We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Em Baker. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Em below.
Em, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
In 2021 I took a risk, and a pay cut, to leave the corporate world to work for a small business. I had to cut back expenses and took this opportunity to simplify my life and I started a capsule closet. During this time, I became increasingly aware of the harm of fast fashion and even when I did find a quality clothing brand, the pieces didn’t look the same way on me as it did on the models. I have always struggled with clothing fitting my unique body composition. Not to mention, women’s sizing is not consistent and doesn’t consider the variation of “normal” body shapes. I thought, why doesn’t someone make things more adaptable to each person, not so “one size fits all”? I looked for a brand that took these things into account and didn’t find what I was looking for, so I decided to design and produce what I was looking for instead. My entrepreneurial spirit along with years of corporate operational experience and a new understanding of small business brought the idea full circle and Riley + Ro was born.
Em, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I’m the owner of a minimalist and responsibly made clothing brand called Riley + Ro. It’s a line of adjustable and intentionally designed clothing pieces for women that each address a problem I was dealing with in my own closet. An adjustable waist for each person to find their perfect fit, additional coverage in places that traditional pieces don’t cover, all made with purposefully sourced and sustainable materials in Portugal, with some of the highest standards for clothing manufacturing in the world. My mission is to make an impact on the fashion industry with a unique take on sizing and creating intentional designs. Riley + Ro focuses on slowing fast fashion and empowering women to love the body they are in today.
Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.
While Riley + Ro is designed by me in Minnesota, I’ve chosen to manufacture the pieces in Portugal. Clothing production in Portugal is recognized for its sustainability and every Portugal clothing manufacturer has to comply with environmental legislation in order to operate. We work with companies that have implemented sustainable practices from choosing raw or recycled materials to the overall production process to produce a lower environmental impact. Along with its highly skilled and experienced workforce, this contributes to the quality of the final products. (Source: Nítido Agency) I had a business mentor in the fashion industry who put me in contact with a textile consultant. They helped get me paired up with the right factories that met the needs of my business and were aligned to my core values.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
As a solopreneur, I wanted to keep my first business 100% to myself so I’m proud to say I’m bootstrapping Riley + Ro! Bootstrapping is when funding for a new or start up business is done only through personal savings and acquired revenue. I developed a creative business plan that allowed me to use my savings to finance my first business. It’s definitely not easy and sometimes I wish I had more cash flow to invest in high ticket price items, but I love this journey that I’m on and wouldn’t change anything.
Contact Info:
- Website: rileyandro.com
- Instagram: @rileyandro.co
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rileyandro
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/riley-ro/?viewAsMember=true
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9RmYnrwToqShxnpBnWDI0g
- Other: Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/rileyandroco/ TikTok: @rileyandro
Image Credits
Kate Morris Ami Diep Nítido Agency