Female Founder Friday: In Conversation with Thushara Sabreen, Founder of SOULE®

What if the solution to our modern chronic stress epidemic was already at our feet?

Meet Thushara Sabreen, whose unconventional answer to that question led her to create SOULE®—a trailblazing proactive digital wellbeing company creating intelligent, touch-based footwear to help people manage stress, sleep better, and recover with ease. It's an idea that sounds almost too simple—until you understand the science behind it. Think of it as carrying a wellness toolkit in your shoes, guided by AI, designed to fit effortlessly into everyday life.

With over 20+ years of experience across three continents from design, product development, fashion tech, e-textiles to innovation strategy—Thushara blends technical rigour with deep human insight to solve real-world challenges.

That philosophy earned her international patents, invitations to speak at SXSW as part of Innovate UK's AI in Music programme, and recognition from Cambridge Judge Business School as both Crowd Favourite and "Most Innovative." But perhaps more telling is her track record at Innovate UK, where as Innovation Lead for Creative Industries, she directed strategy and oversaw a £46M+ portfolio—including the £30M Creative Catalyst and £15M Circular Fashion programmes—while mentoring over 400 ventures.

Today, Thushara is returning her full focus to SOULE®, determined to prove that wellness technology can be intuitive, effortless, and genuinely transformative.

FC: Could you start by sharing your professional background and how SOULE® came about?
TS: My journey started as an undergrad design internship in London with a major M&S supplier. I then moved into design and product-development roles across three continents, including work with Victoria’s Secret (Limited Brands) in the US. Back in London, I pursued an MA in Fashion Entrepreneurship & Innovation at London College of Fashion (UAL), graduating with Distinction. That's where curiosity—and my own struggles with migraines, painful cold feet, and poor circulation—drew me into fashion-tech. I wanted to solve my own pain point. Winning the Fashion Matters Award funded a return to Sri Lanka to collaborate with artisans on a sustainable material, then work with UCL engineers and LCF Cordwainers to create our first prototype—artisan craft meeting modern innovation. That proof of concept earned "Most Innovative" and Crowd Favourite at Cambridge Judge Business School and set me on the path to build SOULE®: proactive, touch-based footwear that helps people manage stress, sleep better, and recover with ease.

FC: Wellness wearables are often bulky or gimmicky—how did you approach design differently?
TS: I wanted to create something simple that genuinely takes care of your wellbeing. Something that would help me and millions of others who suffer from poor sleep, migraines, poor circulation, and cold painful feet. It had to be an effortless solution, and integrating it into footwear made sense—the technology is discreet, adapts to your needs, and you have it at hand every day. Style, comfort, and functional technology had to be completely intertwined. SOULE® needed to feel natural, seamlessly elegant, and non-intrusive—not another device to think about, but something that just works for you.

FC: You’ve had some fascinating career highlights. Could you share a few?
TS: There have been some surreal moments. I really thrive on cross-disciplinary collaborations. During my Master's, I was selected for Google's Project Jacquard—their initiative to weave connectivity into fabric. That fundamentally shifted how I think about materials as interfaces. Then I won Rebecca Minkoff's IoT Innovation challenge, which led to showcasing my concept at New York Fashion Week. What struck me wasn't just the glamour, but seeing how hungry the industry was for technology that genuinely enhanced human experience. Later, I was awarded Top 3 at Hack the Crisis NL for technology solutions with social impact, and received the Innovate UK IP Award for innovative intellectual property development. Each experience reinforced that the most powerful innovations happen when you blend technical possibility with deep empathy for real human needs—that's the foundation SOULE® is built on.

FC: When did SOULE® start to feel like a business rather than just a project?
TS: There was a specific moment at Cambridge. I'd been working on SOULE® but always wondered, "Is this viable?" I pitched at a Cambridge venture weekend and won Crowd Favourite, then Jack Lang—co-founder of Raspberry Pi—announced I'd won Most Innovative. Having someone with that track record see potential shifted something fundamental. It led to Accelerate Cambridge and EU Horizon 2020 support. But real validation came from testing with independent companies and actual users. Not friends being polite—real people saying "where can I buy this?" That's when it became a responsibility. When you've created something people genuinely need, you can't keep it as a side passion.

FC: What about intellectual property?
TS: Protecting the technology was one of the hardest early decisions. Patents are expensive when every pound counts, but I knew we couldn't build something truly innovative without protecting it properly. We now have patents granted in six territories.

FC: You also spent time as Innovation Lead at Innovate UK—how did that experience shape you?
TS: It was a privilege to support the UK innovation ecosystem. It was genuinely one of the best jobs I've had. I led strategy and oversaw a £46M+ portfolio including the £30M Creative Catalyst and £15M Circular Fashion programmes, mentoring over 400 ventures. I kept thinking about SOULE®. My patents were coming through while I helped others scale their visions. I realised: at Innovate UK, I could help hundreds create incremental impact. With SOULE®, I could potentially help millions fundamentally change how they manage wellbeing. I realised I needed to return full-time to SOULE® to bring the vision to life.

FC: Hardware fundraising is notoriously tough. How have you approached it?
TS: I've been strategic about staying capital-efficient. We’ve bootstrapped as far as possible and secured grants in the past. The next phase is about aligned capital with partners who understand the space and share a long-term vision for building a new category.

FC: Your vision for SOULE® goes beyond foot health. What’s the bigger opportunity?
TS: We're fundamentally rethinking what wellness technology can be. Right now, the industry asks stressed, exhausted people to add more tasks to their day—more devices, apps, conscious effort. SOULE® starts differently: what if technology worked for you instead of requiring you to work for it? Footwear is the entry point—something you already wear, enhanced to support your wellbeing without any behaviour change. We're building infrastructure for a future where managing chronic stress and improving sleep becomes effortless.

FC: What are your near-term goals?
TS: Over the next year, we're bringing SOULE® to the people who need it most. That means securing the right partners who share our vision, launching with our founding community of early adopters, and proving that effortless wellness isn't just possible—it's transformative. We're building momentum for a broader launch that will change how people think about managing their wellbeing.

FC: And finally, what advice would you give aspiring female founders?
TS: Stop waiting for permission—you'll never feel completely ready, you just need to start. Build something undeniable, because nothing changes the conversation faster than proof. Protect your vision fiercely, but hold your methods lightly—how you get there will evolve through unexpected partnerships and lessons. Surround yourself with people who uplift you and equally lift others up behind you. If you're solving something real with real conviction, keep moving forward.

A big thank-you to Thushara Sabreen for sharing her journey with us. It’s inspiring to see how empathy, innovation, and perseverance can come together to create technologies that truly make a difference.

Website: https://www.mysoule.health
Personal Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thushara-sabreen/
Company Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/soule-limited/?viewAsMember=true
https://www.linkedin.com/company/tinker-design-limited/

Author: Gideon Stott, Digital Marketing Executive at FounderCatalyst