We recently connected with Halima Garrett and have shared our conversation below.

Halima, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I began heavily thrifting when I moved to Brooklyn after college. I was finding the pieces that I adored on Etsy in real life. I was learning and understanding that “vintage” was the category I was dressing myself in and that the one of a kind pieces I gained from my grandmother were of the same style and eras. One day I went into a thrift shop in Brooklyn and grabbed a bunch of pieces to try on, one of which was a pink and purple Leslie Faye dress, it was $8. Certain pieces I just won’t forget how much they were. So yes 9 years later I still remember the price tag. I tried the dress on and it was cuter on the hanger so I left it. About a week later I was browsing Etsy and saw this exact dress listed for $55. I assumed it was the same dress because the seller was from Brooklyn! That was the moment Threads of Habit was born, I decided I’d flip vintage too. I loved to thrift, had easy access to it, and the margins were high.

Next was coming up with a name. I asked some friends to brainstorm. I didn’t like anything until someone mentioned I was addicted. They were not wrong but I used this to my advantage and started looking up similar words. Habit struck a nerve. I liked it because it could also mean a person’s attire, like a monks habit. From here I was googling quotes with this word and found this by Samuel Johnson,  “The chains of habit are too weak to be felt until they are too strong to be broken.” This summed up my thrifting life so I changed “chains” to “threads.” When you visit my website you are greeted with “These are the threads of my habit.”

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.

I’m a New Jersey native who discovered the “thrill of the thrift” around the age of 9. In the late 1990s my grandmother ran a donation based thrift shop in Brownsville Brooklyn. When I visited my grandmother I got first dibs on donations that were going to end up in the shop. I loved to sort through and keep a piece of clothing or two for myself.

Although my origins started with reselling vintage, during my journey I’ve found that my passion is design using vintage clothing and textiles. While I’m out sourcing I come across vintage that is damaged or has a dated silhouette however, if there’s a print and colors that spark my joy I will add it to my collection to be “reworked.” This is how I’ve amassed the fabric for my brand, Threads of Habit. I believe what sets me apart is that eye for prints and color. I also try to preserve the essence of the vintage piece. This practice reduces textile waste from the fashion industry and I’m committed to keeping that in my business DNA. Everything I need for Threads of Habit to thrive is already here. I’m proud of my resilience and consistency on this journey. I started out of a corner in my Brooklyn studio apartment. Today 9 years later I’m still devoted while juggling my 2 young children that know “Mommy loves fabric.”

Have you ever had to pivot?

I decided to pivot when I felt a strong calling to pursue Threads of Habit full time. I was working in the field of nutrition for 6 years but I wasn’t passionate about it. At work, I was constantly thinking about things I needed to do for my side hustle. Plus my daily life included my toddler so I wasn’t left with much time. Once I left my corporate job in 2019, my backup plan was to get a job related to fashion if things didn’t work out. 2 weeks after I quit my job I found out I was pregnant with my second child! 3 months later I pivoted again and moved back home with my parents. This was a blessing since I was able to work on my goals and my parents loved that they were able to spend time with their grandson, and me too, I guess! Once I was able to dedicate all my time to my passions I did learn that I needed more discipline and structure within my days. I was productive but all in all I was winging it. It came to the point where I needed a consistent income again. Especially with 2 children. In 2022 I started a position authenticating luxury goods and clothing for resale. I felt this aligned better with my spirit. I’m back in the work force with 2 children so I’m being forced to manage everyone’s time and schedule better.

We’d love to hear your thoughts about selling platforms like Amazon/Etsy vs selling on your own site.

I started with Etsy in 2015 for my vintage shop. It was where my love for vintage grew as I awed over other peoples finds. The pro of Etsy was that there was already a built in vintage community bringing traffic and sales. Etsy even featured me on their blog for more exposure. Once I started designing/upcycling my own pieces I felt they should be on my own website. I didn’t want people purchasing my pieces and saying they got it on Etsy. I want my customers to name drop Threads of Habit! Of course this meant driving traffic to my own website and continuously building my own community with the help of social media. Although I do post upcycled designs on Etsy periodically, sales for my one of a kind designs are primarily through Shopify and in person pop-ups. I have also used Depop, Poshmark, and Ebay however I was terrible at managing multiple platforms. These days I keep it simple and stick to my roots of Etsy and Shopify.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://threadsofhabit.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/threadsofhabit
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/halimagarrett/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Threadsofhabit

Image Credits
Charles Mitchell. Lauren Ariel.