We recently connected with Sarah Ramsey and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Sarah , thanks for joining us today. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

I do wish I would’ve started my business sooner- I think. I tried college and wasn’t sure what I wanted to do so I just started in the corporate world because you know, that’s what you’re supposed to do. Although I had some jobs I enjoyed nothing really gave me the feeling of “this is me”, or “I’m on the right path”. I just started thinking that was the way it’s supposed to be. You get up, go to a job that you’d rather not be at, come home, and do it all again until the weekend. You get your check to pay your bills and that’s just life! At around 39 (late in the game), I really couldn’t take acting like everything was ok anymore. I started really revisiting what made me happy and what I wanted out of life. It came to the fact that happiness was my number one and having a big house and lots of material possessions was not on that list. Meanwhile I had been coming to the realization that I absolutely loved vintage clothing and housewares! I’ve always gravitated to certain out of the ordinary things throughout my life and just kinda figured out one day those things all had one thing in common; they were all from the 50s or 60s. I had accumulated a bit of a, ahem, collection. Then it clicked. I couldn’t live the corporate life, I loved sales and customer service, and needed to scale back on my vintage collection. Selling vintage would bring me so much happiness! It truly does. I don’t live a glamorous life, but quite frankly I don’t like diamonds anyway. I’m not saying you can’t have these things selling vintage by the way, just not at my level of selling. I do wish I got started earlier so I could have a bigger business now. Like any business you gotta pay your dues. Learn the how to’s, and how not’s, network, learn your customer base, and so much more. It’s not as easy as it looks! I always wonder what my business would look like now if I had only realized my happiness sooner. Then again, I did learn an amazing amount of knowledge from corporate. How to deal with all different types people, and know how to let things slide off your back. The psychology of sales and customer service is huge! Being in customer service and sales support helps tremendously. It built up this professional, business side of me that comes in handy because selling vintage is a lot of fun but at the end of the day it’s business! Would I have had that business savvy if I started sooner? Would I be as grateful for my business then as I am now since I’ve been through so much mentally? Life is full of what ifs so in the end I just appreciate where I am and don’t look back.

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?

I sell vintage clothing and housewares at Stone House Collective, All The Rage, and The Distillery Collective in Maryland. You also may see me at vintage shows in Maryland and Pennsylvania! My business name is Sarah Von Keller, which is an ode to my grandmother as her maiden name was Keller. Von is a nod to pinup culture. I personally love 50s style and art the most, but sell items from the 40s to Y2K (early 2000’s). No I cannot believe early 2000’s are considered vintage either! I started my business in 2019 when I got out of the corporate world. I’ve always had a passion for vintage clothing and housewares and thought how amazing would it be to sell it like people do in the vintage stores that I love! My father took me to antique stores all my life- which funny enough I hated, and boy did he teach me the importance of a good deal. I watched him sell guitars and some vintage collectibles as a hobby so I guess I became my father’s daughter. Working in corporate gave me the business savvy and he gave me the pickers bug I suppose, so it all added up! I love having something for everyone. All sizes, styles, eras, and price points. I don’t focus on a particular era or type of fashion. I really appreciate all of it! I definitely will always have something kitschy, I just love the crazy pieces that are just so nuts they are amazing! I want people to look at my pieces on themselves and smile. Whether that means they are feeling sexy, unique, comfortable, or silly. It brings me so much joy!

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

Getting out and meeting people face to face! I do vintage markets and love connecting with people. I get to learn about my customers one on one there and focus on exactly what they are looking for. I hear their stories, get to know their personalities, and then I get to show them pieces that would make them feel like them. A lot of times people don’t really know what they’re looking for and it’s a great feeling to match a piece with it’s person. These are the people who will tell their friend’s about me, which makes me forever grateful.

Have you ever had to pivot?

So in the beginning I was just selling vintage housewares, even though my first love was clothing. The thought was I had so much housewares and knew the best places to find them at a constant rate. Unfortunately the store (which is a collective) just wasn’t selling housewares, clothing was the best seller. I pivoted, and put of a rack of clothing to see what happened. They were selling! I slowly scaled down the housewares and focused more on clothing. I learned how to source them effectively and it’s going great!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Www.instagram.com/sarah_von_keller