“We wanted to recreate the excitement of shopping abroad,” says Natalie LaChall, co-founder of Secret Ships, a caravan-webshop one-two punch inspired by its creators’ lifelong wanderlust. (Co-founder Sara Hartmann has visited 40 countries, while LaChall did a stint in a traveling circus. “The plans for our caravan were inspired by the caravan for the sideshow she was in,” Hartmann says.)
This isn’t just any import business. “While I was taking time out last winter in Mexico, I had the idea to import in a way that was actually design-oriented,” Hartmann recalls. “I pitched Natalie on the idea, and we shook on it right away.” Offerings include clothing that LaChall designs and sews using globally sourced textiles like Dutch Wax and hand-loomed Guatemalan ikat, alongside home goods, jewelry and other treasures Hartmann picks up in her travels.
Browse the goods online, or find the stylish caravan at local outdoor markets; SoWa’s weekly market is a favorite destination. But the duo can’t set up shop just anywhere. “It’s actually still not legal to have a retail truck that’s not a food truck, so, for now, we’re limited to private spaces, not public city streets,” Hartmann explains, although she hopes Mayor Marty Walsh may change that.
They’ve kept the caravan close to home while getting a feel for the business, but it will clock plenty of miles in the next year or two; Secret Ships will set sail on a New England college campus tour, and LaChall is looking forward to hitting destinations like New York and music festivals like SXSW and Bonnaroo.
On their style…
- “I try to collect unique accessories when I travel. Wearing a lot of black helps my finds stand out,” Hartmann says. Hence her monochrome look: an Emerson Fry tunic and a skirt she made herself, paired with bracelets hand-woven in Mali by Tuareg women.
- “I love visiting junk shops and antique stores,” LaChall says. The petticoat peeking out from her Secret Ships dress is a thrift-shop find; the boots come from a New Jersey square dancing store.
Dressed for Success
The founders of five new fashion ventures share their stories—and style.
By Renata Certo-Ware | Photo Credit: Holly Rike | June 20, 2014
Tiana Haraguchi – Boutikey
The idea for Boutikey was born from Tiana Haraguchi’s love of shopping—and a subpar experience she had doing just that at a favorite boutique, where she ended up paying full price during a major sale because of a miscommunication. She left a stable job in corporate finance to found the app, which gives local stores a platform for sharing sales and event info with shoppers, who in turn rack up reward points and discover new boutiques and merch. The launch wasn’t without its challenges; Haraguchi admits to learning more about business in the first three months at Boutikey than she had in three years in finance.
“There is definitely competition for attention,” she says. “Store owners get hit up by 20 different companies a day—tech companies, designers and reps, and more.” Some boutiques had to be wooed to sign up, so Haraguchi offered a free trial. Now Boutikey has nearly 70 stores on board, ranging from clothing and accessories shops to decor, jewelry and beauty purveyors. Version 2.0 debuts in July with a sleeker design and new features, like advanced searches and direct messaging to boutique owners. Also on the horizon: Boutikey is slated to debut a shopping platform for retail partners by summer’s end, and Haraguchi hopes to add two new cities to the mix in coming months.
On her style…
By Renata Certo-Ware | Photo Credit: Holly Rike
Sara Hartmann + Natalie Lachall – Secret Ships
“We wanted to recreate the excitement of shopping abroad,” says Natalie LaChall, co-founder of Secret Ships, a caravan-webshop one-two punch inspired by its creators’ lifelong wanderlust. (Co-founder Sara Hartmann has visited 40 countries, while LaChall did a stint in a traveling circus. “The plans for our caravan were inspired by the caravan for the sideshow she was in,” Hartmann says.)
This isn’t just any import business. “While I was taking time out last winter in Mexico, I had the idea to import in a way that was actually design-oriented,” Hartmann recalls. “I pitched Natalie on the idea, and we shook on it right away.” Offerings include clothing that LaChall designs and sews using globally sourced textiles like Dutch Wax and hand-loomed Guatemalan ikat, alongside home goods, jewelry and other treasures Hartmann picks up in her travels.
