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

Emily, appreciate you joining us today. The first dollar your business earns is always special and we’d love to hear how your brand made its first dollar of revenue.

I walked into a retailer that recently opened in Montecito and met the owners who I found out went to the same gym as me. I showed them some of the design prototypes I was working on and they were eager to carry the line as soon as it was ready.

A few months later, it was approaching July 4th weekend and my first production run was almost wrapped. The retailer wanted to stock our pieces for the holiday and offered to drive the whole way to our factory in far east in Los Angeles to get them in time.

The day they picked up inventory and drove back to their store in Montecito, a local legend Kenny Loggins, the artist of the Footloose and Top Gun soundtracks, walked in the store and wanted to buy one of each style for his fiancé straight out of the box.

The retailer ended up selling through the initial styles and drove back to the factory the next day to restock the sold out styles.

Emily, 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?

I discovered merino wool from a time when I lived in Australia, borrowing the fabrication from activewear for its cooling properties, comfortability and ease of care. I dreamt of a wardrobe that would strategically use this extra fine wool throughout every piece, focusing on tailoring for the perfect fit.

My design process is approached as solving one problem at a time, while maintaining a quality standard and selecting the best materials and flattering styles. I’m especially drawn to heritage when it comes to sourcing and seek out partnerships with suppliers that have been around for generations – it’s a family affair. Our manufacturing method removes contributing to the textile waste pandemic, a sustainability initiative that has been a pillar in the brand’s ethos since its inception.

With a background in fashion marketing, I identified a market need for polished loungewear. Through travelling frequently, I sought out versatile, wrinkle-resistant clothing for myself that adapts to various climates and maximizes outfit options with minimal luggage. The ideal travel wardrobe was born.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

I worked a full time corporate job as a graphic designer for a fashion brand and put as much of my pay check as possible towards sampling and developing the brand for two years. I built dozens of pitch decks and approached several investors but nothing was sticking.

My mother called me when she was at our family’s Christmas dinner and put me on speaker phone to say hello to all of my family members. My uncle nonchalantly said he might be interested in investing in the clothing line I was starting. I took it as a potential offer and followed up that week. We had one phone call and he said yes.

The deeper backstory goes to my childhood when I told that side of the family that I wanted to be a fashion designer and everyone in the room gave me reasons why I shouldn’t do it, such as ‘moving to a big city’ or ‘being a starving artist’. My uncle jumped in and said ‘if that’s what you want to be, you can do it’. His belief in me at that moment was a profound moment in me pursuing fashion as a career.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I had to unlearn ‘working hard’. When I started my business I was at a place where I was burnt out. I started a marketing agency and ran myself into the ground physically and mentally. I wanted to believe work didn’t have to feel hard. I started to rewire my relationship to work and allowed it to be easy and flow. I can truly say that the difference is night and day between how that business felt to how I feel in my business now.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.her-thelabel.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/her_thelabel/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emily-r-hess

Image Credits

Photographer – Cibelle Levi