Genius Gear

By Anne Vickman

Westwood resident Megan Kelleher, a financial industry executive and mom of three, was struck with inspiration for her new clothing line, Tutortogs, at a family picnic in Cape Cod.

“I was with my siblings and their babies,” she explains. “I had on a striped shirt and the two babies were in a bouncy seat, staring at me, with their heads moving in unison as I walked.” A week earlier, Kelleher had noticed her own daughter Maia eyeballing the same shirt. “That was my a-ha moment,” she says.

The coincidence sparked a curiosity, which resulted in a collection of high-contrast clothing for moms and newborns. Alongside Dr. Linda Bram, a child-development specialist who runs a private practice in Lexington, Kelleher learned that a baby’s sense of vision develops in the first year, as the nerve cells that control the ability to focus begin to form.

So, Kelleher tested several patterns on a focus group (thanks to those nieces and nephews), and the ones that elicited the most goo’s and ga’s were chosen for the line. “They’re attracted to optic designs,” says Kelleher. “And that’s our aim, to aid in infants’ visual development during this crucial time and beyond.”

Four different patterns are available — dots, stripes, racing checks, and ladybugs — but Kelleher is working on new patterns like butterflies, letters, numbers, and musical instruments. She also has plans to incorporate loungewear and is considering a line of duds for dads, too.

$38-$48, tutortogshop.com.