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

Dominique, appreciate you joining us today. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

Going from Idea to Execution has been a mind battle. Fighting the internal thoughts of “I have no idea what I am doing” to “No, you got this”. The more people you talk to, the more you research and get yourself in that field you are interested in the easier things become. I remember really wanting to start my website and not knowing where to start. After a month or two of figuring out platforms and pictures, I was ready to publish. It was a late night publish and when I woke up the next morning I had my first online sale. It was such an exciting moment for me. You have to have confidence in yourself. If you want it you need to tell yourself you can do it and move forward one step at a time. Be brave, talk to the people that scare you and step out of that comfort zone.

Dominique, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Dominique Hopf. I started sewing when I was pregnant with my first child. It became my zen very quickly. When I started making bags out of the material I was using at the time (cotton) I realized I enjoyed the bag making process but not so much the bag itself. Cotton bags were just not my style. Not the style I wanted to carry. I started researching more and thought I would try canvas, something stronger. Then I wanted it waterproof so I moved to wax canvas. At this point leather was always in the back of my mind but how, oh how did I find a source to purchase leather. And its so much more expensive and so many different kinds, how could I even figure it out? My first leather purchase was a bag of remnants from a garage sale, I was very excited about this but my machine, was not happy. It was a good start though. From there I went to find sources, a new machine that actually stitches through leather, and many other leather tools. The process has been rewarding.

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

My resilience so far has come from all the people who support me. I have had so many people along the way that have given me encouraging words that keep me going. If they think I can do it, why would I think I can’t do it? I had someone tell me one time he wanted to invest in me because he had so much faith in what I was going to do. That moment meant a lot to me. I don’t even know if he ever new that.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

The BIG PIVOT First I played college basketball at a small college in the Lansing area of MI. I played because my parents said I needed to pay for the first 2 years of school then they would pay the rest, and this college was giving me a full 2 year ride. Smart money choices. PIVOT. I meet the man of my dreams in a video store and decide to travel the United States together first by car, then by bike. What an adventure. We bought 1 way tickets to Hawaii and got married in Mexico. PIVOT. We start a family but can’t decide where we want to live. We decide the rolling hills and waters of Petoskey. PIVOT. I start a business. Because, well, why not!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://dominiquebags.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dominique_bags/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dominiqueleatherbags/

Image Credits
Shae and Andy Shepard