We recently connected with Anna Dougherty and have shared our conversation below.
Anna, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
I’ve always wanted to start my own company and specifically a fashion company for many years. At the start of the Covid-19 lockdown, I lost my job within the fashion industry, and proceeded to look for non-existent jobs within the fashion industry. While I was unemployed, I found some fabric that I’d bought several years earlier and decided it was time to make something out of it. The fabric seemed to me like it would make a pretty cool coat, so that’s what I made. I thought the coat turned out really well, so I decided to wear it to Bergdorf Goodman and see if anyone noticed the coat. While I was there, three different sales people stopped me to ask where I got my coat from or what brand it was. Then two other people on the street complimented me on it, which was when I realized I was onto something.
That winter I ended up making five or six more coats in different styles. My mom encouraged me to think more seriously about starting my business while I had extra time on my hands. I was still looking for a job and was getting very frustrated by the lack of prospects. I remember thinking to myself, “I know what kind of worker I am – if no one else will hire me, I’ll hire me!” This turned out to be the moment where I decided to give starting my brand a real shot.
The idea for a coat brand stemmed from my interactions with the sales people at Bergdorf Goodman and my love of outerwear. Until that point, I hadn’t really thought about launching a coat brand, but once I did, it all made sense.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I majored in fashion design in college and then worked in retail followed by commercial real estate. While I was working in real estate, I realized that I still wanted to work in fashion and decided to move to New York City to give fashion a real shot. Once in NYC, I started working on the wholesale team for a company with two women’s knitwear/outerwear brands. I learned so much about the industry and what goes into running a brand. I eventually became their East Coast Sales Manager.
My slow fashion brand, Anna Gray Collection, creates thoughtfully designed outerwear and accessories for women looking to add a little merriment, joie de vivre, and color to their lives. There is a gap in the ethical/sustainable/slow fashion realm of the fashion industry for outerwear which we are excited to fill. We are unique as everything is designed and made locally in New York City. I’m very proud of keeping production local and that we were able to source most of our fabric locally, too. Our coats are all made with wool fabric that was made in the USA.
We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.
Yes, I manufacture my products. Our coats are made in a factory in the Garment District in NYC, and our accessories are made by me. I knew how to make the coats myself, and in fact, I made the first set of prototypes myself. I didn’t want to sew them all myself, though, so I needed to find a production partner. I knew a little bit about the manufacturing process, but not much. The brands I worked for previously manufactured everything overseas, so I didn’t know much about local production. Thankfully, I found a production partner who was willing to work with a new designer and help teach me the things I needed to know along the way. I met with four factories before narrowing it down to two. I ultimately chose the one I did because their office was more conveniently located to my day job, and I felt like she’d be a good partner.
I learned a lot during production. Specifically, I learned how much fabric waste is created. I now have several large bags of scraps waiting to be turned into something else. I also learned about needing to have a plan for picking up my products once they were finished. (I do not recommend picking up your freshly made coats in the middle of a rainstorm. The stress is not worth it!) Additionally, ask lots of questions and be as clear and specific as you can be when you’re communicating with your manufacturing partners.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I mentioned previously that I lost my job at the start of the Covid-19 lockdown in NYC. In fact, I lost my job the day the stay-at-home order went into place. I had no idea at that point that I would be unemployed for 14 months. Throughout my unemployment journey, I searched and searched for jobs within the fashion industry. I applied for many, many jobs, and landed one phone interview during that time period. It was incredibly exhausting and de-motivating. My self-esteem was dropping by the day, and I was so burnt out from what felt like knocking down doors that refused to open. It was during this period of time that I started to make my first set of coat prototypes. Once I had them made, I decided it was time to focus my energy on starting my business, and find a job that would pay my bills, rather than build my resume. I eventually found a job outside the fashion industry which I never would’ve considered pre-pandemic, but it allowed me to have the time and brain capacity to focus on launching Anna Gray Collection. I’m grateful for the forced pivot because it motivated me to take steps towards my ultimate goal of starting my business
Contact Info:
- Website: www.annagraycollection.com
- Instagram: @annagraycollection
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/annagraycollection
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-dougherty/