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Archive for Apparel/Accessories – Page 17

Simple Sugars

Posted by Herschel Miller

· Monday, December 15th, 2014

· No Comments

In December 2005, Lani Lazzari was 11 years old and was prone to ecezema breakouts, which means she had very sensitive skin and was unable to use normal makeup or commercially produced facial product without experiencing skin irritation or a major rash. She decided to make an all natural skin care product that would be safe for sensitive skin, and she did research and found sugar was useful in taking off dead skin cells and was very safe to use. In 2013, Lani appeared on Shark Tank and acquired an investment From Mark Cuban. This has proven to be very beneficial to the business, it has grown into 700 retail locations and employs 22 people. The products are made in Pittsburgh PA.

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Categories : Apparel/Accessories

Live Intense

Posted by Wesley Suplit

· Monday, December 15th, 2014

· 2 Comments

Man goes to psychologist. Says he’s having a reoccurring dream where he turns into a teepee, then a wigwam, then a teepee, then a wigwam. What does it mean, doc? Doc says: “I think you are too intense”

Live Intense is a t-shirt design business that seeks to inspire people to “To live life with intent, passion, integrity, and to live it well.” (Live Intense Website) Started by a former teacher and friend, Greg Shepler and team. It has a similar vibe as Life is Good, but it seeks to convey a message that includes Christ. The team wanted a way to impact the community in a positive way, as well as being able to be a part of local ministries.

Essentially, they are based on a few motto’s like “Live Intense,” “Live Loyal,” “Live Ablaze,” and “Live Beautiful.” The shirts they make are representative of the themes and motto’s they convey.

“Live Intense started in 2011 when three guys with college degrees had nothing better to do than change the world. Ever since its inception, the goal of Live Intense is to promote an active and more fulfilling lifestyle. Whether you enjoy the outdoors, or love community, we promote both! Join us as we reconnect our global society with local community.” (liveintense.squarespace.com)

Interestingly, Live Intense has not iinnovated the t-shirt business, but they are able to run a sustainable business based around a story. A story of inspiration, love and encouragement.

2 Comments

Categories : Apparel/Accessories

United by Blue

Posted by Rebekah Fry

· Friday, December 12th, 2014

· 1 Comment

Founded in 2010, United by Blue is a Philadelphia based company that produces responsible & durable goods with a mission to keep the beautiful outdoors clean and ready for life’s next adventure.

“We believe that every living creature is united by the blue of our world’s oceans and waterways and we all have the responsibility to protect them.”

UBB uses only sustainable materials to make each product while donating their time to environmental action with each purchase. “For every product sold, UBB removes one pound of trash from oceans and waterways through company organized and hosted cleanups.”

Located in Old City, Philadelphia, they “use re-purposed materials…creat[ing] a space that mixes [their] complete line of apparel and accessories with a full-fledged coffeehouse serving up some of the city’s finest organic coffee and food.”

Their brand mainly focuses on producing outdoor apparel that will withstand continuous adventure. “We’re inspired by the go-getters, the landscape around the waters we clean, and a really good cup of pour over coffee.”

In the everyday clutter, for-profit businesses must stand above the competition. United by Blue captured the essence of putting a twist on the common retailer. I’m inspired by their mission to make the world a better place through sustainable materials. The millennial generation loves supporting causes and identifying with products, companies, organizations, etc. who contribute more than the banality of the everyday. These young entrepreneurs desire to not only share their passion for sustainable goods, but also give back to our community and earth. With countless other one-for-one businesses, UBB promises to support not just monetarily, but by giving their time as well.

To learn more about their company please visit http://unitedbyblue.com/pages/about-us.

#bluemovement

1 Comment

Categories : Apparel/Accessories, Clean water, Great Ideas, Online Companies

Dream Closet?

