Get to Know: Shareena Emambocus

An exclusive interview in conversation with: Shareena Emambocus, a winner of The Sanxtuary Spotlight 10K Giveaway.

For Shareena, fashion has always been about more than what looks good, it’s about who gets to feel seen, included and considered. With over 200,000 followers, she’s built a community around honest conversations, personal style and representation, while also working to reshape the way we access fashion through Urban Finds, her inclusive marketplace putting accessibility at its core. As a winner of The Sanxtuary Spotlight 10K Giveaway, Shareena speaks to us about visibility, body representation, the realities of inclusivity in fashion, and building a future where fashion is designed for everyone.

How would you describe your personal style, and how has it evolved over the years?

I’d describe my style as expressive, loud and fun! My fashion has always been heavily influenced by my culture, and I feel like recently I’ve really started to tap into that and embrace it more. I think the ‘London’ effect has definitely done its thing too! Living here has allowed my style to evolve in a way that feels much more authentic to me, and I finally feel like the way I dress genuinely reflects who I am.

Was there a moment when you first realised people were really connecting with the content you were creating?

I think it was when I started creating more ‘talking’ content, rather than focusing so heavily on trends or what might go viral. I realised that people genuinely wanted to hear what I had to say, and it opened up some really lovely conversations with my community in the comments.

I also started receiving messages from people saying that seeing someone with a similar body type had helped them feel more confident in themselves and the way they dress. Those messages honestly mean so much to me. It’s quite surreal knowing that something I’m simply doing because I enjoy it can have that kind of impact on someone else. That feeling is a huge part of why I continue to make content, and it’s something I never take for granted.

With more than 200,000 people following you, what do you think your audience comes to you for that they might not find elsewhere?

Honestly, I don’t think I have some secret formula or offer anything that other influencers don’t!  I’m just myself and I share what I genuinely enjoy. But if I had to guess, maybe it’s because I’m a petite woman with a larger chest. When I first started creating content, I personally didn’t see much representation of women with my body type, especially when it came to fashion.

So maybe people relate to me because they can see themselves in some of the things I share. I’m still figuring things out, still trying clothes that don’t always work and navigating fashion in real time, just like everyone else! If anything, I hope my audience comes to me because my content feels honest, relatable and a little bit like getting fashion advice from a friend.

As a plus-size woman of colour working in fashion, have you seen the industry genuinely become more inclusive, or do you think there is still a disconnect between what brands say and what they actually do?

When I think about a brand’s commitment to inclusivity, I look beyond what we see on the surface. Are their products genuinely accessible to everyone? Is their marketing representative? Is their team diverse? And, most importantly, is inclusivity actually embedded into the way the business operates?

I do think there has been progress. There are more opportunities for plus-size creators now than there were previously, but there is still a huge gap. Paid opportunities for plus-size creators in the UK remain limited, and it can be incredibly difficult to make a sustainable living as a plus-size creator. Often, a brand will launch an influencer campaign with only a handful of spaces allocated to ‘inclusive’ creators. So while brands are objectively making an effort to broaden representation, it can sometimes feel like inclusivity is being treated as a small part of a much bigger campaign, rather than being integrated from the beginning.

There’s also a disconnect between representation and accessibility. A campaign might feature diverse bodies, but if the products themselves aren’t designed to accommodate different body types, sizes or disabilities, then that representation only goes so far. You can’t really talk about inclusivity without looking at the entire customer experience.

Something else that I think is often overlooked is what happens behind the scenes. A brand can appear incredibly inclusive externally, while the team and agencies making those decisions may not reflect that same diversity. In London, many agencies still lack diverse representation, and that inevitably has a trickle-down effect. People tend to champion and select creators they personally understand or relate to, which can result in the same demographics repeatedly being prioritised for influencer campaigns, magazine covers and brand events.

I’ve experienced the difference that a genuinely diverse team can make. When I worked with eBay for Women’s History Month, I worked alongside an all-women team from a range of backgrounds and walks of life. It created such an open and collaborative environment, and we were able to create something that felt genuinely meaningful because everyone involved brought a different perspective to the table.

For inclusivity to create lasting change, it has to start from within. The people responsible for making those decisions need to understand why representation and accessibility matter, rather than simply responding to what looks good externally. Ultimately, the team has to reflect the change that a brand says it wants to make.

What does feeling represented in fashion look like to you personally?

Similar to the above, I'd like to see inclusive models, brand collabs, event guest lists but also if their team is diverse. Representation to me looks like making room for everyone in all aspects of fashion.

