Transcript 0:00 Hi, everyone. 0:00 On the Fireside Podcast today, I'm joined by Anela Dojic of Day Shaped, and we're gonna be talking about her business, her brand, and all of the exciting stuff where she takes old sails and turns them into fashionable apparel. 0:11 Thanks for coming on, Anela. Right on. Thanks for having me. No, this is very exciting, and we are in the epicenter of Day Shaped right now, where all the magic happens. 0:18 And you gave me a little tour of your, uh, storage facility, where you have all of your bags- Yes... for all of your product, and yeah, no, you've got a lot going on. I can't wait to learn about it. Right on. 0:28 So I- Storage facility, AKA my mom's garage. Yes, exactly. [laughs] My parents' garage. Good marketing. 0:34 I'd love to learn a little bit about how the story started, and really what inspired you to first start this business. Yeah. So honestly, I don't really have a sailing background growing up- Yeah... um, at all. 0:46 I worked primarily in the corporate fashion world, and I was really interested in sustainable fashion, reuse of materials, circular production models, and I happened to this one summer take sailing lessons on Lake Ontario, and I, A, I thought sails looked really cool. 1:02 Very quickly learned that most of them went to landfills, so like 97% of sails end up going to landfill. Um, and yeah, and so I thought, "I should make myself a bag for all my, like sailing stuff." Yeah. 1:12 And I ended up going home on a weekend. I had a friend donate a sail to me that they had, and I, like whipped up, like a duffle bag over the weekend, and I- Yes... would carry my, my, uh, class stuff in the bag. Yeah. 1:25 And then people were like, "That's cute. You should make more of those." Um, yeah, and so it just sort of snowballed from there. That's fantastic. 1:31 Well, anytime you can find something, and like I had no idea prior to talking to you, sails need to be replaced. 1:37 It's a consumable product for a sailboat, where I guess dependent on the usage and dependent on how much the wind stretches the sail, it's only got so much of a useful life, and you found a second life for something that has brought so many people, brought so many people enjoyment, but then now can bring people more enjoyment in their everyday, you know, travels. 1:55 Right on. Going to the grocery store, going sailing, going to the beach, bringing their bag full of beverages. Drinks in here, yeah. Yes. Our ice bucket beverage bag. Yeah. I'll like kind of show that- Yeah... 2:06 on the camera. Go for it, yeah. Fits six bottles or cans. Perfect. And you can fill it up with ice also. Yeah. Has a drain- Did you know this? Has a drainage hole in the bottom. No. 2:13 So you can fill it up with ice, take it down to the dock. It's perfect. Keep your drinks cool. Yeah. Oh, that's smart. Yeah. No, I had no idea there was a drainage hole at the bottom. It's truly a little cooler. 2:22 Yeah, it's like a little cooler bag. 2:24 Oh, and I love the rope, and I know you were mentioning before, we were talking about ropes and local ropes and that kind of stuff, but it's so cool that you support local manufacturing. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. 2:33 Yeah, we have a, our sewers, a, a team of, like local home sewers that do our production. Yeah. 2:37 And then we're trying to keep everything as local as possible, so I was saying about the ropes, yeah, we get them manufactured here in Hamilton. There's a factory that makes ropes. 2:45 Well, they're all marine ropes, but it's just cool that we can get them made here. Keeps it on brand. Yeah. No, it's fantastic. Us being a cottage-themed podcast, do you have any favorite summer activities? 2:54 Maybe sailing is one of them. Do you like to spend any time on the lake or bonfire, stuff like that? 2:58 Yeah, so increasingly I've gotten into sailing, so after that first, you know, sailing lesson adventure, and then I got into the bags, and now I'm, I, I keep saying I'm, like trying to bring my sailing up to the level of my, like sail bag making. 