Our Story

Why affirmations?

Affirmations are positive statements designed to shift your mindset.  Once you are aware of these you'll see and hear them everywhere.  When my son was learning to ride his first bike I heard him say to himself "You can do it!".  I remember when I was growing up we had The Little Engine That Could book.  Maybe you remember that story - the little engine going uphill saying "I think I can, I think I can, and it turning into "I know I can, I know I can".    

Plenty of us have used sticky notes on the mirror to help with a positive mindset. It's something that ordinary people have in common with Olympic athletes, CEOs, and many others.  Turns out there's a lot of science behind changing our thinking, and affirmations are a powerful tool. 

For years, I have watched women in my life — brilliant, capable, deeply feeling women — shrink themselves to fit expectations that were never built for them. Conforming to societal standards they never agreed to. People-pleasing their way through life. Dimming their light to make others comfortable. And I recognize it, because I've done it too.

There is no shortage of affirmation quotes on Instagram, and it's easy to scroll through these quips.  I want to create something different; products and systems that actually walk alongside a woman through the hard, beautiful, necessary work of being true to herself. 

That's why IMATI exists.

IMATI is not just a clothing brand. It's a system.

IMATI is an acronym — and a roadmap for personal transformation:

I — Intention What do you want? If you don't know yet, you can start with "not this." That's enough. Clarity comes from movement.

M — Motivation Why do you want it? This matters deeply. Personal transformation powered by people-pleasing or societal pressure will never sustain you. Your motivation must come from within — from your own vision of who you are becoming.

A — Affirmation This is where our wearables come in. Your clothing becomes a daily, visible, wearable reminder of the story you are choosing to tell yourself. Not a passive decoration — an active declaration.

T — Transformation The real work. And it looks different for everyone. Therapy. Yoga. Boundaries. Rest. Creativity. Grief. Joy. Whatever your path requires, IMATI honors it.

I — Inspiration Your journey doesn't end with you. Inherent in the IMATI model is the belief that transformation, shared, becomes a gift to someone else. One day, we envision customers returning their worn IMATI garments — passed on to a woman at a shelter, along with a handwritten note to someone they will never meet. Your story, carried forward.

IMATI means "to have" in Croatian. To have intention. To have belief. To have the life you are want and deserve.  This extends to our IMATI Flower logo. 

Each petal represents a role we play and a part of our lives we devote energy to. Our family. Our friends. Our work. Our community. Our passions. We give ourselves to so many things, in so many directions, every single day.

And at the center of the flower? You.

The center represents your Self and the IMATI flower is a reminder that no matter how far you extend outward, you must always return to yourself. Care for yourself, by fueling your own spirit first.

We cannot pour from an empty cup.

We're just getting started.

Right now, IMATI lives in our wearables — affirmation apparel and accessories made from sustainable, organic materials, produced in the USA by people paid fairly for their work.  Why does that matter? Because there is energy in everything, and products designed to help women rise should have the highest energy.

But wearables are only the beginning. IMATI's vision extends to books, programs, and retreats — rooted in my background as a registered yoga teacher and my  commitment to helping women strip away the limitations keeping them small.

We are building something that has never existed quite like this before: a values-based brand, a community of women in transformation, and a movement that uses fashion as its first language.

The most important stories are the ones we tell ourselves. Change your story, change your life.

What story are you telling yourself today?

— Eva, Founder of IMATI Wearables