Do you think social media has given plus-size creators more power to challenge the traditional fashion industry and decide for themselves what style can look like?

Yes, definitely! I wouldn’t be where I am today without social media. Having a platform and the numbers are hard for brands to ignore. It’s proven the demand for more style options for plus-size people.

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You’re also the founder of Urban Finds, which describes itself as “the first inclusive online marketplace that puts accessibility first”. What made you want to create it?

UF was born out of a need for better and more accessible shopping options for people who have historically been underserved by the fashion industry. I grew up around the healthcare sector, with my parents owning a specialist mental health care home, and from a young age I witnessed first-hand how difficult it could be for residents to access suitable adaptive clothing. My partner also has FND (Functional Neurological Disorder), which further opened my eyes to the impact that limited access to inclusive fashion can have on people’s everyday lives.

Through our research, we discovered that there are already a number of incredible inclusive brands doing the right things, but many struggle to reach the audiences who need them most. That’s where the idea for UF came from. My business partner and I wanted to create an online marketplace that could bring these brands together and make inclusive fashion more visible, accessible and easier to discover.

As a plus-size woman myself, I’ve also experienced first-hand the frustration of limited clothing options and the feeling that fashion simply isn’t designed with everyone in mind. That personal connection is a huge part of why UF matters to me.

For now, we’re taking a slightly different direction, focusing on resale and sustainability, but the marketplace remains our long-term vision. Ultimately, we want to build a platform that makes it easier for people to find fashion that works for them, rather than expecting people to adapt themselves to an industry that wasn’t designed with them in mind.

When you talk about putting accessibility first, what does that mean in practice, and what do you think other fashion platforms are currently missing? 

In practice, putting accessibility first means building it into every stage of the shopping experience, rather than treating it as an add-on. We’re developing an accessibility toolbar that will allow users to customise text size, colour contrast, alt text and other accessibility features. From a technical perspective, we’re working towards full WCAG 2.1 compliance, in line with the European Accessibility Act, and are working closely with Recite Me, an accessibility technology specialist, to help ensure our platform is genuinely accessible at its core.

We’re also rethinking the amount of information customers receive about a product. Rather than relying on generic descriptions, we want to provide detailed information about fabric composition, stretch, measurements and fit, helping customers understand not just what a garment looks like, but how it is likely to behave on their body.

One of the concepts we’re particularly excited about is what we’re calling ‘accessibility tags’ highlighting adaptive or accessibility-friendly features within products. For example, a shirt may use poppers rather than traditional buttons, which could make it significantly easier to use for someone with limited dexterity. What’s interesting is that many brands already have features like this within their products, but they simply aren’t identifying or communicating them as accessible. We want to change that by making these details visible and searchable, effectively reframing what accessible fashion looks like.

We’re also looking to completely rethink the traditional online size guide. Instead of asking customers to interpret a generic chart, we want users to input their own measurements and receive recommendations based on how a garment is actually designed to fit. Ultimately, our goal is to give people more meaningful information, more choice and greater confidence when shopping online.

I think that’s where many fashion platforms are currently falling short. Accessibility is often treated as a compliance exercise, rather than as an opportunity to create a genuinely better shopping experience. We want to make accessibility part of the infrastructure of fashion e-commerce, not something that sits on the sidelines.

How do you balance being a content creator with building your own business, particularly when your personal identity is so closely connected to both?

The balance was difficult initially. Alongside building my business and creating content, I also work full-time as an administrative assistant in healthcare, so both have had to fit around my job. I’ve also taken a significant break from social media to step back and really reframe my intentions and relationship with it. Moving forward, I want social media to be something I enjoy as a hobby rather than something I feel pressured to constantly maintain.

I’m incredibly grateful for my business partner, as we’ve been able to support and motivate each other throughout the process. Although this means progress with UF has been slower, it’s allowed us to be much more intentional about how we build it, which I think will ultimately benefit the business.

What would you love to see change in fashion over the next five years, and where do you hope you and Urban Finds fit into that future?

I would love to see brands true commitment to inclusivity where those values are reflected in their marketing, internal teams and user/consumer experience. I hope UF is the pioneer for inclusive resale and shopping. 

What does Sanxtuary mean to you?

At university, I started a magazine focused on championing BIPOC creatives and helping to bridge the gap of under-representation within the fashion and media industries. So, seeing Sanxtuary become a pioneer in the industry is incredibly inspiring and represents so much of what I believe in.

As a queer woman of colour, it’s refreshing to see the media landscape evolve in a way that makes me feel genuinely represented. It’s a reminder that we deserve to take up space, to be seen, and, most importantly, that our voices matter!!