We were lucky to catch up with Sarah Ngobá recently and have shared our conversation below.
Sarah, appreciate you joining us today. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?
My father is a Puerto Rican farmer who has dedicated his whole life to different businesses and ventures. But the generational business in our family has always been agriculture. From a very young age, I have seen the benefits of giving good customer service to clients and their family members. I have also admire the way my father has transform his business over the course of 25 years. He is still running his business and still keeps a good face during difficult seasons. Early in my childhood, my father exposed me to different “street” entrepreneurship experiences; like how to negotiate in the marketplaces, show respect to other business owners and their craft, sell your product in different places, and interact with suppliers and buyers.
During the time I used to accompanied my Dad to work the men (papi’s colleagues) from the Farmer’s market had a nickname for me. They used to call me “the secretary”. Whenever his colleagues asked for the secretary (me), and I was not present, it was because my father had left me early at school. However, if I was not in school, I was in charge of counting the bananas, oranges, and avocados, writing it on a piece of cardboard and leaving that evidence to my father. I was only six years old, and those rich experiences continued until I was 17. It was not until I left for college, graduated, and started my masters that I understood all the gems my father was dropping every time he handled his business. I treasure those experiences and lessons and implement them in my business today.
Sarah, 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?
First I want to thank you for showing support and love to T.M.T. My name is Sarah Nangobá Cabrera but my close friends called me Sari.
My passion for fashion started with my Puertorican great- aunts (my abuela’s sisters in law) who had two ateliers store in the metropolitan area of Puerto Rico during the 50s and 60’s, a fact that I didn’t know until two years ago when I continued to research for my family history. Once they decided to retire, they used to babysit me when my dad or mom couldn’t take me to work with them. In their house, they had an office/personal atelier for making clothes with the best sewing machinery; however, my only job was to thread the needle. My aunts were very strict and professional with their craft, so I was one of the lucky ones to step foot into their office. My passion grew more once I hit high school, and my theater teacher gave me my first silhouette sketch paper. That summer, I made approximately 125 designs.
However, one thing is designing, and another is bringing those ideas into life and making them a reality. It wasn’t until I started sewing that I began to respect the hard work of every artisan, fashion designer, painters, jewelry makerkers and people who handmade items, etc. All those experiences and memories helped me build the first phase of The Muse’s Tent.
Creating a brand like The Muse’s Tent offers the customers an experience where they can connect with the historical, cultural, and personal background of each artist and artisan inside the Tent. In The Muse’s Tent, we create handmade artisanal pieces that the clients can wear. Fantastic handmade pieces with a background story that can spark a conversation and connection between strangers who can become acquaintances. We bring quality and uniqueness (meaning that you won’t see the same handmade piece repeated more than 8 times). Each piece we offer is carefully designed, created, curated, and selected so that clients can get an amazing unique item. That is the primary purpose of The Muse’s Tent.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
Personal wisdom: I’m currently listening to The Mountain Is You: Transforming Self-Sabotage Into Self-Mastery by Brianna Wiest.
Spiritual Wisdom:
I’m also reading Messy People – Women’s Bible Study Participant Workbook: Life Lessons from Imperfect Biblical Heroes
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
Life is about pivoting constantly and growing. I went from being a high school teacher to teaching adults and professionals to opening and building a fantastic brand like Embrace Crowns to changing many people’s lives with our head wraps and curly hair accessories. Now, with The Muse’s Tent, we want to give a new house to Embrace Crowns and also provide a space inside the Tent to other artisian brands like Amazona Accessories, La Mística, SanReal and Sombrera and others who would become part of the Tent Movement.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_muses_tent/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063801690028
- Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@muses.tent.tmt
Image Credits
Garcia Joel Verona Dominguez
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