Taking over the city’s streets is young designer Micah Alyanna Gomez’s athleisure wear, Club Tara. For cyclists and people who are always on the go, this is the new standard for fashion, movement, and sustainability
This is an excerpt from MEGA’s April 2024 One To Watch
Born out of a passion for cycling and movement, young designer Micah Alyanna Gomez created her brand Club Tara (tara, a Filipino term that means “come” or “let’s go”) for the niche community of women cyclists.
“When you think of cycling, it’s sporty, male-centered, or ‘copy-pasted’ on a female’s body,” she says. “I didn’t want to name my brand after me because I wanted the focus to be on the people. In this case, something that would answer the need in cycling.”
When the pandemic brought what cyclists call the “bike boom,” Gomez started biking with her father and brother around the city. It was a general rule in their family that they cannot drive unless they know how to bike on the road.
With this, her creative vision extended to the advocacy of being kind to bikers and pedestrians. Although she struggled at first with clothing construction and detail, what propelled her forward is knowing that there is a problem to solve—and so she did.
“For my thesis, I actually did a survey with a cycling community,” says Gomez, who recently presented her graduate collection at the De La Salle – College of Saint Benilde’s annual fashion show, Sinulid. “I was surprised that I had over a hundred respondents. In a nutshell, I asked if they needed cycling clothes that can also be used everyday—how they want it to look and the common struggles they deal with when biking. I kept designing until the mistakes were found, and until they were fixed.”
Gomez made sure that the length of the shorts and pants are right, the skirt is appropriate for biking, and there are pockets for things that bikers usually carry. The pieces are transformable; everything is modular and buildable. Her design was driven not just by beauty but also purpose.
For the designer, self-love is an everyday commitment. In her case, it was a constant battle of reassuring herself that the concept she was making is good. As much as it mattered to her what people think, she realized that she also has to love what she does—if it gives her happiness, confidence, and contentment.
Get to know emerging designer Micah Alyanna Gomez and her passion for all things movement and sustainable in MEGA’s April 2024 issue, now available on Readly, Magzter, Press Reader and Zinio.
Photographed by KIM SANTOS of KLIQ.INC. Creative Direction BRIE VENTURA. Makeup PAMM MERRERA. Hair PATTY CRISTOBAL. Production by MARIAN SAN PEDRO. Styling BITHIA REYES. Editorial Assistant JONNIE NGO. Sittings Editor JONES PALTENG. Model KEN TIANGCO of MERCATOR. Special thanks to MIKI MICLAT of MERCATOR.