3:12 Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know? Yep. So I'm kind of catching up on the- Yeah... sailing piece, but yeah, I've done a bunch of lessons since then. I'm actually doing my first keelboat- What's up?... 3:19 lessons this summer, so like a keelboat, like the bigger- Oh, yeah... boats, whereas like most of the lessons I've done so far are the dinghy boats. Okay. The little guys. Yeah. 3:26 So I'm starting that at the end of the May, end of May, which is exciting. Yeah, otherwise I'm like, play tennis. Yeah. So we're playing tennis. You were telling me you're quite the tennis player. Yeah. Yeah. 3:36 No, that's, tennis is... And you know what? More and more people are getting into it. 3:39 It's one of those activities where you can really continue doing it throughout your life, and I know that, like, uh, it's paddleball now, that's really 3:47 gotten into the scene, and it's another racket sport, but not similar to tennis. Yeah. I haven't tried it yet. I've wanted to, but no, I gotta get out there. 3:54 It seems like something where it's like a nice social sport where you get a little bit of cardio in, but not a crazy amount. I'd love to learn about your bags, your products, your brand. 4:03 Uh, we talked a little bit about your origin story, but yeah, and with the sails, like when you, I guess when you're sourcing sails from different places, is there, like a typical, uh, period of life that a sail's useful for prior to not able to be used anymore on a boat? 4:16 Or is it kind of dependent on how much people are using it? Yeah, I think it really depends on, like how, how people are using it, how often they're using it, what purpose they're using it for. Like- Yeah... 4:25 if people are racing, you know, they're switching them out a lot quicker, whereas some people are just day sailing- Yeah... you know, a few times a year. 4:32 So I get sails anywhere from, I don't know, probably like from race teams that are a few years old or something- Yeah... like that, up to like 30 years old. Wowee. So we get like, yeah, we get a huge- A wide variety... 4:43 range of sails, yeah. Yeah. And I'd love to talk about your products. So you've got a bunch of different bags. We just talked about the cooler. Yeah. 4:49 But it looks like you've got every- something for almost every occasion, if it's a time on the dock or if it's traveling around town, going out, picking things up, going golfing, but I'd love to learn a little bit of your product line and just the different stuff that you have. 5:01 So yeah, everything started with the duffle, like I said. So that was my original bag. I made it to carry my sailing stuff. Great as a weekend bag. Yeah. 5:08 So, and I've done a ton of traveling with them, like as a carry-on. Yeah. Um, really nice 'cause sails are super light. They are, yeah. Certainly pick up the bag. 5:16 Like it's, you're not carrying around any weight in the bag itself- That's so true... which can sometimes be a thing with, like a duffle. Yeah. You know? It's like heavy on its own. Yeah. 5:23 So you can really, like, yeah, maximize the weight of things you're carrying. [laughs] Um, but yeah, so we have the duffle. We have pouches, so like cute little pouches that you can use for, you know, toiletries- Yeah... 5:34 makeup. There's a bigger pouch that you could, like put a book in and some sunglasses- Nice... and sunscreen. So a lot of people use those for, you know, taking down to the dock or the beach or whatever. 5:43 Um, we have a whole range of tote bags. Yeah. So yeah, from like a day tote to a beach bag to an extra large tote- Yeah... um, that people will use as their cottage bags. 5:54 Also, yeah, we do some of the, the ladies' ski days as well, so a lot of people will use the big totes also for, like their ski stuff. They're just great, like, for hauling. For sure. Yeah. 6:03 And I'm sure they're super durable, because- Super durable... that's the nature of a sail, right? Yeah. Yeah. Taking a lot of, uh, wear and tear. That's fantastic. I'm learning a lot here about- [laughs]... 6:11 sailing, 'cause I don't come from that world at all. So I guess with your brand, how many years have you been in business for? 6:17 So I would say this is about two years, just over two years that we've really been doing this full time. Yeah, so I would say properly two years. A year before that, we were sort of doing markets here and there. Yeah. 6:29 It was more like a little passion project. Started as a-- My mom really encouraged me getting going with more bags- Yeah... 6:35 after I made the first one, so it turned-- it started as a little passion project where we were- Yeah... like doing this together. But yeah, quite seriously in the last two years. 