Mind Matters: With Titi Solarin - Founder, Tailored Futures

In this series where we talk with inspirational people changing the world one small step at a time, today we got the chance to grab a virtual coffee with the superwomen who is Titi Solarin. Mother, founder, wife, pillar of strength and dispenser of incredible pearls of wisdom (you’ll know when you see it), Titi founded Tailored Futures, a company that provides holistic reintegration support for individuals with criminal convictions and those on irregular migration pathways. Read on to hear how Titi reframes rejections in the most creative way imaginable, while managing to juggle 5.30am gym sessions, school picks and drops, and an impact company.

GS: Titi, thank you for joining us. Could you start by sharing your professional background and what led you to founding Tailored Futures?

TS: My background is in criminology, I’ve always wanted to work within the community. Education was always a struggle for me, though. I suffer from anxiety, I’m dyslexic, and I’ve got dyspraxia, but none of that was diagnosed until university. So I never really explored other career choices because I didn’t have representation. I didn’t see what else I could be.

What I did know was that I loved working with young people, so my first degree was in Community Studies. Even then, I was struggling. It was by grace I even made it to university. But I was lucky enough to meet a lecturer who could see I was trying my very best, even when the work just wasn’t clicking. He asked if I had ever thought about being assessed for dyslexia.

I told my mum, she’s African. To her, accepting it meant there was something wrong. But I ignored her and went for the assessment.

Halfway through, the assessor looked at me and said, ‘How did you make it to university?’ I thought she was insulting me, but she meant, ‘You’ve been working against the odds your whole life.’ She explained that not only was I dyslexic, I was severely dyslexic and also dyspraxic. I remember laughing because I had always joked that I must be the only Black girl who can’t dance, I didn’t realise it was an actual thing.

Getting that diagnosis changed my life. Once I knew what the problem was, I could finally work with it instead of against it. I received Disabled Students Allowance, and the assessor became my support worker. She taught me coping mechanisms, mind-mapping, breaking work down, structuring my thoughts. Within six months my grades shot up. I had been heading for a third, and I ended up just a couple of marks away from a 2:1.

I cried. I was the first person in my entire family to go to university, so it meant everything.

After graduating, I still didn’t know how to get into the industry. I wanted to work with young people, but I didn’t have experience, and nobody would give me experience because I didn’t have experience. So I did a Master’s in Criminology because it came with compulsory work placement. I even took out a personal loan for it.

Even then, after all that, I still couldn’t get a job. I ended up working in Hamleys for a while, which was devastating because I had this huge loan to pay. Eventually I got my first professional job in Reading as a Youth Development Worker and was commuting from London every day.

I had my first child, who I tragically lost. When I eventually returned to work, I realised I was spending more time doing paperwork than actually engaging with young people. After four years, and having another child, I came home one day and told my husband, ‘By the way, I’m quitting my job. I’m going to start my own business.’

He thought I was joking, but I quit and started Tailored Futures.

I didn’t know anything about business. There weren't any accelerators around then. I didn’t have guidance. I just winged it. And that’s really the genesis of Tailored Futures.

GS: Tailored Futures tackles one of society’s toughest challenges. What inspired the idea, and what moment made you realise this was your mission?

TS: For me, the moment came when I realised the young people I worked with needed more time and real engagement, and the system simply didn’t allow it. I was working 37-40 hours a week, but only spending about seven to ten hours actually with young people. The rest was paperwork. It made no sense. I wanted to be out in the community all the time, not stuck behind a desk.

When I finally quit my job, I was fortunate to find a role in a college, working with young people through a recruitment agency. It felt closer to what I wanted to do, supporting them, guiding them, just being present.

While I was there, I worked on a programme with an organisation called Prospects. There were some issues between Prospects and the college, but Prospects really valued the work I was doing with the young people. They asked me to continue the work independently, without the college.

That became my first real step into self-employment. So I took on that contract, and that’s how Tailored Futures began. It started with me simply wanting to give young people the time and attention they deserved.

