Step into the world of fashion, strategy & storytelling with industry powerhouse Idalia Salsamendi! From PR to fashion leadership, Idalia shares the must-know fundamentals of branding, competition, and consumer demands—especially in sustainability. 🌿✨
💡 Key Takeaways:
🔹 Brand Identity Matters: Understanding your niche & standing out.
🔹 Creativity Meets Business: Turning handbag dreams into reality.
🔹 Sustainability’s Role: Why conscious fashion is the future.
This episode is packed with game-changing advice for aspiring designers looking to build, grow & sustain a fashion brand. Don’t miss it! 🎧
🎧 Tune in now! #HandbagDesigner101 #IdaliaSalsamendi #FashionStrategy #BrandBuilding #SustainableFashion
Our Guest: Idalia Salsamendi is a fashion industry expert and business strategist who has transitioned from PR to building a powerhouse brand, guiding designers on branding, storytelling, and sustainable success.
Host Emily Blumenthal is a handbag industry expert, author of Handbag Designer 101, and founder of The Handbag Awards. Known as the “Handbag Fairy Godmother,” Emily also teaches entrepreneurship at the Fashion Institute of Technology. She is dedicated to celebrating creativity, craftsmanship, and the art of building iconic handbag brands.
Find Handbag Designer 101 Merch, HBD101 Masterclass, one-on-one sessions, and opportunities to book Emily Blumenthal as a speaker at emilyblumenthal.com.
Buy Emily’s Books: “Handbag Designer 101” & “Savvy Suzanna’s Amazing Adventures in Handbags”
Youtube: / Handbagdesigner101-ihda | Instagram:/ Handbagdesigner
TikTok: / Handbagdesigner | Twitter: / Handbagdesigner
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
And I remember thinking to myself okay, well,
I'm obviously not the first.
I mean, I'm the first withinfluence with bloggers, but not
with celebrities.
I'm not the best.
I don't have that many yearsbehind me in this sector, so I
decided to be the fastest.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Hi and welcome to Handbag Designer 101, the
podcast, with your host, emilyBlumenthal, handbag industry
expert and the handbag fairygodmother.
Each week, we uncover thestories behind the handbags we
love, from the iconic brands andtop designers to the creativity
, craftsmanship and culture thatdefine the handbag world.
Whether you're a designer,collector or simply passionate
(00:44):
about handbags, this is yourfront row seat to it all.
Welcome, idalia Salsamendi, toHandbag Designer 101, the
podcast.
Idalia, welcome, welcome,welcome.
I'm so excited to have you.
This is so exciting.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Thanks for having me.
Emily Blumenthal, I love howyou say my entire name.
You're probably one of the fewpeople that when you asked me,
did I pronounce this correctly?
I'm like, yes, you got my firstname correct, idalia.
Normally I have to give like astory and like Italy, italia,
but with a D, idalia.
You got it right.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
So Idalia, you have morphed into an influencer and
someone who has just so muchimpact on so many people.
How did all this get started?
Like, what did you do with yourbackground to get to this point
?
Because you know, on ourpodcast we talk a lot about
small business and growth andentrepreneurship and really
(01:40):
finding your voice, andobviously it doesn't necessarily
need to be within handbags, butit's more about business and
you know, taking something fromnothing and turning it into
something Sure.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
So great.
First question I actually grewup in the industry.
So my mom did public relationsfor Univision, like the TV
network.
So yeah, I would go to upfrontswith her.
When I was a little kid I usedto go to like all her events.
So I knew at a very early agewhat public relation was and I
really understood at an earlyage what talent management like
took.
I thought it was just a reallyinteresting avenue.
(02:12):
So I at 19 years old I'm 41 now, so for 21 years 19 was my
first job at a peer agency herein Miami and that segued over to
me working at two of the topmodeling agencies in the States,
which was Ford, and then atNext.
So by the time I came to Next,we were just beginning to sign
(02:32):
what we call bloggers, Right.
So Chiara Farani, JulieSariania, Sincerely, Jules,
Danielle Bernstein so we werereally at the forefront of this
blogger movement.
I was transferred over to theirNew York office because this
was in LA and I became theforefront of this blogger
movement.
I was transferred over to theirNew York office because this
was in LA and I became thedirector of talent.
So that's where I really got towork with top stars like Pamela
Anderson and Dua Lipa.
(02:54):
So I really, from a very earlyage, I understood the public
relations side of the businessbecause I worked PR.
I grew up in PR.
Did you go to college?
Yeah, I went to FIU, FloridaInternational University.
I studied journalism and masscommunication with a minor in
business administration.
So were you working while youwere going to school?
