We recently connected with Marian Haas and have shared our conversation below.
Marian, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today So, one thing many business owners consider is donating a percentage of sales or profits to an organization or cause. We’d love to hear your thoughts and the story behind how and why you chose the cause or organization you donate to.
Replica Chicago (REP CHI) has been an active community member since its inception in 2007, which has translated into supporting a variety of different causes and non-profits. The original owner of REP CHI is an avid animal rights supporter, and that became a part of the identity of the shop she created. As the shop offers custom screen printing services beyond our role as a brick & mortar gift shop, many of our custom merchandise clients include non-profit animal rescue agencies, and from there was born a tradition of contributing to important causes. “One Tail at a Time” is one of the rescue agencies we print for most often; not only does our shop offer discounted rates, but we also sometimes house a selection of the merch they print with us, with proceeds of our sales contributed back to their rescue agency. Other rescue or animal rescue agencies for whom we either provide discounted printing services, donations, or proceeds from sales include Live Like Roo, The Chicago Canine Rescue, among others. Back in June of 2020, when the city of Chicago was just getting back to some semblance of normalcy after the Covid shut down, then erupted a wave of civil unrest in the wake of the George Floyd tragedy. Protests were being held around the city of Chicago, some with violent results. While REP CHI did not necessarily have a reputation in political activism, we certainly consider ourselves as socially conscious. So as a Black Lives Matter protest was gathering crowds at the police station nearby, we realized we had an opportunity to show our support for the people that were passing along on their way, and as a way to bridge the voice of Chicagoans with a voice in Solidarity, we came up with a quick pinback button design that represented the stars and stripes of the Chicago Flag, with the outline of the iconic fist of Solidarity, and passed them out freely to those who stopped on their way to the protest. From there, we decided we could design and print a t-shirt of the same design. We were astonished at how quickly and vastly those t-shirts sold, and had to reprint them several times over the course of that summer and beyond, and knowing that the proceeds had to go towards a viable cause, we decided that we would make a monthly contribution to a variety of important programs. The proceeds of the first month of sales went to a Chicago organization dedicated to the underserved youth of Chicago, “My Block My Hood My City;” the second month, another Chicago based organization dedicated to serving the LGBTQ+ community of color, “Brave Space Alliance.”
We also designed another shirt incorporating the stars of the Chicago Flag with the stripes of the Pride Rainbow, and also contributed proceeds of sales of that shirt to a variety of different organizations, including, again, the “Brave Space Alliance,” “My Block My Hood My City,” and the ACLU.
As we still carry both shirts in regular rotation (though sales of each are not quite as strong as they were), we still make contributions from the proceeds, mostly rotating amongst those organizations mentioned.
In addition, as REP CHI is so well supported by our community here on the Northwest side of Chicago, we try to reciprocate as much support as we are able, by contributing to many neighborhood organizations, schools, block clubs, and other non-profits, either with straight donations or offering of merchandise or gift cards to support various fundraising efforts.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Replica Chicago (REP CHI) is a neighborhood gift shop offering a variety of original art, apparel, housewares, jewelry and other gifts, most of which is either made or printed in-house, or sourced locally from the array of artists and makers in our community. A lot of our wares are of upcycled and recycled items, “treasure from trash,” as being environmentally conscious is one of the hallmarks of REP CHI’s identity. The original owner of the shop, Lyndsey, started screen printing and button making in her basement for friends’ bands, but from there saw that her love for her community and skill for making things could translate into a brick & mortar shop in a small neighborhood pocket in Chicago. She built a business on providing high quality custom screen printing services for a variety of local businesses and non-profits, as well as creating unique designs to sell for the retail shop, with an increasing focus on Chicago-centic merchandise. REP CHI became known as a place to get your non-touristy “If Ya Know, Ya Know” civic pride gear. A lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into building the business, and after 9 years, Lyndsey decided that she was ready for her next journey, but wasn’t sure what to do with this shop that had built such a strong following. I had been a local “fan-girl” for a long time and as such, built a little friendship with Lyndsey. But it was the serendipitous intervention of a mutual friend who put us together, as Lyndsey reached out to this friend about either selling or liquidating the shop, and this friend suggested that a “long time fan girl” might be the perfect person to help with a transition. It seemed crazy at the time, but my husband and I realized that this was an opportunity to take on new journey for ourselves, and in doing so, continuing the tradition this shop had become, while also making our own contribution to this community we lived in.
So we bought the business in January of 2020, with the hopes of continuing and advancing the presence that REP CHI had already started building back in 2007. We are a very small team, but we have a pretty strong presence in providing quality custom screen printing services, as well as a retail space offering a unique shopping experience, offering apparel, accessries, art and jewelry designed in-house or from local artists. I love collaborating with my team on new ideas for shirts and apparel, and I love relating to our customers, who range from hyper local regulars, to tourists who found us for their unique Chicago souvenirs. I love collaborating with our other local business owners, and being part of a community that fosters continued growth and development of our neighborhood businesses. I love having a platform from which we can make these kinds of contributions to our community, and to represent our social consciousness through our designs, through our contributions, through our conversations with anyone who walks in our door or visits our website or social media. Chicago is a big city, but to feel like we know our people and know our neighbors, is a very important aspect of our city as a whole. Chicago is known as a “City of Neighborhoods,” and a shop like REP CHI holds that ideal as one of our hallmarks.