6:44 And my mom is still super involved and helps with them, so. That's so cool. Yeah. I love that. 6:48 Like, family businesses are great, and that had to be such a cool feeling to make something and then go out, and people are like, "Where did you get that from?" And it's like, "I did that myself." 6:56 And especially with your background in, in fashion and in the corporate landscape, like creating something that's truly yours and then bringing that out and showing that to people, there's such a great feeling when people see something that you've done yourself and they appreciate it. 7:10 It's a cool feeling, like, to make something and share it with the world. Yeah. It's also another, like, extra layer of cool feeling when you spot people wearing your bags- Yeah... 7:19 which has, like, started to happen- Yeah... now that we've kind of been, you know- Got a whole crew... doing things around Toronto. 7:24 So on, like, the other day, I was driving past, and I saw a woman, like, carrying one of my bags- Yeah... on the street. Like, someone that I, I don't know- Yeah... personally, like, not a friend. Yeah. 7:32 She must have picked it up somewhere, and I was like, "I'm so excited." [laughs] Like, wanted to, like, stop the car, and I felt weird. 7:38 Your products look amazing, so it's, it's only a matter of time till it's really out there. 7:42 But yeah, that's gotta be such a fulfilling feeling of just going for a stroll and bumping into somebody who's carrying one of your products. Yeah, it's very cool. 7:49 And the, the color scheme, too, it really speaks to the nautical theme and very fashionable as well. When it comes down to seasons, like the winter season, the duffel's great. 8:00 Summer season, you've got the, uh, the drink bag. Um, so you've really got something for all seasons. Like, it's something where regardless of what you're looking for, you've got a bag for that occasion. Yeah. 8:10 Um, I'd love to learn a little bit, like, about the process. So you, you, you find a sail that is, is end of its useful life. What is that process of turning it into a fashionable bag? Yeah. 8:19 So [laughs] I think, I think the first part of that is you find a sail. Yeah. And that's probably the trickiest part of the whole business model. Like- Yeah... this is a pretty tricky business model. 8:27 Even though they're out there, right, and we know they're going to landfill, people don't know that we're collecting them. Oh. So the finding of the sail and having a steady supply of sails- Yeah... 8:36 is actually, like, one of the most challenging parts. So a lot of, like, the groundwork over the last few years has been getting the word out that we collect sails. So people often have them. 8:46 Like, people don't wanna throw them out, right? Yeah. So they're storing them, like, in their garage or in their basement and being like, "Maybe I'll use it for a project," but, like, it's just sitting there, right? 8:56 Yeah. That's what we hear a lot, so it's letting people know that, like, we will take them. Okay. So that has been a lot of reaching out to sailors, sailing clubs- Mm-hmm... sail makers. 9:06 We actually partnered with Ontario Sailing to help get the word out. Oh, that's great. We partnered with Sail Canada, so it's, like, essentially just, like, letting people know. For sure. And it's, like, calls, emails. 9:17 I've put up flyers at clubs. Like, it was- Yeah... really, like, we're just trying to let people know that we will take your sails. And we usually do, like, a either some sort of discount towards product- Yeah... 9:27 or sometimes we'll, we'll trade a bag for a sail. It all, like, depends. Yeah. So we wanna have people have an incentive to- Oh, for sure. Um, but yeah, so it's, it's getting that word out. 9:36 Then it's connecting with people, whether it's people clubs, coordinating either a drop-off- Mm-hmm... or a pickup. Uh, mail, I've started to, to ship things here. 9:46 Like, we got some sails from Vancouver, so we're getting them- Nice... from across the country. Myself- 150 kilograms from Vancouver. Oh, yeah. There's a ton of- That's tough... there's a ton of sails. Yeah. 9:53 Yeah, so they range in, in weight. Okay. But yeah, so there's a giant coordination piece there. So then we get the sails here. Um, we have to open up each and every one of them and inspect them. 10:03 So one, to see, like, the size of it, the condition, the actual weight of the sail, because-- And that's why I pulled these little, like, samples. Oh. So you can feel, like, this is one sail, for example. 