Oh yes, ma'am, I'm afirst-generation American.
(03:15):
My parents were like study andwork, study and work.
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah.
So it was during college that Iwas getting my bachelor's in
journalism and working at a PRagency and vice president of my
sorority and vice president of,like, the number one
non-for-profit that they have,which is Dance Marathon.
So, yeah, I was a very busystudent.
(03:37):
That really shaped who I wasfor various reasons.
The PR agency that I worked forwere all women and it was women
run, which, you know, 20 yearsago that wasn't anything that
you would say out loud, not forany particular reason, it just
was a point of conversation.
But I knew there was somethingspecial there because I was
surrounded by very strong,beautiful women and you know to
(03:59):
this day they're very closefriends of mine.
And then I was in authority andthat also was very strong women
.
You know you had to keep acertain GPA, you had to do X
amount of community servicehours.
They held you to a standard asa civilian that you know.
I thought that that was areally good fit for me, you know
.
So my university life thatreally shaped me into oh, this
(04:20):
is what a business would looklike.
Oh, this is what giving backlooks like.
Oh, is what a business wouldlook like.
Oh, this is what giving backlooks like.
Oh, this is what being part ofa community looks like.
So by the time I hit next modelsand next management in New York
and I was dealing with thecelebrities, that's where I
realized I think there's a whitespace in this creator economy
where consulting and strategyreally need to take the
forefront.
Because, yes, you can go intoan agency and they say, yeah,
we're going to strategize, yes,we're going to do this, but you
(04:42):
may talk to your agent in thatcapacity maybe once, twice,
three times a year.
And what I realized is a lot ofthese young entrepreneurs I
mean literally these bloggerswere 19, 20 years old, making
seven figures.
They really did understand howthe business worked and why
should they?
Like no one ever taught them.
So Idalia Inc really stemmedfrom educating content creators
(05:04):
and saying, ok, well, if you dowant to make this a business,
how can you protect yourselfintellectually, financially,
legally?
And that was like the start ofwhat my company.
That was like the literally thebirth of Idalia Inc.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
What was the incentive for you to say, OK,
I'm going off on my own.
What brought you to that point?
Speaker 1 (05:22):
It's interesting.
I was working with a co-workerof mine, jane Lim, who's Chris
Soutland's little sister, andshe turns to me one day and she
says you know, you're not happy.
And I'm like Jane, of courseI'm happy.
I'm like I get into the bestrestaurants, I go to the best
parties, I go to Fashion Week.
She's like, yeah, that's notfilling your cup, Right?
And it was the first timesomeone really looked at me and
(05:43):
said that's not what life isabout.
And I was in my early 30s andI'm like isn't that?
Like?
It reminded me of the scene inthe Devil Wears Prada where
Meryl Streep turns to AnneHathaway Everyone wants to be us
, everybody wants to be us, yep,and Anne Hathaway really had to
take that in, absorb it, digestit and say is this true?
(06:04):
And for me it wasn't true.
Sure, everybody wants to be us,but once you see the amount of
work that goes into thebackground, once you see the
sacrifices you need to make,does everybody want to do that?
Obviously not, because if not,everybody would be doing what
we're doing.
So I had to figure out whatmade sense for me, and for me it
was really really communicatingwith young entrepreneurs mostly
(06:25):
women, right, because bloggersback then.
I mean, maybe you had one ortwo guys, but it was mostly
women.
I go wow, this is an industrywhere women make more than men.
This is amazing.
You know, like so cool.
What if I could teach them tobe CEOs?
Speaker 2 (06:48):
What would that look like?
That's so fascinating.
But while you were still dayjobbing, had you templatized how
you work with clients, likewhat was the first thing you
would look for?
Like you took on someonebecause dealing with brands and
designers?
Yes, especially teachingstudents who are aspiring
designers.
So much of that is never, evertaught.
What are the keystones that youwould say okay, what are the
things that you have or need toget locked down before we even
(07:11):
move forward?
Speaker 1 (07:12):
As a content creator?
Yeah, I think number one, and Iapologize for the vague answer,
but it's just knowing thebusiness.
That's just it.
There's so many people thatdon't realize that you need to
pitch, that you need to have amedia kit that you have.
You know personal branding, youknow this, your professor,
right?
So it's the 101 of you know.
(07:33):
Yes, we can go into, like, howto sell your IP.
Yes, we can go into capsulecollections, but that's like
fourth year, right?
The majority of content creatorsright now don't even know and
they don't have access to likethat quote-unquote first year
knowledge.
So it is just looking at thebusiness and saying, okay, well,
what do you need to do?
