Hello, Schmoozers!
First of all, thank you for visiting my blog 🥰. You might already know that great conversations can begin with a great T-shirt. But, I learned this lesson accidentally while commenting on my brother-in-law's T-shirts.
One of his T-shirts featured Ace, Luffy's brother from One Piece. I still remember how our long conversation started with Ace's death 😭 and spiraled into assumptions about the One Piece, leading to a deep philosophical discussion about the Fisherman Island saga and how hatred is passed down from one generation to the next 🧐. Another favorite of his is a striking white T-shirt with a giant neon-colored toxic monstrous creature. I always have something to say when he wears it! 😏
Long story short, these experiences showed me that T-shirts are more than just clothing—they can spark meaningful conversations and connections. ✨
Of course, there are people in our lives with whom we don’t need any medium to start a conversation. Take my sister, Amithya, for example. With her, it’s effortless—we can chat all day about anything and everything without needing an external spark. 🤼♀️
But for those moments when words don’t come as easily, a T-shirt can be the perfect icebreaker. It can represent a shared interest, spark curiosity, or even make someone smile. And that’s the magic I wanted to capture with SchmoozeUp.
Let Me Introduce Myself
As this is my first blog post, allow me to share a bit about myself. I'm Upeksha, a computer science graduate currently pursuing my MBA. I'm also the co-founder of OwasLo, and now, the proud founder of SchmoozeUp!
My husband, Vishwa, is a software product designer and, in my opinion, the best designer in the world 😘. He also has an incredible sense of fashion. For as long as I've known him, he's dreamed of starting his own clothing line. But being a perfectionist, he never did—it had to meet his sky-high standards first. 🤭
His passion for design runs in the family. My father-in-law started his career as a pattern designer in the garment industry and worked his way up to becoming a quality manager and then an operations manager. His keen eye for detail clearly influenced Vishwa, who can spot faults in garments instantly. He’s also the one who transformed my wardrobe after we got married, introducing me to a world beyond my usual university staples of denim and T-shirts.
The Birth of SchmoozeUp
For Vishwa's birthday, I decided to buy him some unique, funny T-shirts. I spent an entire day shopping and ended up with two: one with an Egyptian theme and another—a black T-shirt with a huge glow-in-the-dark gorilla. But I realized how limited the options for printed T-shirts really were, especially if you wanted something creative or meaningful. 😒
Then, one day in an MBA lecture about marketing myopia, inspiration struck💡. I couldn’t focus on the rest of the class because an idea was forming in my head. 🤯 T-shirts could be so much more than just something we wear—they could help us connect, socialize, and express ourselves. Consciously or unconsciously, they represent our identity, beliefs, moods, or personality.
That’s when I decided to start my own T-shirt brand. SchmoozeUp was born not only as an experiment to test this idea but also as a way to lay the groundwork for Vishwa’s dream of starting his own clothing line one day.
This is just the beginning of our journey, and I’m thrilled to share it with you. Thank you for being here to support SchmoozeUp. ♥️ I can’t wait to see where this adventure takes us.
Stay tuned for more stories, behind-the-scenes updates, and, of course, T-shirts that spark conversations!
SchmoozeUp Origin Story