Meet Sophia Pan

Woodbridge, Connecticut native Sophia Pan joins us from Smith College, where she is a double major in Economics and French. As our intern she is not required to make coffee or fetch the fax. (Fax? What’s a fax?).

Instead she does various research projects for us including most recently contacting regional sheep farmers personally for current information that will enable us to create a database of their breeds and flock sizes. This information allows us to accurately estimate where and how much wool can be gotten for our product lines. But enough about us! Meet Sophia.

What excites you about Wear Wool New London?
As an economics student, I recognize that there is a huge issue at hand with a theory that promotes everlasting growth and production. Fast fashion has integrated itself into people's everyday lives, and for a while, I have been trying to teach myself more about the hazards of the fashion industry. Wear Wool New London helps me facilitate my learning and emphasizes what it means to become a conscious consumer while concurrently enjoying art, expression, and innovation. I am so honored to be working with an entity that is trying to promote goodness from every angle in their work.

Working to perfect the craft of ballet has taught Sophia the importance of persistence

What is one idea that has fundamentally changed you/your life trajectory?
I constantly remind myself, "persistence is key." We live in a world where it's not enough to try once, twice, or sometimes even five times. Now more than ever, value comes from sticking to your beliefs and championing them until you are heard. This idea is easily adaptable to an array of different aspects in my life, as maintaining perseverance has helped me stay on track with my personal and intellectual objectives. Persistence is an idea that has developed greater impact as I've grown older, but I do believe my history in dance played a huge role in finding significance with the term. Even after hours spent away in a dance studio, I have yet to perfect the craft of ballet, an art form that seems almost impossible to master. My love for dance and my conviction for its effect on my emotional well being has driven me to constantly push further, despite the pain, the time, and the injuries. Because of this, I try to apply the same magnitude of endurance in all other aspects of my life.

What analog object or activity do you enjoy?
Besides dance, I love making smoothie bowls, playing with my dog, and exploring new places!

If you could live in another time period when/why?
I would like to live in the 1950s, because at that time, fashion was becoming more prevalent and more social rights movements were starting to emerge.

What has living during a pandemic taught you?
Living in a pandemic has taught me to be okay with uncertainty. Typically, I am a person who prefers to have everything planned out and structured beforehand. However, the reality is that things are going to be uncertain, whether you are in a pandemic or not. I have learned to slow down, sit with my thoughts, live simply, and understand that not everything moves in one trajectory.

In one sentence what is your positive prediction or hope for the future?
I hope this pandemic will not prescribe a temporary solution, but help us actually treat the issues hidden in society's infrastructure that must be addressed.