Let’s move on to buying businesses – can you talk to us about your experience with business acquisitions?
Replica Chicago (REP CHI) is the business my husband and I bought from the original founder, Lyndsey. While our sale closed on January 3, 2020, the process all started on November 27, 2018 (my daughter’s 11th birthday). I had been a long time shopper and neighbor to this great little shop, but never thought to own it. But that evening I received a call from a friend (herself a former shop owner who had recently sold her own business to move out of state), who had received an out-of-the blue call from Lyndsey asking advice about selling REP CHI. This friend thought of me, I thought she was crazy, but in discussing a little bit with my husband, we decided we would take this chance to take on our own new journey. We had a few meetings with Lyndsey, and while she was thrilled at the prospect of selling her “baby” to a long time supporter and neighbor, the process was not as streamlined as either of us hoped. I started “working” in the shop on a regular basis to get a feel for what the shop was really about, and although I had retail and customer service experience, this was a learning curve I had never experienced before–learning the books, the merchandise, the screen printing process and the business of making shirts. We got an appraisal and learned from it that we could be in for a tremendous opportunity in building on an existing successful business model. I attended some free city classes on business ownership, through which my husband was able to coincidentally reconnect with some his former law school colleagues, who were then very helpful in orchestrating the sale process. And through the assistance of a wonderful and helpful SBA lending agent, we built the team we needed to get our all ducks in a row, with the hope to close the deal by January 1, 2020. But because nothing in life is predictable, January 3 became our closing date. I was lucky enough to have Lyndsey stick around as a mentor for some months following, so the transition did not feel as daunting.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
As we closed on our purchase of REP CHI on January 3, 2020, we certainly had zero idea what the world had in store for us in just a few short months. It had already been such a steep learning curve, understanding the day to day operations of the retail business, as well as managing the custom screen printing component. Lyndsey, the former shop owner, had stayed on staff as my “mentor” for a short period, which helped ease into the transition. But as the news of Covid-19 became increasingly more dismal, we realized that this was not going to blow over without some serious repercussions. We were all watching the news at the shop together that afternoon in mid-March: Lyndsey, our graphic designer/shop girl Candace, my husband Ryan, our screen printer Ian. The previous week marked the shut down of all dine-in restaurants in Illinois, and Governor Pritzker was grave in delivering the news that all businesses were to cease operations as of the following Monday. I looked at my staff, brand new as their “leader,” crestfallen and without a clue as to what we could do to survive. “Well, nice knowing you!” I half-joked. But my husband said, “No, we will figure this out.” And Lyndsey said to me aside, “You ALWAYS find a way to take care of your people. Ian has been here since the beginning, Candace has been here loyal for years. You will find a way to take care of them.” So as we locked our doors that evening, we said our somber “see ya laters” (thinking it would be two weeks!), and I really thought this was going to be the end of this chapter. Three months into this journey, and taken out by a virus.
The next day, however, showed a flurry of online orders from our website. Up until that time, REP CHI operated mostly as a brick & mortar business, with online orders being few & far between. But the existing website was navigable and offered shipping options, and we were so surprised to see such a dramatic uptick in orders. We sold Chicago puzzles and Chicago Flag neck gaiters (the days before any guidelines about appropriate face coverings) and the demand for both increased every day. So while we were intially in a panic about how we would keep the doors “open” if they were required to be CLOSED, the website proved to be the unexpected answer, as our previously mostly brick & mortar shopping spot basically “pivoted” into a fulfillment warehouse. But while that was encouraging, the revenue from our custom printing came to an absolute stand still, and even the increase in online orders was not making up for the loss of the brick & mortar / custom income. But as we had such a recent portfolio with our SBA lender, our agent was quick to the punch at arranging the PPP assistance, which alleviated a lot of the fear of not being able to retain our small staff.
As the months went on, and we were able to slowly open our doors and invite people for an “in-person” shopping experience, the online orders did not slow down. Whether for in-store pick up, or mailed to all ends of the earth, REP CHI’s business grew exponentially in that time, but in a manner much different than ever expected. That holiday season was one of the best the business ever experienced, with our shop looking like a USPS mailroom with all of the bagged and boxed orders for in-person pick up and USPS delivery. The world was forever different, but Team REP CHI was able withstand some really tough and unpredictable days. And through it all, almost four years later, the Team remains strong and committed to each other and in navigating whatever lands in our future.
As Lyndsey proved to be an invaluable mentor during unprecedented circumstances, she said to me “I can guide you through a lot of things, but I have never gone through a global pandemic.”
Contact Info:
- Website: www.repchi.com
- Instagram: @repchi_4425nmilwaukee
- Facebook: @replicachicago
- Twitter: @replicachicago
Image Credits
Marian Haas