The Hues Project: A Calmer Route to Market

Photo credit: Nicole Saunders Photography

A quick note before we start

I’m sharing this in real time — not because it’s finished, but because I'm building a community.

I’m building The Hues Project: a community (and eventually a curated digital marketplace) to help people discover and support product-based brands led by disabled, chronically ill, and neurodivergent founders (and allies).

It’s early. It’s not polished. But it’s happening.

Why I’m building this (and how it connects to Hues)

I started Hues Clothing three years ago, already living with chronic illness.

Back then, I could still do some of the in-person stuff that’s often treated as the route to market for small product businesses: events, fairs, pop-ups, networking.

Since then, my capacity has reduced. Recovery takes longer, my functioning is more unpredictable, and getting out to events isn’t something I can't rely on anymore.

So this is me trying to solve a very real problem — not just for me, but for a lot of founders I know:

How do you grow a product-based business when your body (or brain) won’t reliably let you be physically present?

Hues Clothing exists because comfort and inclusion matter. Sensory needs are real, and clothing can make a huge difference to how someone feels in their body.

The Hues Project is an extension of that same belief — that we can build products, businesses, and communities that work with real bodies and real lives.

The problem I keep seeing

A lot of traditional routes to market for small product businesses rely on being physically present:

• Markets and fairs
• Pop-ups
• In-person networking
• Stockist visits

Events that require travel, set-up, and long days on your feet

Those routes can be brilliant — but they can also be expensive, physically demanding, and inaccessible, especially when health, mobility and capacity fluctuate.

So I started asking a different question:

What would a calmer route to market look like — designed with accessibility in mind?

What I mean by “digital-first”

Digital-first doesn’t mean posting constantly or chasing trends.

It means building in a way that isn’t dependent on you being physically present to make sales — so your business has more chance of continuing through flare-ups, burnout, or unpredictable capacity.

And it also means using the internet for what it’s actually good at: connection, collaboration, and shared visibility.

It might look like:

• Collaborations that help you reach new audiences without doing everything alone
• Shared costs for events (splitting tables, travel, accommodation, childcare — whatever makes it doable)
• Co-hosted pop-ups that feel more accessible because the load is shared
• Cross-promotion between brands with aligned values.
• A calmer way for customers to discover you, without you having to shout

So what is The Hues Project?

Right now, it’s a community I’m actively building.

The vision is:

Hues Lab: a community for disabled, chronically ill, and neurodivergent founders building product-based businesses

A curated digital marketplace that makes it easier for customers to find and support those brands

A calmer route to market that doesn’t assume unlimited energy, perfect health, or constant visibility

If you’re reading this as a founder: the goal is to create something that feels like supportive infrastructure — not another thing you have to keep up with.

If you’re reading this as a customer: the goal is simple — to make it easier to find thoughtful, values-led products from founders who are often building under extra constraints.

Hues Lab opens soon 

Hues Lab will be a WhatsApp community, but if we grow and it becomes overwhelming, we will look into other ways to keep our community connected.

If you want in, join the waitlist and I’ll send the link when it’s ready.

How you can be involved (even while it’s early)

If you’re part of the Hues community — especially if you’re a disabled/chronically ill/ND founder — you can help shape this in a few easy ways:

Tell me what would actually help. What would make selling feel more accessible? What would make collaboration easier?

Share brands you love. If you already buy from disabled-led or neurodivergent-led product businesses, I’d love to know who they are.

Tell me what you don’t want. What’s made other communities feel inaccessible, overwhelming, or performative?

A thank you

The Hues Project is still early, but the intention is clear:

Build a calmer, more accessible way for small product brands to grow — and for customers to find them.

— Elizabeth