‘My side hustle solved our family’s before school fights'

A Ballarat mum was sick of hearing her daughter complain about her winter uniform, so she completely changed it up and has made $40K!

Ever since her 11-year-old daughter, Maya, started primary school, winter mornings would be far more stressful than any other time of year for Corinna.

The source of the angst and “fights” was Maya’s school uniform, which requires her to wear tights in terms two and three.

In May 2019, it all came to a head when the Ballarat mum had enough of the daily struggle.

“She’d been complaining about her tights for a long time, but one day, my husband and I were about to go away to Byron Bay and she was having a really bad morning about wearing them,” the 49-year-old tells Kidspot.

“I was trying to hold it together because I was about to go away and I didn’t want to fight with her. I came home from school drop-off and said to my husband, ‘I can’t believe they have to wear these horrible tights! Why hasn’t someone come up with something better?’ And from that moment, my mind didn’t stop.”   

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Why are winter tights so uncomfortable? Image: Supplied

The search for the perfect winter tights began

Corinna spent the next few weeks searching high and low on the Internet for a solution for Maya’s issue, while her little girl tried wearing sports briefs to hold them up.

When both attempts failed, the determined mum decided to get creative and make her own version of school stockings that actually stayed up and prevented itching in the thigh area.

“I bought some children’s leggings from Big W and took Maya’s stockings to a friend who sews, and she cut them and put them together,” she explains.

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Corinna knew she was onto something when Maya gave the thumbs up on her makeshift design.

“She said the seam wasn’t great, but that it was so much better than normal tights,” she remembers.

“She ended up wearing them every day at school that winter and she wasn’t complaining anymore.”

While juggling her part-time job as an early childhood educator, the mum-of-two spent two years educating herself in sample-making and perfecting the design with manufacturers with colours that would match a wide range of school uniforms.

“It wasn’t easy,” she admits.

‘We went through quite a few samples before I got what I was requiring.”

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The launch of No Fight Tights

In May 2021 - unfortunately when many children around Australia were not attending school amidst the pandemic - Corinna launched No Fight Tights, with her one-of-a-kind design of lycra short upper teamed with an opaque cotton blend stocking lower.

“It was a very slow start for that reason, so we say that we really kicked off in the winter of 2022 because everything was back to normal by then,” says Corinna, who operates the business all from home.

“Then it’s just grown and grown from there.”

While the business has so far required a hefty investment of $60,000, Corinna has no doubt the sacrifice will pay off many times over in the long run.

In its first two years, through its website and wholesale orders, No Fight Tights has made more than $40,000, with that figure growing rapidly as Corinna sources new retailers.

While the business began by solely selling children’s tights - from sizes 4 to 14 and retailing for $35, it now also offers adult tights in sizes 8 to 18 for $45 a pair.

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Perfect for children with sensory issues

Corinna acknowledges they are considerably more expensive than a standard pair of tights, but insists that hers are more durable and long-lasting than many on the market - and fulfils the needs of those with sensory issues.

“Maya was going through a lot more tights before because they would get holes at the top from pulling them up and this style prevents that,” she says.

“I had one mum come to my house in tears because her daughter refused to wear stockings and would insist on wearing her school uniform every day, and this solved their problem.” 

The mum's creation hasn't had any complaints from little legs. Image: Supplied

Not only is her daughter happier with her uniform this winter, Corinna’s own wardrobe has benefited from her business idea, too.

“Not only do we not have any fights in the mornings for Maya anymore, I now wear tights a lot more with boots and dresses because I love the look of them, whereas before I used to wear pants to avoid the discomfort,” Corinna says. 

“It makes me proud that I’ve created something that’s solved this problem for so many people.”

Originally published as ‘My side hustle solved our family’s before school fights'