We recently connected with Suzanne Vinnik and have shared our conversation below.

Suzanne, appreciate you joining us today. What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

I began singing classical music at the age of eight on the Las Vegas Strip. I’ve sung opera throughout the world but my “PERSONALITY” didn’t fit the industry even though I accomplished quite a bit in my first two decades singing. In May 2019, after running the first specialized social media marketplace for opera singers and being known in classical music as a “Diva Who Hustles,” I made a huge career shift and launched my ethically manufactured in Los Angeles clothing line, byVINNIK. I hope one day people will look back on what I accomplished as an multi-faceted artist and especially as a woman during an era where a lot is rapidly changing as technology evolves and women are beginning to make a little headway in the arts and fashion industries.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

As I said previously, I started my career as an opera singer. When I launched my ethically manufactured luxury clothing line byVINNIK in May 2019, I wasn’t sure this would be anything other than a side hustle I’d do in addition to singing, photography, curating vintage and trying to run my previous business. I’ve always been someone with my hands in a lot of projects but, byVINNIK was different. For the first time in my life, I was putting in work and seeing immediate results. People were really loving what I was doing and became loyal clientele to my brand. I was able to combine all of the things I loved about fashion, communication, performing and basically being a business-minded multi-faceted artist and do it in a way that isn’t destructive to humanity. My clothing line offers something to everyone with designs that are meant to fit a lot of different people and personalities. A few weeks before the pandemic, I cancelled my 2020-2021 singing engagements as I really wanted to see what my brand could be if I put in the effort. In February, I shot my first lookbook with four fellow opera singers shot by my best friend who is an opera singer turned high-demand wedding photographer. I was building my website after selling for eight months solely through social media. The world was looking really bright for me and then… everything shut down.

The pandemic pushed me to think outside the box. I began making masks which I donated with every purchase of my over the top fashion masks. It was really stressful being a new business not even a year into it and having to figure out how to keep my head above water financially and not lose my fashion line. Many of my singing colleagues were in really desperate situations so, I sent money to various organizations and colleagues who I knew needed help. A few weeks into the pandemic, I realized that everyone was living their lives online. I began to engage through my Instagram with other divas from around the world with over the top style. In a group I belong to, someone sent the infamous Washington DC fashion influencer and curve model icon, Dani Sauter (Blonde_inthedistrict) photos of my fashion masks. She purchased several and posted them on her account. From there, her followers were seeing what ELSE I offered and many became customers seeing that I had options for over the top curvy elder millennials who wanted to stand out from the crowd. It was really incredible because we’ve formed a genuine friendship through fashion and admiration of one another’s creativity. I’m really looking forward to meeting her next week when she is in Los Angeles. Through the wonderous world of social media, I also connected with SuStyle a fabulous plus size influencer and media maven in Puerto Rico, Morgan a creative time traveler known on social media as @MsMavericMuse and the stylist Kat Eves who contacted me to use one of my designs for RuPaul’s Drag Race guest judge Dulcé Sloan and on the cover of The Curvy Fashionista where she was interviewed about ethical and sustainable fashion. During the pandemic and beyond, I’ve had several stylists reach out and pull items for magazines and TV shows. With less than 48 hours notice, I got one of my opera coats manufactured and shipped across the country for Alex Newell to wear on Disney+ singing Ursula which was INSANITY especially with all the drama with mail carriers! Several of my designs will be featured on a popular HBO series next season on one of my all time favorite actresses. I’ve had offers to create lines for celebrities and diffusion lines for shopping networks and have appeared on a few podcasts sharing about my journey from opera singer to ethical fashion designer. While I don’t accept every offer that comes across my inbox as I want to make sure to think strategically and not kill myself as I was a team of one until just five months ago, it is all really exciting!

I can honestly say that I am most happy when I am on camera going live sharing my designs each week with divas from all over the world. While I bash social media a lot, I am actually quite grateful for the incredible community I’ve built over the last decade from renting out gowns in my overstuffed apartment to making elaborate original designs worn by some of the biggest names in TV, Film, Classical Music and Broadway. When orders come in, I still do a dance!!! It never gets old. I truly love what I am doing and the joy that my creativity brings to others. I hope someday there will be a fashionable young woman who discovers one of my opera coats in a thrift store and looks me up and proudly brags about my odd story from opera to fashion when I am no longer here!

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

As an opera singer, I didn’t really know my worth. When I started my line I knew I wanted to create ethically made clothing in Los Angeles. I didn’t want to be part of the problem. I obviously had to sell at a higher price point to cover the costs of paying fair wages and using quality textiles to do this. I was worried nobody would buy my designs. Now, I have clients who ONLY wear byVINNIK. It’s such an incredible feeling to have this kind of support.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

Back in March 2019, I was caring for my dad who died a few months later. I wasn’t really able to work the way I was before singing, photographing clients and curating vintage. I was hell bent on releasing my clothing line. I’d already put in the initial work and had purchased my fabrics before leaving for what was my last singing engagement. When I got back from that gig, my dog had a bunch of crazy expensive eye surgeries for tumors growing in his blood vessels and I was driving between Los Angeles and Las Vegas more times than I can even count. I was very much tapped out as well having moved across the country from NYC to LA just a few months prior as well after leaving an abusive marriage. With my rent check, I funded my first production run. I also sublet my apartment to two opera colleagues performing at LA Opera and was staying with my now husband when I was in LA and with my parent’s in Las Vegas while I was taking care of my dad. It was crazy that I literally was like… ” I HAVE TO MAKE THIS RENT CHECK BACK WITH RETURNS… OR ELSE!” I haven’t looked back since!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.byVINNIK.com
• Instagram: www.Instagram.com/byVINNIK
• Other: TikTok & Pinterest @byVINNIK

Image Credits
Jordan Zobrist Rimi Sakamoto Kaleigh Rae Gamaché