Browse the goods online, or find the stylish caravan at local outdoor markets; SoWa’s weekly market is a favorite destination. But the duo can’t set up shop just anywhere. “It’s actually still not legal to have a retail truck that’s not a food truck, so, for now, we’re limited to private spaces, not public city streets,” Hartmann explains, although she hopes Mayor Marty Walsh may change that.
They’ve kept the caravan close to home while getting a feel for the business, but it will clock plenty of miles in the next year or two; Secret Ships will set sail on a New England college campus tour, and LaChall is looking forward to hitting destinations like New York and music festivals like SXSW and Bonnaroo.
On their style…
By Renata Certo-Ware | Photo Credit: Holly Rike
Sam Fishman – Stede Threads
“There’s a sentimental feel for skateboards,” Sam Fishman says. “You go through a journey with each board—you landed a certain trick, or you were in a special place. But if you’re skating a lot, you go through a lot and they stack up, so they are really just bound for the landfill.” He’s hoping to change that with Stede Threads, his new headwear line aimed at the tightknit skater scene. Each piece features a laser-cut wooden label made from recycled skateboard decks, sewn on by Fishman himself.
He started the project through Emerson’s E3 entrepreneurship program, a launchpad for the likes of Roxy’s Grilled Cheese. The 22-year-old marketing communications major is quick to call it the best thing he’s done in college. “The founder of E3, Karl Baehr, passed away this fall while the program was already underway,” Fishman explains. “It was challenging to stay afloat through that loss.” But he kept at it, earning second place—scoring grant money and mentoring—at this spring’s ninth annual E3 Expo with a project that reflects his passion for the skateboarding community. “We’re of a different breed. People don’t really understand how we can put our bodies on the line for something that seems meaningless, but for us it’s all about progression, and it drives me to explore the world.”
On his style…
By Renata Certo-Ware | Photo Credit: Holly Rike
Bridgette Hylton – ShopRagHouse
Along with fellow Harvard Law School grad Joana Florez, Bridgette Hylton launched ShopRagHouse to give would-be fashion designers a way to bring their sketches to life. “Personal style and preference should be the driving force of fashion,” Hylton explains, citing that infamous “blue sweater” scene from The Devil Wears Prada as an example of everything wrong with the fashion industry. “Why should a select few dictate what’s in style?”
Billing itself alternately as a “virtual Project Runway” and a “Kickstarter for fashion,” ShopRagHouse allows users to submit their own sketches or pledge on user-submitted work, determining which designs will get put into production. From there, Florez and Hylton do the legwork, sourcing materials, finding manufacturers and negotiating deals.
Contestants span demographics and are scattered across the globe; outside of Massachusetts, the most enthusiastic member base is in the UK, and one very active member is a 16-year-old boy from Singapore.
So have the founders tried their hand at it? You bet—and, naturally, they left decisions on the fabric and finish for their designs up to the crowd. “We want to give people a sense of ownership: This dress is here because of me, and my opinion was heard,” Hylton says. “If we have allowed someone to feel that way, we have done our job and we are happy.”
On her style…
By Renata Certo-Ware | Photo Credit: Holly Rike
Jessie Ammons-Carswell + Casey Desmond – ABNDN
Each piece from ABNDN, the aptly named jewelry, accessories and clothing line from Casey Desmond and Jessie Ammons-Carswell, begins with a journey. The daring duo take to forgotten corners to source skeleton keys, antique chains and other found materials to incorporate into their designs—and their treasure hunts through the woods and over asylum walls have gotten them into situations they could never have prepared for.
“One day we were walking through the basement of an asylum that has since been completely cleared out. I kicked something and looked down to see what it was. It was a grenade. Luckily it had already been detonated,” Desmond recalls. “Sometimes we come across people, too, who are squatting in an abandoned space. We try to respect each other, because we are all doing something illegal,” Ammons-Carswell adds. “We haven’t gotten into trouble yet, but we have had several very close calls. Luckily, we’ve gotten good at pulling off the whole nonchalant ‘Who, me?’”
Their process guarantees that each piece will be unique, but mystique isn’t their only motivation for upcycling. “There’s more than enough landfill on the face of the planet,” Ammons-Carswell explains. “So we’re doing our part to enjoy style and dressing up, without making the planet sicker than it already is.”
On their style…
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