Today we’d like to introduce you to Cathy Paraggio

Hi Cathy, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.

My son, Chris, told me he wanted to study music at college. I thought “Why do people fail at doing things they love?” Maybe they don’t understand the business around it.

My career was in computer networks until I received a cancer diagnosis that left me without a voice for years. I started NoNetz with other neighborhood women to keep my head busy, until Chris shared his college plans. At that point, I bought out the other women and decided to use NoNetz as a teaching tool so he could understand how business works.

Together, we realized how many people are actually uncomfortable in their clothing. So, we started to design for the texture sensitive (flat seams, no tags, no-cling fabrics) to ensure everyone is comfortable.

During this journey, we have seen how hard the textile industry is on the environment. Clothing/textile manufacturing is the second largest global polluter behind oil.

As a result, our fabrics contain recycled post consumer content, as well as highly sustainable threads made from saw dust and corn waste. Our manufacturing team in Thailand is WRAP certified ensuring working conditions are safe, lawful, humane and ethical. Our NYC team is using the most efficient 3D knitting processes available – where the clothing is “printed” as soon as its ordered. A portion of each order is donated towards plastic reclamation. We believe that sustainable comfort is the key to relaxing, having fun, and adventuring at your best.

Our goal is to be soft on you and soft on the planet.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?

Covid was a huge challenge. One of our facilities is in Thailand. They didn’t have access to the vaccine so many of our senior tailors died. As NoNetz is a complicated pattern, there was significant retraining and we didn’t have inventory for a long time. During this time our inventory loans came due and we had to take an EIDL. When we were able to make clothing, all ports were closed in the US and shipping was 500% more expensive. During this time, big box retail dove into digital advertising and which drove small ecommerce business ROAS to less than one. As a result, we incurred significant debt. We redefined our whole team, redesigned our website and rearchitected our marketing and advertising strategies. We are firmly positioned for this season.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?

NoNetz redesigns activewear with non verbal autistics out of sustainable fabrics to solve comfort problems. As clothing manufacturing & textiles are the #2 global polluter behind oil, we operate under an umbrella of constant improvement driven by the question “How can we do it better?” We design with people who don’t like clothing as they are extremely texture sensitive. If they sleep in it, everyone will be comfortable. Our first initiative was Problem Solving Clothing based on our observations of uncomfortable people. Our first design was fully lined swim trunks. We replaced the mesh/net brief with a water resistant liner to prevent the inner thigh rash that ruins most water vacations. Then we saw someone pass out on the golf course and thought, clothing should do more than hide your body. So we designed polos with embedded cooling minerals that constantly lower your skin temperature. We then saw a kid being loudly peeled out of her rash guard and we thought we could help with that. So we designed rash guards made from reclaimed fishing nets (no cling fabric) featuring a full length, skin safe zipper that prevents chest irritation. During Covid, we really leaned into our supply chains and thought, we need to be better for the planet. So we partnered with an organization that employs impoverished women in areas with no waste infrastructure. A portion of each order goes to this organization. They collect plastic before it enters the ocean and bring it to a recycling center. Our textile manufacturer sources from recycling centers to make the exterior shell of our swim trunks. Then we thought, shipping things half away around the world is super hard on the environment. Can we do it better? We then partnered with a manufacturer in NYC and found unique and highly sustainable threads. Our ahtleisure lines are 3D printed (knitted) on-demand which means zero waste and the most minimal number of seams. The thread is made from saw dust. Our next 3D printed line is women’s swimwear made from corn waste. Our ultimate goal would be to help redefine thread to do more interesting things. Can we make it change color to reduce harmful dying practices? Can we make it from garbage? We hope to continue our journey of discovery.

Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?

I can’t sew a stitch. I am technical person as well as a stained glass designer. NoNetz is the perfect blend of my creative problem solving capabilities as well as my technical expertise. NoNetz was also a great teaching tool for my son. We are now peers in this company and NoNetz ensured Chris was able to graduate from NYU Clive Davis of Recorded Music debt free. He is now known as the artist Marcyline..
https://open.spotify.com/artist/6pw7bPyGyvtBOfWW3VTUD6

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.nonetz.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nonetzsuits
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nonetzsuits
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/nonetzsuits