And the same way, like, we canapply it to like okay, let's say
(07:55):
you want to get a job, right,you want to get a job in finance
.
You probably may want to go touniversity and study finance.
You may want to be good atnumbers.
You may want to know how towork this application, whether
it's Excel or whateveraccountants do now.
But imagine a world wherecontent creators don't even know
that they need to be educated.
(08:15):
They don't even know they needto be good at numbers.
They're just throwing cautionto the wind, crossing their
fingers and praying, somethingsticks, and very, very few
people are able to create asustainable business that way.
Those are the exceptions, notthe rule, so I'm out to teach
the rules.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
What would you say that those rules are going in?
Like, okay, because if we're tolook at this as like,
hypothetically, a designer or abrand owner and saying, okay,
you need to know the business,Typically, at least with my
students and the designers withwhom I've worked, before we even
do a damn thing, I ask themlike what's your brand DNA?
(08:55):
Who's your competition?
You know, if you're doing yourfour P's, give it to me in the
shortest breakdown.
Like, who is the customer inthe middle?
What does she eat for breakfast?
What car does she drive?
Like, you know, what would shecarry in her bag?
Like all these and do a quickcompetitive analysis and all of
these things.
And you know, I had designerssaying, oh, I almost got into
(09:17):
sex.
And I said I almost got intosex too, but then I went to have
sushi.
Like it's not about almostgetting in.
You either are or you're not,and if you're not, it's for good
reason.
And you have to figure outwhat's the why of that.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
I love that.
Yeah, it was interestingbecause I, two summers ago, I
taught a semester at the JimmyChoo Academy and it was all
these designers and everythingthat you said like.
I 100% echoed that, that.
You have to understand that andyou know.
Going back to your originalquestion, when I work with
designers, when I work withbrands, it's number one what's
your why?
So that goes, and I do thatwith content creators, personal
(09:57):
branding and something as simpleas what's your font, what's
your logo.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
What are your?
Speaker 1 (09:59):
color schemes.
Do you want that to be seasonalor do you want that to be
forever?
Right?
Because look at YSL, yves,saint Laurent we went from YSL
to YSL to Saint Laurent to likeright now, you know.
So it's not saying that onceyou decide on something you need
to like, follow it to, you know, the day's end.
But what is that ethos of thebrand?
And then understanding, like,if you are going to pitch
(10:20):
yourself out to celebrities, ifyou are going to pitch yourself
out to influencers or KOLs, doyou have a press?
Speaker 2 (10:27):
kit, and what would a press kit consist of, based on
your experience, Because, somany people think it's a million
different things.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
So I do want to preface this by saying that for
me, a press kit and a media kitvary differently.
So I would say that if you area designer, listening to this,
I'll give you the answer.
If you are an influencer orcontent creator, I do think it
varies.
But as far as a press kit, whenI work with brands it's
definitely understanding who'sthe owner, what's the vision.
You just finished saying giveme your four Ps, what's your why
(10:58):
?
Right?
So immediately start off withwho are you?
Give me a true why, like I don'twant to like at this point, how
inundated this industry is,like you are not going to catch
someone's attention.
Oh, I grew up loving handbagsand I don't, right?
No, you know, give me the JaneBirkin story.
Give me that.
You were sitting down next toyou, know, somebody in a flight.
(11:20):
You realize that she couldn'tcarry everything and she wanted
sheet bag.
You came back to the studio andyou created the Birkin bag.
Right, like that's the storythat I want to hear.
That's the story that's like,yes, that's going to sell me on
the bag.
So your why and your story hasto be, has to be catching.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
Like make me remember that story you know, to that
point, two things.
To that point, one of thethings that I've dealt with a
lot specifically within what'sthe why, is number one trying to
teach that your why can't becoming from something negative
because nobody wants to hearanything negative, so it needs
to be flipped.
When I started out 100 millionyears ago, advertising was the
(11:57):
hot, cool thing.
The one thing they always saidis don't go into a meeting or an
interview saying I lovecommercials.
It's like no, what do you like?
What do you think about themessaging that it's emoting to
you?
What stands out?
Why?
Why are you feeling this?
And also in terms of trying tothink like okay, something was
(12:17):
missing on the market.
You have your Jane Birkin story, but like okay, where your
product will potentially sell.
Do you shop there?
The answer, nine times out of10, is no, because no new
designer will ever be carried inthe sacks.
Maybe they shouldn't right now,but in a major retailer,
because they won't touch youwith a 10 foot pole until you
(12:39):
have traction and followers andbrands with fans and you can say
that you know, when you startcarrying my products, I can
guarantee people will come andbuy it.
So, there's got to be more thanjust the Birkin story.