Tailored Futures supporting people

GS: Working with people who are often excluded from traditional opportunities is powerful but emotionally demanding. What have you learned about resilience from the communities you serve?

TS: The people we work with are some of the most resilient individuals you’ll ever meet. Because many of them carry the label of ‘criminal,’ people forget they’re vulnerable, but they are. And even with that extra weight on their shoulders, they still keep pushing.

Some lose hope along the way, of course, but the majority keep trying, no matter how many times they’re told no. Watching them has taught me that ‘no’ doesn’t mean no forever, it usually just means not right now.’ Maybe that programme isn’t right for you, maybe that course isn’t right, maybe that employer can’t see your value yet. But the right one will, and when they do, they’ll recognise you as an asset. You just have to keep going.

GS: That really reminds me of something my mum always said, what’s meant for you won’t pass you.

And I’m a firm believer in that. Even with Tailored Futures, we’ve lost significant contracts and funding. When it happens, it’s devastating. But I always bring it back to the same thing: if it didn’t stay, it wasn’t meant for us. And what is meant for us will never pass us.

You’re a female founder in a space where representation is limited. What unique challenges have you faced, and how have they shaped your leadership?

TS: I often say that even though most people working in the criminal justice space are women, there still aren’t many female founders in this area, at least not that I’ve come across. And honestly, sometimes I find it really difficult being a woman in this space. Even more so as a Black woman. I often feel like I have to work that little bit harder, and grace isn’t always extended to me. Opportunities aren’t always given in the same way.

Sometimes I think: with the work Tailored Futures has done, the people we’ve supported and the lives we’ve changed, if I were in a different body, this whole operation would probably be ten times bigger. That’s just the reality.

GS: My wife Claudia and I were just at an event yesterday, and we both felt out of place for different reasons, me as a person of colour, and her as a woman in a room full of white men. It really made us reflect on how those layers stack up. And for you, you’re carrying all of those layers at once.

TS: Exactly. And I never want to play the ‘colour card’ because I love being a Black woman. I wouldn't change it for the world. I’ve learned so much from my struggles. I wasn’t born here, so I’ve also had the migrant experience, I’m a first-generation migrant, and that has shaped my resilience.

But being a Black female founder is still challenging. I’ve sat in meetings with men who look at me and can’t believe that the platform or idea is mine. I’ve literally had someone say, ‘This is your idea?’ He couldn’t understand it. And I’m sitting there like, Yes, it came from my brain. I don’t know how else to relay that to you.

Over time, I’ve learned I can’t change people’s perceptions of who I am or who they think I should be. All I can do is be my authentic self. And my personality is very ‘Marmite’, you either love me because you’ve had the chance to experience me, or you’re unsure because I’m not performing some unnecessary fake smile. Some people will decide I’m difficult because of that. And that’s okay. You either love me or you don’t, but I like myself. And that’s enough.

In conversation with Titi Solaris, Founder of Tailored Futures

GS: You’re raising three children while running a mission-led organisation. How has motherhood shaped your sense of purpose and how do you juggle both worlds?

TS: Motherhood is a privilege for me, especially because I’ve also experienced loss. Losing my first child changed me. It made me deeply grateful for the opportunity to be a mum again. So my children take priority over everything I do, because ultimately everything I do is for them.

But it isn’t easy. I have three children, five, eleven and thirteen, and juggling their needs is a full-time job in itself. From prep to football club, to remembering whose lunch account needs topping up, whose passport has expired, whose hair appointment is due… It's constant. Some days I’m so physically and mentally drained that I just cry. But I know it needs to be done, so I don’t complain. My husband and my best friend are probably the only ones who ever see that side of me.

And on top of motherhood, I’m the firstborn and the only girl in my family. There’s a natural sense of responsibility that comes with that too. Honestly, I don’t know how I do it. There’s no diary or perfect system. I just know what needs to be done for my children, and what needs to be done for the people I serve.

