Originally from Salem, OR, Seattleite Tara Clark has been a dreamer and explorer of experiences, people, communities and the world since a young age. Although she did not grow up adventuring in the mountains, she discovered her love of skiing soon after meeting the love of her life while living in the mountains of Lesotho (ironically, where she was giving the name Malehloa, "mother of snow", because she arrived in her village along with a foot of snow) as a Peace Corps Volunteer. Before becoming a social entrepreneur and Human Connectivity Conservationist, Tara spent many years as a professional photographer.
In 2013, leading into an annual women's ski trip to Whistler, Tara's friend, who was less than a year out from receiving a terminal brain cancer diagnosis, challenged the group to all show up in onesies. Fashion was never Tara's strong suit/area of interest but there was no way she would not show up on the mountain in the standard/boring mountain attire that trip. The love of her stylish friend stretched Tara to discover the fabulousness of onesies via an eBay search. Unlike her 4 friends, she couldn't stop at one and done. She found a few during her first searches and remembers sending a text to her friends saying she may need an intervention because it was clear she had a onesie problem. It started with just a few vintage purchases that year and an unforgettable weekend on the mountain with her girlfriends...
Tara is the mother of two teenage boys who, when she was unpacking her 4 new/used suits for a weekend ski trip (it was too hard for her to narrow down while packing...she couldn't cut any of her new friends, "Pinkie", "Dottie", "Goldie" & "Michael"...yes, she names them all), shared in her love of vintage onesies from a young age. Instead of poking fun at her, she was surprised when they said they wanted to ski in them too.
Soon, thanks to another friend suggesting Tara should make a disco ball helmet to accompany her new "friends", Tara went to work seeing if it was possible...
In 2016, fueled by her love of onesies and disco ball helmets, she had an idea to make a ski video music parody to "Downtown" by Seattle's own, Macklemore, called "Downhill". She didn't have the first idea how she would do it, but she followed the visions swirling in her head and with the help and enthusiasm of many amazing women, she was able to realize
her dream,
raise money for the
Ivy Center for Primary Brain Tumor Treatment who was responsible for extending the life of Tara's friend far beyond the devastating prognosis
and the bonus was being able to expand her vintage onesie collection so all her friends could look their best in the video:
https://youtu.be/1dqQjdcK9Bo
Every year, Tara dreamed of creating an updated version of the suits that brought her and everyone around her so much joy. In 2018, she decided to explore the only road she could see possible. Thanks to a decade long friendship with a Lakpa & Phurba Sherpa, Tara knew the only person she would feel safe with to pursue the possibility of making her dream a reality. She placed a call to Khangri Sourcing and inquired about the potential of partnering to create the suits of her dreams. Khangri is lead by Tashi Tsering Sherpa, a man she had always admired for the highest quality and beautiful products he produced with his company Sherpa Adventure Gear. Tashi is another Seattle gem and has provided his decades of industry experience and wisdom to Tara to create a high performance, feminine forward and incredibly comfortable snow suit that will rival any product on the market.
Tashi touched Tara deeply when he shared that, although he was not familiar with the one piece snow suit market, he believed he could help her realize her dream. The kindness she was met with by an industry icon was indescribable. When she shared with him how grateful she was for is openness to partner and that he made her feel very safe in exploring and investing in her dream, he brought his hands together in front of him, bowed his head and then shared how much it meant to him to hear my words. He said, "You know, Sherpa are known around the world for taking people to the top of mountains, but that is not really who we are. The Sherpa people extend themselves to the world to take people on a journey and bring them safely home. They cannot control the outcomes but while working together with others they hope to provide safe, memorable experiences that are more valuable than the outcomes." The journey we are on together has been memorable for sure. Covid has forced delays and detours but our team continues to be excited about the products we are creating together to share with the world and know that the products will inspire new connections, learning, growing, laughter and unforgettable memories that will ripple out and be far greater than the outcome of being the best in the outerwear industry.
Tara is excited to have you join the TaraShakti universe and spread your unique light further out into the world.