Posted by Elaina Kimpel

· Saturday, November 15th, 2014

· 5 Comments

Now ladies, how many times have you seen a dress watching the VMA’s, Red Carpet Awards, Counrty Music Awards, or any other awards show that you wish you could just wear it for one night? Are you jealous of the guys being able to rent their tuxes for one night and returning it the next day while you have to buy a dress that you probably won’t even wear again? Would you love the idea of getting expensive dresses for cheap by only renting them for a night? Well Jennifer Hyman was thinking the exact same thing and thought of a way to fix that. She created Rent the Runway. On the website it says:

“Rent the Runway is a fashion company with a technology soul. Powered by a transformative business model, proprietary technology, a unique reverse-logistics operation and some of the smartest people on earth, we’re in a position to challenge old systems and rewrite new rules. By giving people access to remarkable luxury experiences, we’re changing the meaning of ownership — and revolutionizing retail in the process.”

Hyman compares her business to one of your best friends, only with a much bigger closet. I don’t know about you but I always love borrowing my friends clothes. Once you get online the overall all process is really simple. You can start by setting up the date for which you need the dress, accessories if you would like too, then look through their collection for your rental day. Next narrow it down by designer, price, length, or whatever you like to find the perfect outfit. After that you book the outfit for a 4 or 8 day rental period and it should come in 1 or 2 days before your event. For that one night you can feel like a princess and return it the next day in their pre-paid envelope they already provided you with. You don’t even have to dry clean it or anything because they will take care of that for you. The only thing Rent the Runway asks you to do is to upload a photo online and review the dress on their website so others can see how fabulous the dress was.

When Hyman first suggested her idea of Rent the Runway to a boardroom full of partners at a big-time Boston venture capital firm, one of the of the men interrupted her and said, “You are just too cute. You get this big closet and get to play with all these dresses and can wear whatever you want. This must be so much fun!” Thinking that comment would stop her from making Rent the Runway, this only made her want to pursue the idea even more and I’m glad she did. Rent the Runway is such a creative and innovative idea because no one has done this before. I have always been interested in the idea of clothing and fashion for starting my own business so it is an inspiration for myself that even though she was shut down at first, she kept going and created something amazing. I will for sure be using Rent the Runway for different special occasions in the up coming future and suggesting it to all the girls I know. Thanks for reading and happy blogging!

5 Comments

Categories : Apparel/Accessories, Beauty, Fashion, Great Ideas, Millennial Enrepreneuers, Technology, Uncategorized

Gianna Fair Trade

Posted by Elaina Kimpel

· Friday, October 31st, 2014

· 3 Comments

Gianna’s life wasn’t all smiles in the beginning like you see her now. When she was young her parents were divorced and she ended up living in a woman’s shelter for a while. Even though she did not know at the time, through the shelter was where she would find her passion for women’s empowerment and equality. Gianna knew education was her way out of the poverty and studied hard so she could get out. She worked so hard that she went to college at the age of 16 and was the first of her family to go. After she graduated she move to San Francisco and worked in commercial insurance. However, she wasn’t doing what she loved. She wanted to help empower women abroad and women who had similar situations to her mother. So in 2005, Gianna Fair Trade was created.

Gianna Fair Trade is a website where people are able to buy scarves and shawls, home accents, and living room and bedroom pillows. A lot of these items are made buy woman all over the world. Her website tells us, “We work with severely disadvantaged artisans around the world who typically live in rural poor villages or urban slums. GIANNA provides sustainable opportunities for meaningful work and on-going support, giving artisans a means to improve their lives and achieve their dreams.” Gianna travels to go meet with different groups around the world and if they truly have a passion to work hard and improve their lives and the lives in their communities, she discusses what their needs, fair trade, and other matters specific to their village are and then decides whether to work with them or not. Whenever you buy an item, the woman who made the product receive between 25 percent and 58 percent of the retail prices of their products. You are not only helping Gianna and her business, but you are helping send someone’s child to school, helping someone get food, or helping a person around the world in another way.

Although there are only a few things that are being sold, what Gianna Fair Trade does have is very stylish and cute for woman who are interested in scarves and shawls, home accents, and living room and bedroom pillows. My sister is getting married soon so maybe I’ll have to buy her something off of there so I can not only help my sister’s sense of style, but help another woman or community around the world in need. I found the website to be easy to navigate around and I could find anything I wanted without a problem. Definitely check it out and have your mother’s and grandmother’s look at it too! Thanks for reading, happy blogging!

