Settlement Goods Archives - LAFashionsnob.com

Refinery 29 and Simon Present: The Shopping Block

Oct 23 2014

The Houston Preminum Outlets were once again the setting for another great and uber-fashionable event, The Shopping Block- hosted by fashion and retail powerhouses Refinery 29 and Simon. The event was put on as an effort between R29 and Simon to collaborate and commend the small culture and take back the mall, as well as the outlets. Refinery 29’s Athena Chen mentioned that, “[Simon] provided a lot of liberties to celebrate the ‘millennial culture’ of shopping and bringing them back in this environment by bringing in curated local vendors and designers to be apart of this experience.”

Houston was stop five of the seven city mall tour. The tour started in NYC, then went to Philadelphia, followed by Boston, Miami, HOUSTON, then Los Angeles and finally back in NYC. The event design was inspired by modernist artists Donald Judd and Dan Flavin, as well as Marfa, TX and its art and architecture- especially cubism. “This experience is supposed to be interactive and allowing us to celebrate something that’s very in the moment in a very spiritual and tangible way… It’s a way to bring in a crowd to engage with consumers in a new way for Simon and to interact with new consumers that they may not have reached in the past…” Athena explained.

Houston’s event was held under a large tent, where each of the vendors and interactive stations were set up like an intimate mini shopping mall within the mall. Lovely ladies in a matching gray tee, white pleated lacy skirt paired with cute tennis shoes and socks acted as the ‘Style Concierge,’ helping with questions and handing out curated style guides. Each event has guest hosts and for the Houston edition- siblings Hanna, Sophia and Joshua Anderson were chosen to host the event. The interactive stations included beauty bars by Designer Fragrances and Cosmetic Company and Elizabeth Arden and a DIY station where guests could personalize a tote bag, taking inspiration from two Fall 2014 runway trends- sporty and embellished. The booth featured a moodboard of each trend, an example of that tote and crafting materials. The local indie boutiques included: Height of Vintage (vintage clothing), Hatton Henry (handmade leather bags and accessories), Sun Child (online boutique based in Texas), Vida Antigua (“Vintage Life” offers vintage clothing), fLuxe Jewelry (handmade jewelry from copper sheet metal and patina chemicals, inspired by Art Deco, Aztec pottery and modern geographic design), Sal Miel (handmade unisex jewelry of created from mixed metals and textures) , Busy-Being + Solid Gold (a brick-n-mortar based in Austin that carries art and product from local artists and friends) and Settlement Goods (boutique in Houston that carries emerging and independent designers who manufacture in the USA).

It was a fun afternoon to get crafty, take photos in the selfie booth, catch up with friends, shop and try for a chance to win a shopping spree valued at $1,500 at a Simon mall.

Huge thanks to the vendors, Simon, DPWPR & Refinery 29 gals (especially Athena) for a lovely day!

FGI Houston Presents- Shop Talk: A Big Talk on Small Businesses

Jul 13 2014

Fashion Group International of Houston recently held a panel discussion regarding “small business.” The event was co-hosted by Tout Suite, a bakery and cafe that is new to Downtown and will be opening soon. The panel was moderated by Sarah Gabbart of Houstonia Magazine and featured five key small business owners: Brandi Garcia of Do or Dye TX, Cheryl Schulke of Stash Co., Davina Tweedy- director of marketing for Langford Market, Jackie Adams of Melodrama and Jenny Morgan of Settlement Goods.

After a few opening remarks by the lovely Sydney Dao, the panel discussion began. Here is a synopsis of the topics and advice that were discussed throughout the evening…

*Branding and Building Buzz Before Opening the Store

– Free Fridays (usually during first year).
– Discounts on back of business cards for first year.
– Martini Mondays (usually during first year).
– Networking, handing out flyers door-to-door, trunk shows.
– Pop-up shops, professional womens networking groups, selling via Facebook and Instagram.

*Marketing

– Instagram is such an amazing and free resource.

*How to Stay Current and Keep-Up with Changing Market

– Sometimes you have to change as the economy changes.
– As your long-term clients grow in life, you need to change and grow to fit their needs as well.

*How Do You Maintain Store Presence?

– Do charity and beauty events.
– Network.
– Trunk shows.
– Emails (like constant contact) and social media.
– Be consistent on social media.
– Keeping up with the customer (such as sending birthday cards).

“It’s not always about ‘sell, sell, sell;’ but also enriching your customer.”

*Long Term Goals and Advice to Future Business Owners

Jackie of Meladrama and Cheryl of Stash Co. had some very enlightening advice on this topic.

– Write down your ideas. Don’t try to reinvent the wheel, it’s probably already been done. Put your own spin to it.

– Do something that you are passionate about.

– Always try to give back to the community.

– Do the research.

– Start out small, while building your clientele.

– Create your own experience when you own a business.

– “When you’re going through hell, keep going.”

– Check out books (and their websites) by Malcolm Gladwell and Seth Godin.

– “Do the best you can, until you know better and then do better.” – Maya Angelou

– “Don’t push the river.” If it doesn’t feel right or if you are pushing/working too hard, it’s probably best to rethink your business.

– Don’t go into business with the wrong person. Always trust your gut.

– Budget out operating expenses a year in advance.

The event concluded with some closing remarks from the owners (and gracious hosts) of Tout Suite and Shop Talk Chair- Trang Nguyen. Followed by a continuation of networking and mingling.

HUGE thanks to the folks at FGI Houston, Tout Suite, Sarah, Brandi, Cheryl, Davina, Jackie and Jenny!

Tag - Settlement Goods