We recently connected with Emily Grummel and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Emily thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

At first I was selling my clothes just for extra cash. I didn’t really think about starting a business out of it until I started to see the demand it was creating for me. I have 10+ years of fashion retail experience and so I had the inventory available, along with the knowledge of how to sell clothing. I started to brainstorm what my niche would be, and came up with The Design Movement. An inclusive sustainability brand. My objective was providing quality second hand garments to my clients while offering services such as styling. To begin I started using family and friends as my clients to get the word out. I offered discounted styling services in exchange for an honest review. I started to build my client base and my inventory. It took some time to curate the type of items that I wanted to offer in my store. I was able to take my time while sourcing and come up with some really great pieces to sell. This helped build more traction to my shop. The biggest take aways that I have from launching my business is to be consistent. Things take time, and as long as you are showing up every day to put in the work you will see the results that you want to achieve. Make sure you set yourself apart in your own unique way, it’s easier to build genuine connections and relationships among your clients that will make them want to keep shopping with you.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Emily, and my business is called The Design Movement. The Design Movement came about when I started selling my clothes online for extra money in 2015. I was going to a music festival and just wanted some extra cash. I had heard about a platform called Poshmark and decided to check it out. At the time I was working in retail and was accumulating a ton of clothes, and so it made sense to filter them through for others to enjoy while making some extra cash. After spending some time selling and seeing the demand, I got the idea to create a brand that was about sustainability and styling. I wanted to give my clients an experience that they would enjoy when shopping with me. So I started The Design Movement which essentially brings together fashion and sustainability, and offers an inclusive shopping experience for all sizes. We also provide styling services that we can help our shoppers build a wardrobe, or just find something for a particular occasion. As of 2024 we have started to expand into self care and are offering handcrafted beauty products such as Goat milk soaps, body scrubs, bath bombs, and rice heating pads. The Design Movement is about creating a sustainable lifestyle with what you have. Building a wardrobe that is unique to you, while adding in self care products because when you look good you feel good!

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

My side hustle was clearing out my closet to make some extra money. At the time I thought it was a great idea to clear out space, make some extra money and give my clothes that I don’t wear often to a new home. Having years of retail experience under my belt I had accumulated a large wardrobe so it just made sense. My first customers were most of my friends, and then word of mouth began to spread about what I was doing. I started to get messages about donating clothes to me, or could I style them, or did I have this type of item available, It had become a revolving door. I started to experiment with different ideas that I had to see what worked and what didn’t. I started a styling service for friends and would thrift a wardrobe for them. What was so fun for me was the adventure of finding things at the thrifts. You really never knew what you were going to find. The more that I was doing, the more I realized that I could really make this into a business. I started doing research on brands, and fabrics, and styles and all of the things that people look into when purchasing clothing. I began to grow my knowledge around these things, and started exploring new areas of sourcing. I was able to provide an even more inclusive service to my clients at this point, and really started to see big growth. The biggest milestone for me during all of this was seeing my success in the numbers. Numbers don’t lie, and that was encouraging to see the reflection of my work in that way. It made me hungry for more and to keep going. The greatest take away that I have from all of this is that I am able to shift things as needed to remain relevant and keep building.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

What has helped me build my reputation within my market is a few things. The first is the years of experience working in retail management I developed a strong sense of community and building relationships with customers to provide them with everything they were looking for, and what they didn’t know they needed. This skill was sharpened and gave me the ability to build relationships with my clients today. When you have a great experience you share that with others, and it becomes a game of telephone as you continue to deliver consistent excellent high level customer service. I take my time and examine every single product I sell before introducing it to my shoppers, I do not sell anything that is not going to provide them multiple wears and years of love. I get to know what they are looking for, who they are, their style and what they might want to explore but never really could figure out how to. I become that person for them. I give them an experience. Every sale is carefully and thoughtfully packaged. My mission statement is about providing sustainability. That goes beyond just the products that I am selling, but the relationships that I am building along the way as well. Finally, I would say my reputation has been built on my consistency. I am always working to learn different techniques and skills to add to my business. I believe by showing up everyday and putting in the work I am able to provide the results that I want to see.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://poshmark.com/closet/thedesignmvmt
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.design.mvmt