Today we’d like to introduce you to Mireya Zellner

Hi Mireya, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?

So, you probably already figured this out, but my name is Mireya Zellner. I just recently graduated from Emerson College with a degree in Marketing and Communications, but i’d say my path has changed so many times over the years, that where I started was not where I ended up. This question is quite broad, and I had to think about my answer for quite a while, but I think I need to start with my background.

I was born in Westchester County, New York, and moved to Evergreen, Colorado when I was 5. Quite the change moving from suburbia to the middle of the mountains. I grew up a fairly happy kid, surrounded by nature which was incredibly cool (I totally took for granted at the time, but now I realize is not an experience most people don’t get). I did a lot of things in my younger years, tried out tons of different hobbies, soccer, softball, karate, guitar, gymnastics, singing, acting, musical theater and dance. I was quite the versatile kid. I had untreated ADHD too so that made me want to try everything and anything. But anyways, I really got into theater and dance. The forms of expression drew me in and showed me how to feel more comfortable in my skin. I was quite the loud kid, so when I was dancing, acting or singing, it was a great space to shut off my brain and immerse myself in the role/movement. I acted for several years before committing to dance as my main activity. I loved the movement and the ability to get lost in the song. I don’t dance nearly as much anymore and I miss it all the time.

Sometime during high school, as I feel like many people experience, I got lost in myself. I wasn’t nearly as excitable, not nearly as driven or passionate. I had figured out my little mountain town and was itching for new experiences. I had always been more of a city girl, but was trapped in the small town. So for college, I chose the school literally as far as I could possibly get. Boston, Massachusetts. New beginning. Unfortunately, COVID-19 took a lot of fun our of the first year of school, but we made do and I thrived in the city. Being in a community where people were able to be as loud and expressive as they wanted was foreign to me. I loved being surrounded by artsy people. Through them, I felt more comfortable to be able to find myself and who I was in the present, not just who I was in the past. The redefinition in college is one of the best things, because you are given the space to grow and change with a group of people who are doing exactly the same thing.

Emerson being the artsy school that it was, it drove my love for thrifting to a new level. I had always loved to thrift, but once I got to Emerson and people would go to school dressed to the 10s, I realized I needed to step up my wardrobe. My college obsession was the Goodwill Bins/Outlet in Colorado (still is). Every-time I would go home, I would come back to Boston with bags full of new thrifted clothing, for a fraction of the price of vintage shops. I loved getting to try new styles of clothing that I might never get to. It was my new way of expression, and a new way to define myself. This was the driving factor of Sustainable Swaps. I started accumulating so much clothing so quickly, and I loved it all, but some of the things, I felt like I had outgrown. Because I am a bargain girly, I didn’t want to get rid of my clothing with at least trying to get something out of them, hence Sustainable Swaps. What started as me wanting to get rid of old clothes, has turned into me being a business owner, a boss, a collaborator, an entrepreneur, and a more sustainable person.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?

Absolutely not. Is it ever? Every single endeavor is going to take work and struggle, trial and error. I am no stranger to feeling defeated. But if you really truly believe and want something to succeed, you will. I know that sounds like a platitude, but there’s some truth to the power of the human mind and perseverance. Nothing is going to be easy all the time, god knows, but it’s how you handle the stress. Sustainable Swaps has gone through growing periods where at some points, I just needed to take a step back and re-evaluate what I really wanted going forward. But I took a breather, and came back to it with a level head and a new attitude.

We’ve been impressed with Sustainable Swaps, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?

Sustainable Swaps is a company that cultivates events and festivals centered around clothing swaps. Our clothing swaps promote reusing textiles, lower the impact of fast-fashion, and build community in the fashion world. Attendees trade clothing, while enjoying the festival and the sense of community it provides. We repurpose worn clothing and develop a traveling community market/festival so that people don’t have to discard used materials, but can instead find a new home for them. Our focus of these events is the swap, but every event is unique. We host a wide variety of additional activities including but not limited to:
Live Music/DJs, Arts and Clothing Vendors, Food and Drink Vendors, On-Site Clothing Alterations, Temporary Tattoos, Tooth Gems, Tattoo Artists, Screen Printing and a Clothing Donation Drop-Off

Sustainable Swaps makes sure that every item goes to a new home, and what does not get swapped will be taken to local non profits in the area where the event takes place. We give attendees an opportunity to shift their wardrobe in a cost-effective, sustainable alternative.

I am the most proud of the communities that we foster at our events. Each event is unique, and harbors the most encouraging group of fashion-friendly, open-minded, welcoming, and diverse people. If you are coming to Sustainable Swaps with an open mind, you are going to be happily surprised. Recently, someone reached out about wanting to come but not having anyone to come with and what I said to them was that there are so many friendly and special people that you can meet, so even if you are alone, by the end of the swap, you wont be.

We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?

Something surprising that people may not know about me, is when I first got to college, I wanted to start a cosmetic company for men’s beauty. I was a major beauty connoisseur and wanted to go to cosmetology school after undergrad. I wanted to break into the beauty industry in a way that not many people had before. By the time I got to college, the mens beauty market had already been tapped into, so I shifted gears. I was so incredibly not fashionable when I got to college, and honestly did not care all that much about clothing. Throughout Emerson my personal style evolved and came to shift my forms of expression from makeup to fashion.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sustainableswapss.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/sustainableswapss
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@sustainableswapss

Image Credits

Images by Claire Lee, Maya Seri, @LSDindy on IG, Kayla Iwano