Alumnus Helps Launch Online Resource for Families of Those with Special Needs

You may remember Clayton Chambers (PPE ’15) for his work with Brothers & Craft, the lifestyle website and creative agency he founded in 2012 with three of his older brothers, Zac (who studied at King’s for one year), Matthew, and Kirk. Through Brothers & Craft, the Chambers brothers have had some incredible opportunities, working with brands such as J. Crew, Tommy Hilfiger, and Ford and receiving press coverage from outlets including GQ, Southern Living, and Garden & Gun.

This past winter, the brothers launched a new venture, Springible, an online platform (currently in beta mode) dedicated to providing support and resources for the 240-plus million caregivers, family members, and loved ones of those who have special needs and disabilities. The venture was inspired Clayton’s brother, Matthew, whose son, Jude, was born with a rare genetic disorder. The website features encouraging articles and stories (including interviews with King’s alumni Jerron Herman here and Maxine Derderian here), and will soon also feature a product called the Culinary Library, which will be filled with recipes, submitted by chefs, that meet the needs of those with modified diets. “Our hope is that this platform connects you with the resources you need so you can navigate your daily lifestyle challenges and overcome the many obstacles that arise when caring for someone you love,” the website says. “We’re here to help you thrive, not just survive.”

Below, Clayton, the youngest Chambers brother, answers a few questions about Springible and why it matters.

How did you get involved with Springible?

While I was studying at King’s from 2012 to 2015, I started a men’s lifestyle website with my brothers called Brothers & Craft (imaginative name, I know). Our timing for starting the site could not have been better from a social-media perspective. We grew our social-media following on Instagram over time and gained connections with all sorts of fashion and lifestyle brands.

Starting Springible was also timely for us. Matthew, my oldest brother, was pivoting from another tech project, and, as a caregiver to a son with special needs, he wanted to build a lifestyle and consumer platform for caregivers like him, as well as family members and support communities who have a loved one with a special need or disability. We were also looking for the next step with the Brothers & Craft brand, something that might give us longevity. Matthew asked us if we wanted to help him launch the company, and we did! Helping build Springible as a resource for others has a personal element because of our nephew Jude and the many needs he has.

I help manage content and strategic partnerships for Springible. That means I am linked, behind the scenes, with any articles or videos you see on our website, along with any partnerships we’ve launched with another consumer-facing brand, like Williams-Sonoma.

Tell us about your relationship with your nephew Jude.

Matthew has seven kids (no, that’s not a typo). In 2006, Jude, his third son, was born with a rare genetic disorder called Tuberous Sclerosis Complex, a rare genetic disorder that causes benign tumors to grow in vital organs in his body. Jude has dozens of tumors—many in his brain and one in his heart—and they cause seizures that delay his growth and development. While Jude is almost 11 in age, he is mentally and developmentally only 18-24 months old.

Jude has trouble walking, so he sits a lot. He is also non-verbal, so we can’t have a typical conversation. But I love Jude so much, and he makes me happy. And even though he is unable to speak, he can really express his emotions! Whenever I enter a room Jude is in, I see him brace himself—because he knows I’m about to squeeze the life out of him with a big hug. That’s great for him if he’s in the mood for hugs, but sometimes he wants to be left alone in a quiet room.  

What need do you think Springible is meeting?

We are building a lifestyle website that connects people caring for those with special needs and disabilities with lifestyle resources. We want to be a listening ear and an empowering voice, offering caregivers the information they need and connecting them to brands they will love.

In the special needs and disabilities community, medical diagnoses create chasms between people. You might have a cousin who has been diagnosed with autism, and I might have a sister with Down syndrome. While their medical diagnoses are vastly different, the lifestyle needs of these two people—and the needs of their caregiver—are nearly identical. Food, travel, style, home, wellness. Everyone has to eat, everyone has to travel, everyone has to clothe himself or herself, everyone has to have a home, and everyone has to take care of his or her body.

By offering lifestyle resources to this community, we are bringing people out of their silos (the diagnoses) and reminding them that their voices matter. We are also showing consumer brands that those with special needs and their caregivers make up a market that is worth investing in. We hope that Springible grows to serve millions of people around the world and offers support to many different communities.

Tell us more about the partnership with Williams-Sonoma.

Early on in our research, we discovered that there are 90-plus million people in the United States who live with some sort of a modified diet. That’s huge. For us, targeting food as a major lifestyle need made sense. Eating—whether you are dining out or cooking at home—is a ginormous commodity.

Williams-Sonoma has been at the top of our list for partners since Springible’s inception. It’s the premier kitchen and cookware brand, and fortunately for us, has been a brilliant first strategic partner. The timing worked out well for both of us. Williams-Sonoma recently launched a new, more affordable line of cookware called Open Kitchen as we were launching the Springible Culinary Library. The library contains an inventory of recipes that meet certain dietary restrictions—from gluten sensitivities to autoimmune diseases to ketogenic diets. It’s encouraging to see our recipe list continue to grow!

How did your King’s education equip you to pursue entrepreneurial and social-good initiatives like Springible?

As humans (and especially as Americans), we are conditioned to think that politics influences culture. What I learned by studying at King’s and living in New York City, however, is that politics is downstream from culture and that culture is downstream from the marketplace. When you create value in the marketplace, it flows downstream, influencing the culture and eventually shifting the political landscape.

The King’s mission stands parallel with this idea. “Preparing students to shape strategic institutions” is one piece of that mission I have held onto. I studied PPE at King’s, so a lot of my education tended toward theory rather than practicality. But I learned how to think critically, which goes hand-in-hand with problem-solving. I use my classical education to ask two important questions each day: How can I create value for others, and how can I solve problems?