Christinne Gray is the founder of Disability Designs Etc., a brand dedicated to raising awareness and promoting inclusion for individuals with disabilities. Living with Cerebral Palsy herself, Christinne uses her creativity to design t-shirts and merchandise that inspire and advocate for accessibility and acceptance. Based in Central Florida, she is passionate about fostering a more inclusive world—one design at a time!
Tell us about yourself! What inspired you to start your business, and when did you launch it?
I was inspired to start Disability Designs Etc. last July because I felt there was a need to increase disability awareness and T-shirts and other merchandise with disability themed messages was a good way for people to express themselves and maybe even start a conversation about disability with others so that other people could learn more about the richness and culture that exists within our community and maybe have a platform to have questions answered that they wouldn’t have an opportunity to otherwise talk about.
What is your favorite part of your job?
My favorite part of the job is creating designs. Some of the designs are inspired by messages I feel are important to amplify awareness and inclusion in our community, others celebrate different holidays with inclusive messages and others are suggestions that have been shared with me by my customers.
March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month! How does this month resonate with you? How has your advocacy and story influenced your journey as an entrepreneur, and what impact do you hope to make within your community?
Developmental disabilities awareness month is extremely important to me because I have cerebral palsy, a developmental disability that is also celebrated on March 25th (CP Awareness Day). Each year DD awareness day has a different theme. This year’s theme is “We’re Here All Year” emphasizing that community, accessibility, and opportunities for people with developmental disabilities should be recognized and championed every day—not just in March.
I feel like disability awareness is something that should be taking place every day and I use the opportunity to share information about the disability community whenever I can. Opportunities such as small business success of people with disabilities should be supported and celebrated whenever and however possible.
The disability community has people who possess great creativity to share with the world that is sometimes overlooked due to our limitations. I feel like others outside our community can benefit greatly from learning more about what we contribute to society as a population.
Where can people find you?
You can find me at my store website and social media (listed below)!
Tee Public Store: https://teepublic.com/user/disability-designs-etc
X: @DDesigns4you
Instagram: @disabilitydesigns4you
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DisabilityDesignsEtc