We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Meredith Perrotto a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Meredith, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’ve love to hear an interesting investment story – what was one of the best or worst investments you’ve made? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)

The best investment you can make is in yourself and your employees. I am a firm believer that most of my success is because I believed in myself and continued to invest in myself and my business over and over and over again; until things finally took off and started to really become a “business”. Being an artist is a hard job because we have to constantly conquer feelings of self doubt and instability – while continuing to hold hope that people will buy my art and I am worthy.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Our company offers an array of custom dyed and printed garments. We work with a team of seamstresses across the country and other textile professionals to bring our clients truly one of a kind garments that don’t just look amazing, feel amazing, make our clients feel great when they wear them and last for years to come. Artist, Meredith Perrotto, has been sewing since she was old enough to hold a needle.. and fashion has always been in the for front of her mind. She began creating and selling her own hand sewn garments when she was in high school but this was just the start.
Each aspect of the company is overseen by her with sustainability and “eco fashion foot print” in mind. Each piece of Soul Shine Tie Dye is dyed in our dye house by her.
Not only do we have our own line of SOUL SHINE Tie Dyes available from our online and brick and mortar factory store; we also work with a number of commercial vendors to bring a unique style to there own brands. Soul Shine is the mastermind behind many childrens clothing lines, athletic apparel fashion and unique small business branding. Our dyes can be seen in stores all over the country.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

The Washer Machine Fiasco As Soul Shine grew it became evident that our home studio space was no longer meeting our needs. And by needs.. I mean we needed a LOT of washer machines and we just couldn’t fit anymore…
We began searching for our new home in 2021 with an idea that we would build a studio that would perfectly fit our washing, drying and printing needs… but with orders rolling in and a big business deal on the line we needed to find washers and we needed them NOW!
We started bringing our dyes to our local laundromats by the 100s. After many trial and error trips to the laundromat and lots of angry laundromat owners (… because lets face it… a girl with 100 tie dyes is NOT someone you want in your laundromat..) We finally found a local laundry that would allow us to wash our dyes in certain machines, at certain times of the day… for about a year I personally hauled every dye out of our second story shop and into my mini van and off to the local laundromat. I personally feel that this perseverance and dedication is why I am successful now and was eventually able to build my dream studio with all the washers and dryers I need.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I just want to spread rainbows and make people happy. I hope when people see my art or wear my art they feel good. They feel happy. There is so much therapy in color. Therapy for me as the artist who creates the pieces and therapy for those who wear my work. A lot of people are in a dark place… I hope my rainbows can shed some light on that for them.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.soulshinemaine.com
• Instagram: @soulshinemaine
• Facebook: soul shine tie dye
• Other: etsy shop: soul shine maine

Image Credits
Sarah York; Soul Shine Tie Dye Assistant