
Meet Melissa Kirkman: The Sunrise star designing her own clothing
Photo via the Kirkman by Melissa Kirkman website
Melissa Kirkman isnโt your average 21-year-old.
The Adelaide-based artist, who has autism and mosaic Down Syndrome, has loved painting and drawing from a young age.
Melissaโs house is full of paints, canvases and brushes; she even participated in the renowned Tutti Arts Visual Arts Program, getting access to a dynamic studio environment through her NDIS funding.
Her business was born out of the COVID lockdowns in South Australia throughout 2020 and 2021. Melissa was struggling with the long hours at home – many of her social events came to a halt, and the fear of the virus limited her ability to get into the community.
โMelissa wasnโt engaging in anything, and it was a struggle to get her back into the real world,โ Melissaโs mother, Danielle, shares. โAs a parent, it was really hard, but we persisted in looking at what she could do to stay engaged.โ
By working with the RED (Rapid Enterprise Development) team, Melissa was able to make her dream a reality. Together, they came up with the concept of printing Melissaโs designs onto t-shirts; from there, they secured the business name, the bank account and the online store.
Melissa at the Movers and Makers markets with her grandmother and support worker
โWe launched Kirkman by Melissa Kirkman with three designs, and now weโve got ten different tops available for purchase online,โ Danielle adds.
The shirts have been a hit, especially in market environments, which Melissa loves. She was one of the most popular stalls at the recent Feros Care Movers and Makers markets, which was a fantastic opportunity for Melissa to build her business and get exposure.
“Melissa is a wonderful and kind young woman whoโs on a mission!โ says TeeJay Milam, a Community Development Coordinator at Feros Care. โShe is very enthusiastic about her art and business and tells me – โone day someone famous will wear my clothes.โ
โFeros Care are passionate about supporting people with a disability to build individual capacity and increase employment opportunities. So, having the opportunity to work with Melissa and others is amazing,โ TeeJay adds.
Melissa on Sunrise with TeeJay
Melissa has even appeared on Sunrise, which helped her to sell 29 shirts – although itโs not about profit.
โItโs never about how much we can make, itโs just about keeping Melissa engaged and excited,โ Danielle says. โWe love coming up with new ideas – thereโs a new design coming this year, and weโll be venturing into coffee cups and stubby holders.โ
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Melissa loves seeing people in her tops, and sheโs great at doing surveys on social media, asking people what she should do for her next one.โ