We were lucky to catch up with Samia Grand-Pierre recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Samia thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.
I think authenticity is always top of mind whether in my work in marketing of with what we do at snobette. Being part of a culture like streetwear that became mainstream has given us a unique advantage.
I believe that when launching or marketing a fashion brand, if the streets (aka your target consumers) don’t know you exist or care, your sales will suffer. The image, the media placements, the voice etc has to align with who you want to reach.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I have a formal education in marketing/advertising with a passion for art and fashion.Living in New York has afforded me the opportunity to work in various levels of fashion retail, marketing/branding, fashion styling, design, media and also helping to run an art gallery and curate art shows.
There’s so many things over the years… one of them is the establishment of Snobette, an influential niche media platform and creative studio with Lois Sakany. For over a decade, our platform has remained an influential voice in streetwear, sneaker culture, fashion, and music—a testament to our commitment and authenticity.
On a professional level, crafting and executing marketing strategies for brands and clients has been very gratifying.
How’d you meet your business partner?
It feels like so long ago…but I believe I met Lois when I worked at Reebok, she was writing an article for Footwear News about sneakers. We kept in touch and I found out that she was a contributor on a Highsnobiety column called Chics with Kicks. I loved the content she was creating on the Chicks with Kicks column and I reached out to contribute. I believe I then sent a few stories ideas as a little test then got linked to David the Highsnobiety founder then started contributing. At some point he approached Lois and I about having a standalone site for women. All three of us discussed what the site would be called, David and Lois loved Highsnobette.I was not a fan of the name but in the end it was the best choice. We created most of the content on Highsnobette for about 7 years . Around 2012 Highsnobiety decided to fold some of its affiliated sites Rad Collector and Highsnobette while Selectism got integrated. We wanted to continue because we believed the voices and the media angle we created was important so we launched Snobette in 2013,
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
Social media is great but its not everything, For a fashion brand for example there is no formula, it really depends on who is behind the brand, some designers are very charismatic and have a big presence on social media, therefore it will be easier for them to grow their social following. For founders that are more private, consistent posting and engagement are a great ways to start. Another tip is to pay attention to what your community likes, comments and shares.
Contact Info:
- Website: snobette.com
- Instagram: @samiagrand
Image Credits
i own all the images