Spirit of 608: Fashion, Entrepreneurship, Sustainability + Tech: 132: Why Running a Fashion Business Isn't as Glamorous As it Seems And What You Can Do About It with Successful Fashion Designer's Sew Heidi

132: Why Running a Fashion Business Isn't as Glamorous As it Seems And What You Can Do About It with Successful Fashion Designer's Sew Heidi

Mar 6, 2018

In rethinking goals news, we have an episode this week diving into a different way to be a fashion designer than we typically talk about on the Spirit of 608 podcast. Yes, it's true, we're so often focused on building a business that involves a standalone brands with its own products and services. But this week's guest is here to tell us how she uses her designer skills to get freelance work that allows her to do her job anywhere she wants (even in a few gorg tropical locales) while also building an online biz that helps others follow in her well-heeled footsteps.

Meet this week's guest, Sew Heidi, Founder of Successful Fashion Designer.

What you'll learn

Running a business isn't as glamorous as it seems. It might not be the right choice for everybody. As Heidi says, it certainly wasn't for her. She tells us, "I actually hated running because at the end of the day, I wasn't even designing anymore... I was doing sales, inventory, dealing with customer service issues." Get some real talk from Heidi this week, as she shares her less-than-stellar experience starting a company - and how walking away led her to what she was truly meant to do.

How you'll be inspired

It's easy to think hitting the goals you have in mind for yourself will lead to happiness. But sometimes, you get there, and the reality is a far cry from what you'd imagined. Listen to the show to hear how Heidi walked away from her own fashion brand to design in-house for another company, then ultimately decided she needed an entirely different direction that, while not her original goal, ended up being an entirely better fit.

What you'll tell your friends

So did you know that pricing yourself too low can mean even fewer customers than you'd find if you only charged more? And then there's this: if you're stuck making next to nothing for hard work, you're not actually stuck. There are a number of ways to change the relationship and get paid rates that will actually help you sustain your lifestyle. We get some negotiating tips from Heidi, as she shares some techniques to help you avoid pricing yourself too low.

Resource of the week

Calendly: An oldie but a goodie, because this has definitely come up more than once before. Heidi is yet another FEST entrepreneur who swears by Calendly. She's not one to use a ton of apps, but her busy schedule depends on this one.