2022 Caregiver Friendly Award Winner: CareZips
Today’s Caregiver, the first national magazine for all family and professional caregivers, and Caregiver.com, announced the 2022 Caregiver Friendly® Award recipients. The Caregiver Friendly® Awards are designed to celebrate products, services, books and media created with the needs of caregivers in mind.
CareZips® by Joe & Bella, an easy-dressing pant with a patented three-zipper system, earned the 2022 Caregiver Friendly Award in the product category.
CareZips® was invented by Molly Dye, whose mother was living with Alzheimer's. Ms. Dye, who resides in Atlanta, GA, observed caregivers struggling to change her mother’s adult briefs. She knew there had to be a better, more compassionate way that was not only easier and less stressful for her mother, but also for the caregiver.
“I realized that by designing pants whose front would fully open up from the waist to the knees, the entire changing process would be quicker,” she explained. “I cringed watching the stress and discomfort my mom experienced every time she was changed. I also empathized with the caregivers, who spent an inordinate amount of time on the changing process.”
Jimmy Zollo, co-founder of Joe & Bella, learned of CareZips® and immediately saw the product’s importance. “Our brand is about making the lives of older adults and those who care for them easier and more dignified. That’s what CareZips delivers,” he said.
The original version of CareZips®, which was carried by JoeAndBella.com and other retail and ecommerce channels, sold out at the end of last year, as it gained critical attention and a wide fan base for its innovative ease of dressing. In fact, Dye patented the three-zipper technology for which she has since granted an exclusive license to Joe & Bella.
What's Next For CareZips
Zollo has big plans for CareZips®. “Our team loves the functionality. And, we really wanted the opportunity to redesign the aesthetics of the pants. What we all wear is an expression of our identity. Physical or cognitive changes as we age shouldn’t prevent someone from wearing the styles of clothes that they’ve always worn – those clothes that look and feel like them,” he explained.
“The average caregiver is responsible for over $40,000 in health-related expenditures each year, in either personal or directed funds” Says Gary Barg, Today’s Caregiver magazine’s Editor-in Chief. “This award is designed to help family caregivers recognize and reward those organizations who will care for them in as committed a manner as they care for their loved ones.”
CareZips can help some adults remain independent (and living independently) longer than they would with traditional apparel. For others, CareZips for men and CareZips for women will add some simplicity and dignity back to the assisted-dressing process. CareZips that is available for both men and women will free up both family and professional caregivers, reducing the amount of time they spend each day dressing and undressing their care partners.