We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Abigail Blum. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Abigail below.

Abigail , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you feel you or your work has ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized? If so, tell us the story and how/why it happened and if there are any interesting learnings or insights you took from the experience?

I think it’s human nature to naturally put people in boxes in our subconscious. “Oh, they wear muscle tees? Must have an ego. She drives a BMW? Must have a complex. He works at McDonalds? Must not be intelligent”… you get the idea. As a blonde female with tattoos who loves Jesus, metal music, dressing cute, meeting new people, and enjoys sewing, I’ve never found a single box I can be put in, but that doesn’t stop complete strangers from doing so.

I’ve had people pass my Abi jax tent after looking my tattooed arms up and down and deciding, before even seeing my product, that what I have to offer couldn’t possibly be for them. I’ve had jobs look at my lack of a Bachelor’s Degree and assume I must not be good enough for a position while dismissing my years of real word experience. I even have friends and family who hear of my job and side hustles and act like I’m less than when really, I’ve been very successful at what I do.

Abi Jax has allowed me to fully immerse who I am into a creative outlet and let every piece of me be seen. No matter what you do, what you say, or how you act, people will always put you in a box before truly getting to know you. They will judge you, misunderstand you, mischaracterize you, and at the end of the day you just have to let it be okay and do you anyways, Don’t ever let anyone’s judgement chip away at your passions!

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.

My name is Abigail! I fell into the sewing/ denim industry completely by accident. I use to watch my boyfriend sew these elaborate suits – like the one The Green Arrow wears – and asked him if he’d teach me to sew one day. Well, that day came and I started out with headbands! I would make them for family and friends as gifts and sold a few in a local store.

One day, a good friend of mine posted the cutest photo wearing a jacket she’d purchased from a boutique local to her in Tennessee. Being that I had access to wholesale clothing due to my job, I tried finding the jacket and DID! Unfortunately, it didn’t quite fit the demographic of the store I worked in so we didn’t order. I thought ‘…. maybe i can make that?”, and within a week, I DID! I wore the heck out of that jacket and after posting a photo on Facebook wearing it, a girl asked me where I got it and then if she could purchase it right off my back! It was such a cool feeling!

I then started thrifting denim jackets and going to Joann to find fun fabrics to sew into the backs. It slowly snowballed into the little business it is today! I now buy most of my denim jackets wholesale but use the denim I cut out and recycle into new things! I also take denim donations to help make my footprint a touch smaller in the world. It’s not much, but it’s better than nothing right??

My jackets make my customers feel as special and unique as they really are. They’re one of a kind pieces and so are the ones who wear them!! It warms my heart whenever someone discovers the perfect jacket for them. I love it!!

As cliche as it sounds, I don’t focus much on what sets me aside from others. I’m a big believer in community, unity, and overall support. If you were in the tent beside me selling the exact same thing, it might be awkward as heck, but I’d be just as supportive as someone selling anything else! If we don’t believe and support in one another, what’s the point in any of this??

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Such a challenging question. I saw a lot of potential in the rise of the influencers over the last few years, but that quickly changed as the focus became Amazon, Target, Temu, Shein…. all of the dirt cheap, out of country box stores who thrive off the hard work of underpaid, mistreated laborers. Ask me how I really feel…

It became clear to me that the majority were more money-motivated and less interested in the actual impact they could have on the economy. They all advertise the same products and brands at the same time using the same script and somehow, we fall for it.

So asking how we can best support the complete opposite of that would require a major shift in people’s buying habits, their priorities, and what is deemed as ‘trendy’. Finding like-minded people who value community over competition and banding together to create awareness for artists and creatives would be a great start!

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

My biggest pivot came from dealing with the repercussions of listening to other people tell me how to run my business, what I should/ shouldn’t sell, how to sell it, how to market it, you name it. I hit a point where I was desperate to grow and thought maybe everyone else knew better than my gut – I was very wrong.

It was a challenging and expensive pivot, but once I started listening to my gut again and what I wanted for my business, success followed. There will ALWAYS be people who will tell you how to run your business, my response has just changed from ‘I’ll try that” to “Well why don’t you do it”.

Contact Info:

• Website: shopabijax.com
• Instagram: shopabijax
• Facebook: shopabijax

Image Credits
Photos of self are by @thenateblack