10:15 You can feel- Okay... that's really, like, stiff. Yeah. Yeah? Yeah, yeah. Okay. This is, like, another one that's, like, a little bit softer, and then you have something like this- Wow... that's super soft. Yeah. 10:26 So we literally have to look at every single sail, not just for the condition, but for the weight to determine what type of bag it can become. Oh. So it's like not every sail can become every bag. Got it. Right? 10:38 Some of them need more structure. Yeah. Some of them can handle, like, a little-- something a little bit softer, like- Yeah... maybe a small pouch. There's that whole layer- Oh... of analysis, okay? Okay. 10:48 So we do that, and then we kind of assess what's usable, and we'll cut off anything that's not usable. So sometimes- Yeah... you know, whatever. There's just parts that- Offcuts... you, you can't use. 10:59 And then we'll get it into manageable chunks, and then we have to clean it, 'cause they don't come to us like this. [laughs] Pristine. This-- Yeah, this is, this is not what it comes like. No. 11:09 I mean, you took a peek in the- Yeah... garage, too, so you saw piles of, of sails. So we will cut them into manageable chunks, and then we will wash them. 11:16 So right now, that kind of-- We have an industrial washing partner that will help us with that piece. Nice. So we'll literally, like-- Uh, we actually, before they even get washed, they get soaked for 24 hours- Mm-hmm... 11:26 which is what sail makers told me to, to do. That's, like, a key part. Yeah. And then we'll run them through the wash. We will also sometimes pressure wash them- Yeah... if they need to get some stuff out. Extra dirt. 11:35 Yeah, so there's that. So once all of that's done, then we have pieces that we can, like, look at and be like, "Okay, what bags are we making?" And then we look at each piece really thoughtfully. 11:45 So everything's cut one by one. We look at every piece to try to capture as many, like, sail details- Yeah... as possible. Ah. So I will lay the pattern pieces down very intentionally to be like- Yeah... 11:56 "Okay, I have a little bit of this zigzag stitch from the sail. I want this on the front." So that's how we're cutting them. Like, maybe the back doesn't need it, because this is not on every bit of the sail. Yeah. 12:06 Or we'll have something like a telltale- Like these are- Oh... this is what you're always kinda looking at to tell the- The wind direction... what direction, yeah. Yeah. Oh, that's cool. 12:15 Um, so, like, these are special little pieces of the sail. Yeah. So I'll always try to capture those for the bag. So it's like a really intentional process of just even cutting them, right? Yeah. 12:24 So then we get all the pieces cut, and we do a lot of that here. Yeah. And then we sort of bundle all of our additional pieces, our ropes, our zippers, et cetera. 12:33 And then we have some sewing partners, some home sewing partners that are- Yeah... all former sail makers- Oh... or worked repairing sails- They know the deal... doing boat covers. Yep. 12:41 Like, 'cause you can't sew this on... Like, this is very specialized sewing skill. It's also a specialized sewing machine. So you need a walking foot machine, uh, which is essentially like a leather machine. Oh. 12:51 So yeah, they're very well-versed in that. Yeah. They handle it. We deliver them for sewing. I was sewing all of the bags, like, initially. Yeah. 12:59 I was doing a lot of the sewing, and now we have that help thankfully, and then- Perfect... yeah, we get them back. We do the QA and get them ready to go. That's fantastic. 13:06 Sorry that was a very elaborate answer, but it is a very- No, that's what I was after... elaborate process. Yeah. [laughs] It's kind of all over the place, but there is a way to fold them, like, properly. Got it. 13:14 So usually that's how we get them. People will fold them up. They'll be in a bag. Oh, yeah, no, it's a very intricate process, and you've gotta be very detail-oriented in order to make it all... 13:23 Especially like you were saying with the different stitching patterns and stuff like that. Yeah. 13:26 There's stuff that you want to have front and center, and making sure that that's front and center is an intensive process to- Yeah... to get them all there. And like just very intentional. Yeah. Yeah. 13:35 Whereas usually, like, just for contrast, like, you're making a, you know, a fashion product or, like, I don't know, a shirt or a sweater- Yeah... or even, like, a tote bag out of canvas. 