Why my goal is to build a truly inclusive shopping experience, and why I'm starting with this blog.

If you're reading this, I probably don't need to tell you that an inclusive store is long overdue. But you might be wondering who is tackling this challenge, why we are qualified to do so, and what we intend to build. While our intent is to build and grow a company and community that evolves to continually serve the needs of the disabled community, centered around a one-stop shop for all of your functional product needs, we are starting with a blog focused on the community. This blog is the quickest way to provide value, resources, and community to other parents of children with disabilities. I know when I first started out on this journey, I was lost and had no idea where to turn for inspiration. We are hoping to change that, one helpful post at a time.

On March 6 of 2020, I got a call that changed my life. It both provided my family with a diagnosis for my son’s ongoing challenges, while also leaving us with more questions than answers. On that day we learned that Charlie had duplication 17p11.2 syndrome (Potocki-Lupski Syndrome), a rare genetic syndrome first described in 1996.

Charlie is in four therapies per week, has far more doctor’s appointments than any other kiddos we know, and requires special products and equipment. Between finding products to aid his therapies, shoes & clothing to support his SMO orthotics and build, finding toys that are appropriate for his development, and finding an inclusive community, I had my work cut out for me. I spent a frustrating year searching endlessly for the products that he needed, bugging therapists and doctors for recommendations, and still often coming up short. It took me about nine months to realize that there had to be a better solution. And if there wasn’t one, I would create one.

As parents of children with, adults with, and all of those who have people with disabilities in their lives, the last thing that we need to be doing is scouring the internet to (hopefully) find products that we need. How wonderful would it be to have a store built for us rather than having our needs included as an afterthought? What if we had our version of, say, Target. One place to go for everything that we need, built around a community of our peers.

With these frustrations and thoughts in mind, the idea for Bolster started to form. And now, our goal is to provide a resource center to help support your needs, a community in which we can all thrive, and eventually a convenient place for you to shop. And this is just the beginning.