The QT began with a little boy who wanted a penguin on his pyjamas.

One evening, my son saw a new pair of penguin pyjamas I had bought for his older sister and immediately wanted one too.

Simple enough, I thought.

So I went looking.

But what I found surprised me.

Cute animal prints were everywhere for girls and babies. Penguins, hedgehogs, bears, foxes and bunnies filled the rails. But for boys beyond toddlerhood, they were surprisingly hard to find.

The more I searched, the more frustrated I became.

Most of what I found was covered in dinosaurs, trucks, superheroes, cartoon characters and slogans. And when I did find animals, they were often designed in a very girly or very babyish style.

It wasn't that animal prints didn't exist. It was that "cute" seemed to come with an expiry date.

And somehow, that expiry date arrived much sooner for boys.

As a mum of a boy who loves animals and everything cute, that didn't sit right with me.

I didn't want either of my children growing up surrounded by invisible rules about what they were allowed to like, wear or enjoy.

After all, if a child loves penguins, hedgehogs or puffins, why should that come with conditions?

The more I thought about it, the more I realised this wasn't really about clothing.

It was about stereotypes.

It was about freedom.

And it was about creating a little more space for children to be themselves.

So I decided to create the clothing I couldn't find.

I've always loved animals. My children do too.

We stop to admire dogs in the street. We point out the little birds in the garden. We get excited about wildlife documentaries and my children would live surreounded by pets if they could.

If I was going to bring another brand into the world, I wanted it to do more good than harm.

So when I set out to create The QT, it had to be kind.

Kind to the animals we love.

Kind to the planet we all share.

Kind to the people who make the clothes and the children who wear them.

That idea shaped everything that followed.

Every QT design begins as a hand-painted animal illustration, lovingly created and full of personality. We use organic materials, avoid unnecessary plastics wherever possible and design for circularity from the very beginning, so our clothes can be worn, loved and passed on.

The QT exists to spread cuteness in a way that is kind to every kind.

And to make sure no child ever has to wonder whether a penguin on a pair of pyjamas is really for them.

Cute belongs to everyone.

With love,

Petya

Founder of The QT