GS: When we first met you, Claudia and I walked home talking about how inspiring you were. We’re a few years behind you, thinking about whether we’re ready for children, and we often feel scared we won’t manage it all. Then we saw you juggle so much with so much strength, and it honestly blew us away.

TS: Thank you. But I really believe everything happens in its own time. And if God brings you to something, He’ll see you through it. Parenting isn’t something you ever feel perfectly ready for, it just becomes your life.

For example, after this conversation I’ll go pick up my son, maybe get him a Kinder Egg or McDonald’s to keep the peace, then pick up my daughter and her friend, drop them home, pick up the last one… It’s just the rhythm of my day. And somehow it all gets done.

My mornings start at 4:18, my body just wakes up then, even if I went to bed at 1am. I go to the gym for my own sanity, then the school run, then I head to Good Tech, then I’m juggling Tailored Futures’ work in between everything else. I arrange pickups, rush home before 6pm, I make sure the kids have their showers, are fed, and are in bed. After that, I open my laptop to finish whatever’s left for the day.

I don’t even watch TV. I’ll scroll my phone for a few minutes, wait for sleep to catch up, and start again the next day.

GS: And that’s not even counting the 1.5 hours you travel each way to Good Tech.

GS: What advice would you give to young women especially those from underrepresented backgrounds who want to build something meaningful?

TS: First of all, always choose you. Believe in what you’re doing, because you will almost certainly get more no’s than the average person. But the way I see it, every “no” is just one step closer to the “yes.”

“If it takes a hundred ‘no’s’ to get that one ‘yes’, then every ‘no’ you hear is progress. You’re reducing the pile. You’re moving closer.”

And never let anyone tell you who you are. I say this to my daughters all the time: you need to know yourself. Know your limits. Create boundaries. Because when something no longer aligns with your values or your purpose, you should be able to walk away with grace without feeling trapped.

You also need to be clear about why you’re building what you’re building. You must be able to see the benefit to the people you want to serve. Everyone calls me a founder, but the truth is my job is to serve. I serve my community, and without that act of service, there is no business.

So be determined. Know your purpose. And choose yourself every single time.

GS: I’m absolutely stealing that. It’s one of the most powerful ways I’ve ever heard someone reframe rejection.

TS: Honestly, at this point I go into conversations expecting the no! So when someone says yes, I’m almost shocked in a good way. I even have my standard “thank you anyway” email ready to go. But that’s the point: you don’t let the no’s stop you. You use them to keep going.

GS: And finally, what’s next for Tailored Futures? What future are you building toward for your children, your community, and the people you support?
TS: For my children, my hope is simple: I want them to fully understand their own power. I want them to see themselves the way I see them beautiful, smart, kind, lovable, and deserving of the best things in this world. I want them to reach a place where nobody can tell them who they are, because they already know. They come from a lineage of strong people, and I want that strength to carry them through anything life puts in their way.

For Tailored Futures, the next chapter is Reintegrate Me. We launched it on Tuesday which was incredible and then, right after the launch, we uncovered a problem we now have to solve. That’s the journey. It’s been quiet, and I won’t lie: it’s been demoralising. I’ve felt sad these past few days. But I also know this feeling is temporary. This too shall pass. What matters now is getting Reintegrate Me to a place where people are using it, benefiting from it, and seeing real change in their lives.

And for the people I serve? I want the world to see them as human again. I want them to be given real opportunities, not just second chances, but new beginnings. Because if prison is truly meant for rehabilitation and resettlement, then when someone has served their time, we must believe that they are new. We must believe they have reformed. We cannot keep holding their past against them while claiming we believe in redemption.

So the future I’m building is one where my children know their worth, my community gets the tools they deserve, and the people I support are finally seen not as labels, but as human beings.

Titi's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/-ma-ba-hons-872604b6/

Tailored Future Website: https://tailoredfutures.org/

Author: Gaurav Sood, Co-founder, Circe