One month of Joiya Move

It’s been a month since we launched Joiya Move and honestly… time has flowwwn by.

When this process first began in February, it was nothing more than scribbles in a notepad at 3am. A week later, those scribbles became a PowerPoint, which somehow turned into research, drawings, suppliers, building a website, writing copy, shaping a brand tone, and working out in the socks for six months before even thinking about launching.

The word Pantone genuinely runs through my brain daily.

And now they’re LIVE. They exist. People are wearing them. They’re stocked in a real life shop. I actually saw someone in my Pilates class working out in them. HOW?! We're packing them up and sending them to real humans. I'm still trying to process it a little bit. Ok, a huge bit.

My brain hasn’t really stopped since launch, and that’s been an interesting thing for someone who's always said their anxious feels drive them to get things done. But this does feel a bit different. Of course, I question every detail daily, yet I’m genuinely loving learning every corner of building something.

We spoke to different suppliers about branding, site design ~ all the little things ~ but something in me kept pulling Joiya back into my own hands. Largely due to limited budget, but also because it’s basically my first-born child. That said, it's made things... interesting. And definitely not perfect!

I'm proud of myself for it, but my golly, it's no easy feat. A huge shoutout to my boyfriend, Ollie, who has truly been an absolute gorgeous rock for me. The biggest of boulders, some may say. That man has seen more emotions from me than I think he knew existed. And I'll forever be grateful for how much he loves a pair of pink watermelon socks.

Joiya happens on weekends, early mornings, and after my 9-5, and I'm very set on not blurring those lines. It really is my passion project, and something I've always wanted to do. But equally, I work in a job that I absolutely love.

I'm in PR, so while used to building other people’s brands and telling other people’s stories, this is the first time that story is mine. And that freedom and creativity is both incredibly scary, but also something I really didn’t realise I was missing. I may not be the smartest in the room, but I’ll work my tushy off when I find something I'm enamoured with, and seeing Joiya come to life has given me some serious zesty feels.

We’re still tiny, still new, very much a small business… but I have so many hopes for Joiya. Maybe it’ll grow into more sock styles, new products, unexpected ideas ~ who honestly knows. But it does really feel like there’s so much fun to be had, and my brain is a never-ending spiral of many a thought.

Joiya was born from a place of wanting to wear something that felt luxurious and mature, but also playful and built for movement. Soft but spicy. Premium, but with a bit more personality and vibrancy.

Being honest, 2025 has actually been about finding that part of myself again. I went through a slightly off and weird period towards the end of 2024 ~ feeling pretty stuck in a previous job, in life, in general ~ and building Joiya has reopened confidence and expression for me in a way I didn’t expect. It's also made me insanely emotional and gushy a lot of the time, but I do have a bit of the end-of-year sleepy brain ~ so please bear with me. I promise these posts won't always be like this.

What's quite odd about Joiya, and the pops of colour threaded throughout our socks, is that for years, I wore all black every day. Literally from knickers to shoes. Any occasion. It felt familiar, safe, easy.

I didn't really have any desire to experiment with fashion, partly because I didn’t know where to start, and partly because I didn’t feel confident enough to try. Somehow, through designing something as simple as socks, that’s shifted. I’ve found a bit of playfulness again. A bit of confidence, and just loosening up a hell of a lot more.

There’s also something poignant in the fact that my middle name is Joy (a part in how Joiya found it's name), as there were definitely some years where that didn’t really feel like it aligned. Falling in love with yoga and Pilates brought a huge amount of that back. Along with shifting jobs and spending a lot of time with people I adore.

My mum and dad have been at my beckoning call for every business query under the sun ~ and never once left a message on delivered for longer than an hour. Again, a couple more of the absolute rocks in my life.

My mum's mum, who I sadly never got to meet, was called Joy, and they were also incredibly close like we are. And, I don’t know how much I believe in anything spiritual or afterlife-y, but something about building a brand centred around joy and movement feels like a quiet tribute to both of them. Or at least I hope it is (and yep, I’m a teeny tearful writing this ~ as mentioned above, very sleepy brain).

Anyway… back to the socks.

When we launched, the intention was always to get them into the hands (and on the feet) of the people who know them best: instructors and studios. I knew I loved them ~ and as a long-time fitness lover, that gave me confidence ~ but getting feedback from instructors over the last few weeks has meant so much.

This first month has been overwhelming in the best possible way. Having people sending photos of them working out in them. Messages saying they love wearing them. Even suggestions for future designs. Just genuine kindness I don't think I expected.

It means more to me than I can explain. And behind the scenes, I’m trying my hardest. I'm a sucker for a little bit of people pleasing, but in this situation, I'm actually quite grateful for that quality. I love all the socks, of course, but most of all, I want others to feel just that little bit more joyful and supported in them.

If anything ever slips or feels off in tone or detail, I'll forever be incredibly open to feedback. While it pains me to say, I know I'll make mistakes along the way, but hopefully it's a learning for the greater good.

And of course, at the end of the day, they are “just grip socks” (gorgeously groovy, beautiful grip socks), but I think that’s what I love about them. A simple staple that has opened a new world for me. One I really can’t wait to explore some more.

If you’ve read this far… thank you. Truly 🤍 Here’s to our first month ~ and everything that comes next.

Love, Anna x