3 Comments

Categories : Apparel/Accessories, Fashion, Millennial Enrepreneuers, Uncategorized

Sweaters Anonymous

Posted by Kate Albers

· Saturday, October 11th, 2014

· 4 Comments

This is a really cool story about a young entrepreneur that I wanted to share with everybody. Sarah Gehman, a good friend who I grew up knowing in high school, and ALSO my roommate’s sister, began this business in 2012. Sarah is a missionary with the world’s biggest Christian mission organization, YWAM. Her job title is “Social media/marketing manager and photographer for the Ekballo Project. She is currently based out of the YWAM base is Kona, Hawaii. Sarah raises all her own money and one of the biggest things that she did to do this was through Sweaters Anonymous. It all began with her love of shopping at thrift stores. One day she realized that that she should try to turn this small obsession into something practical and decided that this could be a way to raise money for her YWAM trips. How this business works is that Sarah travels to various thrift stores and purchases used and sometimes new sweaters. Instead of regularly pricing the sweaters, she lists them on her website; http://sweatersanonymous.com/ and instead of pricing each sweater individually, she asks for a donation, so whatever a person is willing to give she will take. It is definitely a unique way to run a business. Sarah has been extremely successful, and she gives all of the credit to the Lord. Sarah quotes: “God is such a good God, and he doesn’t call us to do something that he won’t provide for”. To give an example of Sarah’s success, she has sold over 100 sweaters and has made 3,000 thousand dollars. Sarah has her own personal website, as well as a facebook page that she advertises these sweaters on. Check out Sarah’s Sweaters!

4 Comments

Categories : Apparel/Accessories, Fashion, Great Ideas, Vintage, Vintage Clothing

Aaron Firestein – Bucketfeet

Posted by Zack Unkenholz

· Monday, October 6th, 2014

· 5 Comments

bucketfeet-40

Aaron Firestein(28) loved to draw designs on converse and other kinds of shoes. He would take out some sharpies and draw designs on shoes and sell them to his friends. After he graduated he took his sharpie collection and went to Argentina to learn spanish. While there, he met Raaja Nemani, a man who graduated as an economics major. They met while volunteering at a children’s home in Argentina. Firestein sold Nemani a pair of his custom designed shoes, a pair of hand-drawn shoes that would be the beginning of an amazing business. One year later in the city of Chicago they officially started “Bucketfeet.”

Bucketfeet is a business that sells shoes with designs made by street artists from all around the world. Each artist is payed $250 for their design and receives a royalty of $1 for each pair sold. The business helps artists to showcase their art to the world and to allow them to keep doing what they love. One artists from Brazil said “It is amazing to think that my artwork is being worn around the world. There are over 50 people in Japan wearing my design right now.”

Bucketfeet’s philosophy is that art is expression and that everyone deserves to express themselves in their own way. They believe art breaks cultural barriers, brings people together, and that it tells a story. The company shares the stories of their artists and encourage their consumers to find an artist that that they can connect with. People can express themselves through the designs created by the artists. Firestein and Nemani also donate a portion of their profits to children’s shelters around the world because children have always been important to them and because that was were there both met.

What started as a small college business has become something global because of Firestein’s love for art and culture. The business he started really expresses the idea that art is for everyone. He and Nemani have empowered artist everywhere to show the world what they can do. The business started in 2011 and in the year 2013 sales totaled about $1 million. The business is growing immensely now that they are being sold in Nordstrom stores across the United States.

5 Comments

Categories : Apparel/Accessories, Art, Fashion

Stinky Feet Gurlz?

Posted by Elaina Kimpel

· Friday, October 3rd, 2014

· 4 Comments

When I first came across the name “Stinky Feet Gurlz” I was like “Yes! Something that I can put in my track shoes for when it rains and they are smelly”. Little did I know that this company had nothing at all to do with smelly shoes or feet at all. Stinky Feet Gurlz is a business that was created by Asya Gonzalez at the 14 that involves apparel and accessory items. These items are fun, simple, and cute clothes and accessories is designs based off of the 1940’s. These clothes and accessories include t-shirts and a different variety of knitted hats.

