Jacqui Fishman on the return of her mission-based This Girl Can! Change the World brand

Tell is about This Girl Can! Change the World – what is the ethos behind the brand?
Over 25 years ago, I was creating, marketing and selling a sports cartoon imprinted wear line. I would walk the aisles of major sporting goods trade shows and see nothing for women and girls on display. This made no sense. Every soccer field I knew of was filled with little girls every Saturday. Women were taking over public attention in tennis. The WNBA and women’s college basketball were both growing audiences… So, as I looked around a very crowded and noisy imprinted wear world, I realised someone was missing.

The ‘voice’ of women and girls, their passions, their hopes, their dreams and their goals were not on display and available to declare to the world. This became the spark to create a character who could be that voice.

Ah! Talk us through this character…
I created a smart, sassy, vocal, confident character – Jane – who could represent every girl. She became our brand ambassador, storyteller and icon with the goal of helping every girl to know her own confidence and power to be able to declare: “This Girl Can! Play.” The line began as a spin from the old Dick and Jane readers: ‘See Dick run. See Jane run past Dick’.

That collection was incredibly fun to design and sold so well, we received lots of terrific press in publications like Women’s Wear Daily and Fitness magazine, but it was not a line that girls or teens connected to as quickly as perhaps their Moms did.

Working from the very real place that you cannot be what you cannot see, I made Jane younger so she could not only represent every girl, but show every girl what is possible… That is where This Girl Can! launched from.

We were really the first to see a huge gap in the market and to create something unique, fun and full of attitude. Of course, bigger brands such as Nike eventually jumped into the sports marketplace, but I am proud of our footprint in those early years when women’s sports were just garnering attention and respect.

We sold into major retailers, the gift market, and catalogues – remember those?! The line had a terrific run, but retail changed and life would move me in new directions, following my passion to create children’s media and become a marketing consultant in the non-profit sector. But I never felt I was quite done or had fulfilled the potential of the brand… I knew that Jane and I had more work to do and one day the moment would be right to get back to it.

What moved you to relaunch the brand?
In 2020, with the world shut-down and social and global unrest accelerating, I felt it was time to see if Jane could play a part in helping girls find their confidence and their voice. So I dusted her off with the goal of creating a brand complete with stories, books, animation, and merch that can amplify girls’ rights, help every girl to know she has a voice and foster confidence and sense of self. We also want to provide opportunities to learn about real women and build a revenue stream to support organisations globally working to ensure girls rights and well-being.

No longer a simple imprinted wear collection, I rebranded as This Girl Can! Change the World, a mission-driven business model that will grow to include include books, animation, games, podcasts, cross-marketing collaborations, licensed merch and more!

I noticed you have a special collection called This Girl Can! Vote – what was the motivation to create this sub-brand?
It is essential for girls and boys to grow up learning about the roles women have had in writing all of our history. Our This Girl Can Vote! Collection was inspired by the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The stories of the courage and determination of so many women – over 70 years of protest and perseverance to change the Constitution and ensure that the right to vote cannot be denied on account of sex – needed to be told and celebrated.

One of the real sparks was an experience I had at an event for a local candidate running for the U.S. Congress. When I walked into the room, I expected to see community organisers and hear from the candidate on her platform and goals. What I did not expect was to meet so many young girls and women who were there to voice their concerns about their community, speak up for what they wanted to see changed and do whatever they could to help this candidate get elected. I was inspired by each and every one of them. Their energy was contagious and I knew that it was time to find a way to use my brand to promote and celebrate the right to vote and create change.

You are selling your designs on a range of products direct to consumers. How is this going?
Selling direct is a simple way to gauge consumer interest, test designs and determine where we might fit in the marketplace. I’m happy to say that the classic designs still work! It’s a very different experience from selling into retail, but this is more personal and has given me a great opportunity to hear from moms and grandmoms, Girl Scout leaders, team coaches and girls themselves.

What reaction have you had from consumers to your designs? Have you been able to add to and adjust your designs based on consumer feedback?
Listening to and reacting to consumer reaction is essential for any brand to grow successfully. I always try to be cautious about trying to be everything to everyone. That being said, we know our core of fostering girls’ confidence is one that matters and resonates.

As I rebuilt the line, I had several audiences in mind – moms, new moms, grandmothers and the baby and holiday gift markets… But we are discovering that college-aged women and women of all generations are buying designs that express their passions and concerns.

‘It’s A Girl’s World’, ‘Girl’s Run It’, ‘Presidential Aspirations’ remain best sellers alongside the new icon design of This Girl Can! Change the World.

I believe you are giving some of the proceeds from sales to social enterprises and good causes. Can you tell us more about who you have supported to date?
One of the main reasons for the relaunch was to create a revenue stream to support organizations globally who are working to ensure that girls have access to the education, safety, wellbeing, security and freedom.

We have worked with groups who encourage and support girls to become civically and politically involved, women’s history organisations such as the National Women’sHistory Project, Ignite the Vote, the Center on Women and Enterprise… And of course, lots of girl scout groups.

I know you are keen to work with other retailers, licensees and organisations. What would be your sales message to them? What do you think your brand offers licensing partners?
Simply, we believe in every girl. Our character Jane is the line-drawn personification of where girls are at before they fall off that confidence cliff. We want to ensure that through our character, stories, books, animation, licensed merch, games and more, we are helping to ensure that no girl retreats and doubts herself.

The goal is to not be ‘hit and run’ but rather to develop an IP that girls want to interact with and share with others. The world needs positive, fun, hopeful, inspiring and yes, sass and spunk! We feel that Jane and This Girl Can! Change the World are here – again! – at the right time.

Turning back to design how do you ensure your design work is on trend and market ready?
This was a real consideration as I moved forward with the relaunch. I even worked on re-styling Jane, designing a look for a new generation. She went through all kinds of styling, from a Taylor Swift do to a Reese Witherspoon ponytail. In the end, however, I decided with each refresh she was losing her ‘every girl’ look and her sassiness. I kept her stick figure persona so girls could decide for themselves who she is.

Classic messaging is resonating and while we have had fun riding some trends, I want to stay focused on our core of believing in every girl and designing to match the foundation of the brand.

What are your plans for 2026?
For 2026, we have two goals… First, to partner with civics-ed orgs and voter orgs to not only encourage every woman to vote, but also be models for young girls so they know even if they are not voting age that they can play a role and that they have a voice!

It is also the 250th anniversary of the US, which gives us a great opportunity to celebrate and showcase the women who may not be as well known as the ‘Founding Fathers’. We also hope to be creating books and animation with Jane travelling through time to meet her ‘Sheroes’, telling stories of role models from women’s history.

I am also passionate about literacy and hope to launch a book series with ‘This Girl Can! Read All Day’. I see a collection of books, audio and cute bookmarks to be sold alongside the series, with proceeds to organisations working on literacy and book access.

Your brand and mission is centred on being inspirational. Who has inspired you?
I am so inspired by women who recognise they can ‘pay it forward’ and support other women. I love Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine endeavors, ensuring that women’s voices and stories are amplified, seen and heard. Geena Davis and her Institute’s work understanding that representation matters and working to ensure equitable representation in media. Women like Melinda French Gates who is laser-focused on global women’s health…

I’d add designer Tory Burch’s fabulous Fellowship Program for women entrepreneurs to have the tools and supportthey need to succeed. Malala of course who turned her own story into action for girls education and well-being all over the globe. The late Razia Jan who went back to her home ofAfghanistan to build schools for girls in the midst of oppression… So many powerful inspiring initiatives that give me hope for the next generation to have the footing they need to fly.