In ELLE’s Office Hours series, we ask people in powerful positions to take us through their first jobs, worst jobs, and everything in between. This month, we tapped Trish Wescoat Pound, the designer and entrepreneur behind the if-you-know-you-know New York label TWP. Founded in 2021, the brand began with the idea of reimagining men’s shirting for women and has since expanded into denim, belts, suiting, and more, with retail outposts in New York (including a newly opened Madison Avenue boutique), Aspen, and London.“When I was younger, I just pushed through things,” says Wescoat Pound, who grew up in small-town Kansas and spent the early stages of her career at beloved American sportswear brands including Theory, Michael Kors, and Calvin Klein. “Now it’s just so nice to have a minute where you can think about something, and also have a partner you trust 100 percent who is so committed to the vision.” Read more about her career trajectory below, from an early fascination with design (and paper dolls) to building a quietly coveted fashion brand of her own.My first jobI was always working. I love to work. I grew up in a small town and mowed lawns, babysat, cleaned houses, washed dishes in a restaurant, and I was a waitress. This was from when I was 13, maybe even 12. My first real formative job in the industry was my seven years at Theory, where I worked with Andrew [Rosen]. A lot of what I learned then, when I was in my late twenties, I’m still applying now in my fifties.Courtesy of TWPMy worst jobI’ve always learned something from everywhere I’ve worked. The job that was in a lot of ways something that I loved at the end and learned a lot from, but it was painful, was at my last company. It was just a difficult time. At the end, I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was relieved. And I learned a lot from it about what I wouldn’t repeat. I’ve learned how to frame things differently. At that time, I thought it was really, really important to show my daughter that I could get back up and create something again.How I became interested in fashionIt was more design than it was specifically fashion. I always wanted to create environments where people felt warm and safe, but that wasn’t specific to fashion. Unless you count my obsession with paper dolls.TWP Buckle Bunny Belt With StitchCredit: TWPTWP The Double Take BlazerCredit: TWPTWP Next Ex Poplin Cropped ShirtTWP Tiny Dancer Wide-Leg JeansCredit: Neiman MarcusTWP Buckle Bunny Belt with CrystalsCredit: TWPWhy I started TWPIt’s so funny because I think a lot of female founders say this, but I really wanted to do something simple and take silhouettes, whether they be shirtings or blazers or trousers, and make them cool. I started with a shirt and I wanted it to have a great fit and be versatile. It was the idea of taking the perfect shirt and doing things like having functionality at the cuff, the placement of a button. I’ve always loved a woman in a man’s shirt.My bestsellersThe Next Ex. It’s so funny because it was just this oversize men’s shirt and I was just like, “I’m going to crop it.” So that shirt is called the Boyfriend Shirt and this is the Next Ex. That’s been our hero product. We also do denim—I don’t understand American sportswear without denim. And we have a couple of pairs that do well for us: one is the Tiny Dancer, the other is the Kent Street.Our belts have done amazingly. We launched belts a year ago and have been focusing on them. They follow everything else: they’re different, they’re cool. I felt there were a thousand black belts, but really no other options—there wasn’t a dark midnight or a dark army. We have this blazer called the Double Take, which has done really well for us.TWPA look from TWP’s fall/winter 2026 collection.Who I design forWe have a customer who is discerning. She understands fabrications. Fit is something that’s really a nonstarter for her. She’s not going to buy something if it doesn’t fit her. I think the one thing we really want to do is bring comfort to luxury so that you can feel good in your clothes while looking good in your clothes. It’s a lot about utility, too.On my new London and Madison Avenue storesThe thing that’s important for me when you walk into a TWP store is that it feels warm. Like our clothes, our intention is to make chic, sophisticated environments that complement the clothes but don’t overshadow them. We use a lot of wall-to-wall seagrass in the store. We also work with Onna House. Lisa Perry is the visionary behind it; it’s a gallery of art, furniture, and objects, and they’re all by women artists. So we’ve been working with them on commissioning artwork for all of our spaces. That’s really important: being able to support other women artists and to showcase their work.Our London store just opened, which is a pinch-me moment. The store itself is on Bruton Street in Mayfair and it has these beautiful Swedish farm tables and a prairie-inspired garden installation, which we also have at the Madison Avenue store. Patricia Udell, who’s from the Upper West Side and works there, did custom hand-woven tapestry for us that I think is spectacular.This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.