Aside from the clothing and accessories, Gonzalez reaches out to people all over the country. She speaks to large groups of students and teachers about following their dreams with Independent Youth; a peer-to-peer mentorship program that empowers today’s teens to become tomorrow’s business leaders. She also is actively involved in being a teen radio host that gives teens advice and talks about almost anything.

Other than running her own business at a young age, talking to people about following their dreams, and speaking on a radio show, another thing that makes Gonzalez unique is that she donates a little bit from ever sale to her charity She Is Worth It!. This charity is about bringing people aware of child sex slavery. She Is Worth It’s goal is to “have an educational program in EVERY school across America exposing the dangers of trafficking, warning girls that these Pimps are calling themselves “boyfriends” and what our youth and our public MUST know to alert to the issues.” I think this is so awesome because after recently watching that video about this topic last week, it is a true motivation to see that someone so young is supporting such a great cause.

If you think any of Asya Gonzalez items are cute, I think you should definitely invest in her products! Not only are you supporting her growing business and getting cute items, you are supporting to the cause of raising awareness about human trafficking. Happy Blogging!

4 Comments

Categories : Apparel/Accessories, Beauty, Fashion, Great Ideas, Jewelry, Millennial Enrepreneuers, Uncategorized

>>>>>>>>Arrowberry

Posted by Ellen Glenn

· Thursday, October 2nd, 2014

· 2 Comments

Arrowberry was founded in 2014 by Desiree Curran, wife to Jim and mother of two munchkins, James (3) and Ivy (1). With a love for crafts and her kids, Des discovered a beautiful way to combine both passions in Arrowberry, a modern, handmade collection of adorable children’s wear. The crafting of Arrowberry began when Des was 14 when she bought her first sewing machine. She had always loved crafting and the machine opened up a whole new world of patterns, prints, and designs to explore! She taught herself — trial and error, manual books and Project RunWay. By her senior year of high school her sewing skills played a fundamental role in her senior project for which she created a women’s line of clothing inspired by menswear.

A few years ago, Des was introduced to Etsy by a friend and she jumped at the opportunity to sell her hobby. Her first endeavor was a brand called MoonCloth, a line of accessories for women and children. By the end of the year one of her scarfs was advertised on a German blog featuring a “Top Ten Items for Christmas” list. That’s when she knew she had to go all in.

Two little tots later, Des launched James+Ivy, a microfashion boutique. (Seriously, go look at her kids and these clothes – they are the most adorable things on the planet.) Des had found her niche. Eventually, she decided to rebrand the company and Arrowberry bloomed. Arrowberry is a cohesive collection of her creations. The brand focuses on combining textiles and textures to doll up your little ones.

Photo – One Way Street Production – www.onewaystreetproduction.com

But let’s talk about the name, what might be my favorite part! A professing Christian, Des creatively chose this name based off Psalm 127 which says, “Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from Him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them…” And so, Arrow. But that wasn’t enough. She needed something that connected to her, her home, her kids… Berries! A dinner time staple! >>>>>>>> Arrowberry

Her parents invested $100. She even carved her own stamp into a Pink eraser to cut costs! To Des, entrepreneurship means “working your butt off for something you really believe in.” Her design speaks a modern voice of organic colors and bold patterns. Her target customers are young mothers. Best of all her prices are great ranging between $5-$15.

When I spoke with Des about her Arrowberry vision she said, “My plan for the future is to pray. A lot. And to build my brand through Instagram and social media… I would love to continue doing this full time, though my children, my arrows, are my highest priority… I have an incredible support system in my husband, my parents and family, and my irreplaceable friendships. That’s all matters when you’re starting a business.”

Des’s story is inspirational to me because she is doing what she loves! She found a way to enjoy her passion and provide the most adorable bibs for moms. Take a moment to check out her work!

Arrowberry Etsy | Facebook | Instagram

2 Comments

Categories : Apparel/Accessories