We recently connected with Sara Autrey and have shared our conversation below.
Sara, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One deeply underappreciated facet of entrepreneurship is the kind of crazy stuff we have to deal with as business owners. Sometimes it’s crazy positive sometimes it’s crazy negative, but crazy experiences unite entrepreneurs regardless of industry. Can you share a crazy story with our readers?
The wildest thing that ever happened to me as a business owner was accidentally getting photographed by a famous photographer and being plastered onto billboards and commercials for Baltimore. It all stemmed from me rushing through my emails, glossing over details being relayed to me in said emails, and agreeing to far too many things. As a business owner, sometimes you feel the need to say yes to every offer extended to you- speaking at a school, doing interviews, photoshoots, lending garments, vending at events, to name a few. This was the case for me in my first two years in business, as I was trying SO hard to carve out a spot for myself in the business landscape in Baltimore- which can be, to put it mildly, quite challenging. The email read something to the effect of “Do you want to get your picture taken for a campaign” and I didn’t read the rest of the email before responding “Sure!”. Next thing I know, Devin Allen, a Baltimore photographer with a few Times Magazine covers under his belt, was in my little basement vintage shot taking pictures of me wearing a brown polyester bell bottom pantsuit. I looked like Willy Wonka, and didn’t really understand (or think to ask) what the pictures were for. Turns out, they were for a massive Visit Baltimore campaign, which meant I was on billboards from Boston to Washington DC, as well as on banner flags all over the Inner Harbor in downtown Baltimore. I was also somehow in some commercials promoting tourism and small businesses to Baltimore. So many of my friends up and down the coast would send me pictures of myself in train stations etc, and it was an incredibly wild experience. Im glad I didn’t understand what was happening until it happened, because I might have tried to edit myself or take it too seriously. Not grasping the situation allowed me to fully be myself, uninhibited, and make a really great impression on a ton of people up and down the East Coast. I also felt like a true hometown hero success story as someone who built her business from nothing and within two years was on billboards as one of the faces of Baltimore. SCORE! CRAZY!
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?
Im a 34 year old Virginia to Baltimore transplant. In my first 10 years in Baltimore I worked for almost every worthwhile restaurant as a bartender in between touring the US with my band Wing Dam. During this time I descended into active alcoholism and then got sober in 2016. Once I was all sobered up and not actively wasted, it was pretty easy for me to notice that bartending or being in bars every night with my band was not my choice career path. However, as a college music student drop out in a city with very few decent jobs, my options were incredibly limited. I decided to pivot my know-how as an event planner and promoter for my band, my pretty well-known out of control style, my sober alcoholic work ethic, and my food service people pleasing vibe tech skills into a retail venture. As a practice, I did a vintage pop up at an art market, just to see how it would go. I almost sold out of everything I brought, and loads of people asked if I had a shop where they could come shop more. Enough said, yall! In an “I just drank a pot of coffee” daze one day, I applied for a retail space just down the street from my house and got accepted. Once that acceptance rolled in I knew there was no turning back. I googled “how to start a business in Maryland”, borrowed $7k from my in-laws, and got to work. Every article of clothing, home good, and item in my shop passes through me & my wildly discerning scrutiny before making it to the sales floor. I stock only vintage clothing mostly from the 1950s-1970s (from back when it was made to LAST), wild retro decor, and handmade goods made by everyone but cis white hetero men. I try to stay as local as possible, to make a more sustainable economy for makers trying to hack it in Baltimore City. Local pop-up markets are held at the shop, and usually include a sick local DJ, fun drinks, sales, and lots of small makers that I want my audience to know about. I feel really lucky that I managed to make my business work, and want to help as many people as I can who are trying to do the same. It feels awesome to sell rad unique items while not adding to the environmental devastation & ethical nightmares of fast fashion, and at a pretty affordable rate too. My favorite part of my job is the treasure hunt, as well as helping people find clothes that really let them feel like their most authentic selves.
Have you ever had to pivot?
At the start of the pandemic, like most businesses across the world, I had to close the doors to my shop. This meant I had to pivot to selling mostly online, using Instagram & Etsy. I put most of my inventory online, which is an astonishing amount of work. Not only did I move my business to the internet temporarily before we re-opened, I started sewing masks. I mean I. SEWED. MASSSSSSKS. Thousands of them. I made a ton to donate, and brought a bunch to protests etc to hand out for safety. I also slapped some fringe on one of mine and took a picture and the internet lost its mind- everyone wanted one. This was a huge blessing- it kept me so busy, sewing for 10-12 hours a day- keeping my business afloat and keeping me occupied or else I would have snapped under the weight of the world.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Honestly, I think being a real human being as the face of my business made it super relatable and likeable. I share stories of interactions with customers, my struggles, what’s going on in my life- as well as the usual “here’s the beautiful stuff I have for yall to buy” content. I also think our willingness to use our platform to promote small makers and get to know Baltimore better hasnt hurt at all. That and fundraising for causes that people care about- people seem to really like and support people who are decent and funny and charitable (oh humble me, but for real!). The best part is that my business is also just who I am, an extension of me. So I get to live the dream!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.getshreddedvintage.com
- Instagram: @getshreddedvintage
- Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/GetShreddedVintage
Image Credits
The photo of me in a plaid dress running across the street is by E. Brady Robinson, all others by Sara Autrey