Lithuanian in the US creates app that turns words into fashion designs

Kosė said favourable circumstances led her to create the business.

“My husband Karolis won the Fullbright scholarship. We left to live in the United States of America. A new environment, people, experiences, the birth of our daughter naturally inspired a new start in both my career and life. I was always fascinated by interdisciplinary arts, technologies and fashion, all of which aligned neatly to create a unique blend which we call Anchovy,” she said.

The woman started her business venture motivated by a desire to convert words into colours.

“The first iteration of our app was tested by our two-year-old daughter, Juka. We liked the gradients she created so much that we decided to create a children’s clothes collection, which was presented this year in the international children’s and maternity trade show Playtime Paris.”

“We wanted to include more people in the process, which is why we created the iOS app, allowing everyone to feel like a designer and create unique coloured gradients by typing words,” the entrepreneur said.

According to Kosė, the business focuses on unique, personalised items that would make suitable gifts.

“More and more people want to be involved in the process of creating things and buying one-of-a-kind items with unique stories,” the businesswoman told.

She does note that an innovative idea doesn’t guarantee success. Business success is achieved through “earthly” means, such as the time, money and effort you invest in your business.

“When the idea doesn’t have any analogues, you must test different business scenarios yourself,” she added.

For now, Anchovy is still working on creating a user base. To achieve this, the team is using the Anchovy iOS app, Instagram, and taking part in international exhibitions and collaborations with Lithuanian and international stores.

Kosė says that, in order to start a successful business, you must be passionate about your idea, but also keep your expectations low – otherwise you might fail.

“It is extremely important to have a good team behind you and have the ability to motivate and maintain it. You must also have enough starting capital that would allow you to build your business up. Lastly, you yourself should also try to be healthy, positive and not too serious.” Kosė recommended.

Translated from Lithuanian by Aivaras Medeubetovas