13:43 You get a roll of canvas- Yeah... and you're stacking. Like, you're doing like 20, 30 layers- Yeah... on top of each other, and then you're cutting the same piece out. So you're getting 30 pieces- Yeah... for one cut. 13:56 Yeah. Does that make sense? Yeah, it's very unilateral. Whereas this- Yeah... we have to cut everything one by one. I can't stack it, 'cause then I can't really see what's where. No. 14:04 And sometimes I have to cut around, like, little imperfections. Yep. Right? So yeah. Wowie. It's, it's very intentional. Labor of love. Yeah. That's quite the process. 14:13 You've obviously found something that you love doing, and you're helping the environment in the same breath, so that's, that's phenomenal. So I guess 14:23 you've talked a little bit about where your sails come from or how you source your sails, the process behind it. 14:28 Um, the direction of Dayshift, do you see yourself going into more different bags or sticking with the product lineup? Yeah, so we're actually in the process of developing some new bags. Yeah. Oh, exciting. 14:39 Yeah, something probably unexpected. Yeah? Um- Oh, cool... so- Can't wait to hear... working on getting that hopefully ready for summer. It's kind of the big project of, like, this month. Yeah. 14:49 Getting everything ironed out. Yep. So yeah, there should be some new bags to release soon. That's exciting. Um, yeah, and I've just been playing around with some other stuff. Like, we did a, a jacket of some- Oh, cool. 15:00 I don't have it here, actually. That's okay. That's fun. But just more, like, from a what's possible. Yeah. It's not necessarily the, the most wearable. It's not something I'm necessarily looking to sell, I guess. Yeah. 15:13 But yeah, just, just sort of playing with the material and seeing what it can become. We've explored- Yeah... lights. We've done... 15:19 Yeah, there's so much, and I think that there are so many things like sails, for your point, but so many products where they could have such a useful second life that end up just going to a landfill. 15:29 And I forget where I saw this once, but it was something like, "I'll just throw it out, but where does it go" kind of thing, and it just kinda speaks to that, "It goes in the garbage, but where does that end up, and what impact does that have?" 15:40 And there's so much stuff where you could just turn around and turn it into something useful, everything from, like, old batteries per- potentially to sails- Yeah... and just finding that second life for it. 15:51 And there's a... Speaking of second life, I think there's a company in Bay Street, Toronto, that does just that, and they take imperfect vegetables and stuff like that and help distribute them. Yeah, yeah, yeah. 15:59 Yeah, no, there's, there's a really cool movement going on. Any other things you'd like to, I guess, talk about? I don't know. We covered- I think we got everything. Yeah. Covered a good, good chunk of it. Yeah. Lovely. 16:07 Yeah, I don't know. We, like, we have the new product coming, and then this summer we're gonna be at, like, a bunch of markets, so- And that's where we met, at a market. Yeah. Well, a conference, yeah. 16:17 Well- Which was really cool. Yeah. The, um, the Cottage Life show. Cottage Life, yeah. Yeah. But I saw you on Instagram before too. Ah. So. [laughs] Perfect. It's a small world. [laughs] But, um- Wouldn't wanna paint it. 16:25 Yeah. [laughs] Yeah, no, we did Cottage Life. But yeah, the summer's, like, really our big moment, so we'll be popping up at, like, a variety of markets, Toronto, Muskoka, kind of all around, all around Ontario. Perfect. 16:36 And we'll be posting that, so if people wanna- Yeah... follow along. Lovely. If people are looking to get in touch or to learn more, where should they tune in? So we have our website, which is dayshift.com. Yeah. 16:47 And then we have our Instagram, which is @dayshift, and everything will be there. Yeah. So I'll include that in the show notes, and so people can find it nice and easy. But thank you so much, Noah. Cool. 16:55 Really appreciate you coming on. Yeah, thank you for having me. And, uh, yeah, it was fun. Awesome. Cool. Thanks.
