Why JAN - Everything Behind The Brand

August 17, 2026

Why I Made JAN

I've wanted to do this for about 10 years.

I've thought about it, talked about it, put it off, questioned whether I could actually do it... and then eventually realised that if I kept waiting for the right time, I'd probably still be talking about it in another 10 years. And honestly I'm sick of me just talking about it (and I'm pretty sure everyone around me is too).

So, I decided to just go for it.

This is JAN.

And, honestly, it started because I couldn't find a pair of shorts I actually liked.

I've spent years running and training, and I could never quite find the perfect pair. They'd be too short, fall down, ride up, not be squat-proof, have no pockets or have pockets that were so big and heavy that they pulled the shorts down.

Then there were the other things.

They'd bobble. Fray. Lose their shape. Start looking tired after a few washes.I'd buy another pair thinking, these will be better, and then end up with exactly the same problem.

And I know I'm not the only one.

If you run, train or spend a lot of time in activewear, you'll probably have had the same frustrations.

At some point, we've just accepted that this is how sportswear is and I don't think it should be.

I've worn a lot of sportswear.

I was a professional athlete for a number of years, so I've been lucky enough to wear some of the biggest sportswear brands in the world.

And you'd probably think that meant I had access to the best kit.

But even then, it didn't always fit me properly.

There were shorts I didn't love. Pieces that didn't sit right. Things that moved when they shouldn't. I would spend most of my sessions pulling the shorts out my backside, adjusting a top and being super self conscious. Spending far too much time worrying about the kit instead of 100% focus on what I was trying to achieve in on the track or the gym.

But when you're an athlete with a contract, you wear the kit.

That's just how it works.

It actually made me think more about what I'd want to create myself.

What would I change? What would I make differently? And why does finding really good sportswear have to involve compromising somewhere? So, I really mean it when I say I have thought about this for over 10 years and that when my drawings, designs and collections started.

I also think sportswear has become a bit boring.

I love running. I love the gym. I love training.

But look around a gym or a start line and so much of it looks the same.

Very functional. Very technical. Very... sportswear.

I wanted something different. I wanted clothing that still performs, but has some personality and expresses who you are as a person.

Something that feels considered.

Something that I'd genuinely want to wear even when I'm not training.

That's where the idea of JAN really came from.

I don't want JAN to be something you only wear for an hour while you're exercising.

I want you to wear it to the track, then grab a coffee. Wear it to the gym, then go for lunch. Put it on for travelling. Wear it around your everyday life.

I want it to feel just as natural outside the gym as it does inside it.