Kolye TJN appears on a digital billboard at Times Square during Fashion Week 2025.
Manitoba design on display at Times Square
Kolye TJN challenges traditional approaches at New York Fashion Week with support from UM IDEA START
New York Fashion Week is a semi-annual showcase where buyers, influencers and media get a glimpse of what’s next in worldwide fashion. Tijen Roshko, lead designer of Kolye TJN and UM professor of Interior Design, debuted an innovative collection of felt neckwear on the international stage at Sony Hall, just off Times Square with support from the UM IDEA START entrepreneurial access program.
Kolye TJN designers Danae McKennitt, Tijen Roshko and Angie Kwon at New York Times Square.
“Professionals across different fields are doing amazing work to create a platform for future designers to show their work, the energy at Sony Hall is invigorating,” Says Roshko.
“Kolye TJN and is positioned at the prime location to show off Canadian avant garde fashion design embedded in sustainability, with our amazing production partner Runway 7. We are here to challenge traditional thinking and approaches to fashion with inclusivity and fluidity.”
Roshko had a somewhat non-traditional educational trajectory, first completing a Master of Science degree in Nuclear Physics before pursuing an education and professional life in design. Roshko experimentation with felt to create wearable art was inspired by her own allergy to metal jewelry, joining with partners Angie Kwon and research assistant Danae McKennitt to create Kolye TJN in 2020.
The Kolye TJN collections are created in Canada by the inhouse designer and dedicated production team using sustainably sourced wool-felt. The self-interlocking and pinning systems give the design structure and allow the owner to mix, match and recombine the pieces for their own expression and comfort.
“The interlocking patterns represent the transformative power of connections,” Roshko says.
“During my education in nuclear physics, I was trained to view the world through a filter of verifiable facts. My experience with art and design fundamentally altered my strategies for viewing my environment and inspired our goal of democratizing art.”
Aspects from one series can join with another, allowing the wearer to play and create their own high fashion designs. Kolye TJN designs include neckwear like scarfs and wraps, handbags, a caged skirt and earrings, each with their own variations of repeated patterns and priced from accessible to high-end on the Kolye TJN online store.
Roshko was supported in bringing her vision to fruition by the newly established IDEA START program. After a market analysis and business plan reviews, IDEA START Director Moe Levy recommended launching with low-cost options as an accessible entry point for people curious about high fashion.
“I first met Tijen less than a year ago at the proof-of-concept stage, and it is truly remarkable that she has attracted so many first-time buyers and launched her brand at New York Fashion week in that short time,” says Levy. “The University of Manitoba community has many resources available for entrepreneurs at every stage of their journey, such as North Forge or Debra Jonasson-Young, Director of the Stu Clark Centre, and IDEA START is here to help community members bridge gaps and get started.”
Roshko continues to work with the IDEA START team on an upcoming Kolye TJN fashion show for the University of Manitoba community expected to take place in November 2025.
“Tijen’s Journey is an inspiring example for the creativity and trans-disciplinarity of ideas, the entrepreneurial spirit that is the fabric of our university and how IDEA START supports students, staff, alumni and faculty,” says Dr. Hans-Joachim Wieden, Associate Vice-President Partnerships, Knowledge Mobilization & Innovation.
For support developing your IDEAS and entrepreneurial vision, get in touch with the IDEA START team.
Research at the University of Manitoba is partially supported by funding from the Government of Canada Research Support Fund.