Deaf Apparel

By: Jamilah McMillan

Tell me about yourself, who are you?

My name is Wali Mahmood, 21, and I am a senior majoring in Civil Engineering at Rutgers University. I am the Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Deaf Apparel.

When and how was Deaf Apparel founded?

Deaf Apparel was founded over the summer of 2018 after I attended an event called "House of Learning for Deaf Muslims" hosted by this nonprofit organization, Global Deaf Muslims. One thing that really opened my eyes was that Deaf Muslims do not have the capability to read and understand the Quran on their own. They need a third party to loosely translate the meaning of Allah's word in order for them to understand. I wanted to start somewhere for the importance of Sign Language and the Deaf community and Deaf Apparel allowed me to do just that.

Why is Deaf Apparel important to you?

Both my aunt and uncle who have lived with me my entire life are deaf and hard of hearing and they have taught me invaluable life lessons as well as the art of signage. I feel as if Deaf Apparel is a gateway to start the conversation and bring awareness to the Deaf community and culture. Our motto has always been "Bridge the gap between Deaf and Sound" and we try to implement that in any fashion whatsoever. If I'm able to change the perception of individuals on the Deaf culture, it'll definitely be a step in the right direction.

How does religion play a role in your brand?

Islam is heavily involved with Deaf Apparel. We donate 10% of all proceeds to Global Deaf Muslims who advocate for the advancement and inclusion of Deaf Muslims in the community and raise awareness of Deaf Muslim's issues. We have been working with them since Deaf Apparel's inception to raise money for various projects such as Zakat Funds for the Deaf as well as Quran written in American Sign Language.

What is it like being a young entrepreneur?

Pretty overwhelming and exciting at the same time. Overwhelming in a sense where you're always taking calculated risks to promote your venture. From there you learn what works and what doesn't. It's very exciting as well because you are in control of how your business operates.

Moreover, I've always welcomed people's opinions and feedback that'll help me grow my brand in any shape or form because in this venture there's never a point in time where you can say that you've figured everything out. In this process you are always learning. Being a young entrepreneur, myself, really teaches me how to be a self-starter as well. Most importantly you need to have passion for any venture you take on because you'll work ten times harder for something you truly believe in.

What has been the response from the community?

Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. People really find this venture very unique and unheard of. I have had people around my community come up to me and refer to me as the "DeafApparel Guy" which I find very flattering.

How can readers support your company?

They can support the cause by purchasing one of our custom made sign language apparel at www.deafapparel.com. People tend to get their names, nicknames, or even any signage they may know. I encourage everybody to also donate to one of  Global Deaf Muslim's  donation packages listed on their site to advocate for the Deaf Muslim community.