christoff. I am the mother of two teenage boys and married to another veteran. I am an Army veteran and I have been deployed to Afghanistan while I served. I started my own brand of fitness apparel out of my own necessity. I was gaining weight before the pandemic but when the pandemic hit, I started gaining even more so I decided I wanted to lose weight so I started working out at the gym. Since all my clothes didn’t fit anymore I had to go buy more and stop wearing my husband’s Tshirts… so I started looking for workout clothes that fit my body but made me look good but the cute bras didn’t fit me and the leggings had this annoying elastic around the waist that made me look like I had another roll. I remember buying a bra at a sporting good store and I bought the biggest bra I could find which bras xl, I didn’t try it on, I bought and brought it home and try it there. Well, I was able to somehow put in the bra because it was too small but then I couldn’t take it off, I was stuck! I had to call my husband to help me peel it off me lol long story short, I ripped it and couldn’t return it.
I thought if I’m having this issue, I know other women are going through the same struggles. I found a problem that was not being addressed and I decided, I wanted to solve it.
I am dedicated to helping women feel and look amazing while working out. Over the past year, I have dedicated most of my free time building an amazing brand that serves women and makes them feel sexy without sacrificing comfort..We needed clothes to work for us while we are working out not against us.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I have ran into every problem imaginable. And it’s all around production…. I started manufacturing in China; I learned my lesson and move the production to the US. I went to North Carolina and bought some industrial sewing machines so I could start production from my home, but that was also a struggle because I haven’t find a seamstress… so now I am working with a manufacturer that’s going to help me with the start of the production until I’m able to bring someone to help doing the samples and do light manufacturing.

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

I manufacture my products and I didn’t know the first thing how to go about it. I just knew what I wanted… I found manufacturers I worked with in China and I have also found manufacturers in the United States… I have learned if you want to work Chinese manufacturers, you need to have an inspector that will check all of your products before they are packed in the mailing boxes and also have a person that will mail everything together. I am very impatient and that’s my Aquiles heel. In the States, it’s been a struggle to find small batch manufacturers that would not want to charge me an arm and a leg and remain with a competitive price. I think I have found the manufacturer I want to work with because they are also small and they are also just starting.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://fierceknockouts.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fierceknockouts
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FierceKnockoutsllc
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karin-christoff-fierce-knockouts-enterprises-llc

Image Credits
Amanda Brisco Photography