Speaker 1 (12:51):
It's like and I've researched it and realized- that
, yes, and that's where the restof the press kit goes.
Like, where, like, are youshowing samples or are you
showing your products?
Are you showing, like a presspart of your you know your press
kit where you see we'recelebrities or you know, maybe
whatever that is.
So to your point, yes, like,that's that's part one, and then
(13:12):
part two.
It's like why should that otherperson carry your brand?
And just so that you know also,it ties in beautifully with
content creators because youknow they say, oh well, I want
to work with dior.
Okay, well, there's brandalignment to every.
You know who, at this point,who doesn't want to work with
Dior?
Right, like, at this point, whodoesn't want to be carried?
(13:32):
You know, at Bergdorf Goodman,you know who like, really, so
you know who doesn't want to beinheritance in London, right,
everybody.
That's like that's the, that'sthe epiphany.
That's like the the right rightright, the promised land, but
what are you doing before then?
So when you ask me, like okay,like what is, what is it?
It's like it's the business.
You need to understand that toget to Dior, there's like 20
other steps that you need toclimb.
But if no one tells you that,how are you going to know that?
(13:54):
If you want to get to Saks or,let's say, harrods, for this,
for sake of conversation youneed to know that Harrods is not
your first phone call, it's notyour first pitch.
God.
Speaker 2 (14:05):
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(15:32):
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Honestly, my first pitch as ahandbag designer was to Barney's
, which is even funnier.
Yeah, because I was working inmedia and had a lot of
connections and I was connectedto the buyer of handbags and
went in and had a meeting andthey walked in, they looked at
(15:53):
it and they walked right out andI was standing there with my
product on the table like andyou know, it's cute, but and
that but nearly killed me, Iwalked out like.
Oh, deflated is anunderstatement thinking like,
but this was my moment, I wasgoing to arrive, this is.
I was going to be one of thosesuccess stories, like I happened
(16:15):
to stop by Barney's and Ihappened to show my product and
they happened to want it.
Oh, look at me as I was.
The funny thing is thatsometimes naivete is is is a
blessing, because I did not eventhink they wouldn't want it.
Speaker 1 (16:30):
I was listening to a podcast and it was Alex Amozian.
He was saying you know, inbusiness you have uninformed
optimism.
Because you're uninformed,you're like, yes, I'm going to
go into Barney's, everythingthat you said you're like, and
it's that naivete and then thatquickly transitions to informed
negativity or an informedpessimism.
So you have in sorry, it was inuninformed optimism informed
pessimism.
(16:50):
So the big thing is when youget that crush, when you're like
, whoa, this is a lot harderthan what I thought because
you're educating yourself, thenyou know that you're onto
something good, because thatstep after that is informed
optimism.
But the only way to get toinformed optimism is to get to
informed pessimism, because yougot to have that like wake up
(17:12):
moment, you got to have thatwhoa like oh, this is of course,
because if it was that easy,everybody would be in Barneys.
Oh, yeah, of course.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
No one's in Barneys now.
But yeah, and you know this wasin the heyday of Bird Dwarfs
and Bendels and I was discoveredfrom Bendel's Open Sea, which
was their famous casting callfor designers a hundred years
ago, and what they would do isthey would have the designers
come in and do a trunk show butyou would have to stay there
(17:43):
yourself from the moment thedoors opened to the moment they
closed and you could not leavethe floor.
And you know the floor staffhad no incentive to try and help
you sell your products becausethey make commission.
So here I am, standing here andtrying to pull people away who
are looking at other productfrom where their commission was
(18:03):
coming.
It was so uncomfortable and thefunny thing is after the cause,
it was a two day trunk show.
The second day I left and Iwalked out.
I fainted on the street.
It was so intense.
The pressure.
Yeah, and well, also, side note,I was dating some dumb guy and
(18:27):
he's like I don't think this isgoing to work out.
And I totally fainted afterthat.
I hadn't eaten anything and hethought it was because of him
and it wasn't.
You're like, no, I just did atwo day trunk.
I'm like I have nothing.
You know, I was like I justneed a slice of pizza before we
even talk.
And he's like, well, listen,and I said, no, hold that, hold
(18:47):
that, I just need to have aslice of freaking pizza.
So, yeah, I never got my pizzaand I woke up and I was like
what the hell is going on?
Yeah, and you know, it's thisharsh realization that you are
peddling things one customer ata time.
And so many people tend to wantto skip over that and think like
, okay, I've done my one post.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
Where is everybody?
No, it is.
I would love to ask you likewhat do you think the average,
the years that it takes fromconception of a brand to really
feeling like your head is abovewater?
What would you say?
That?
How many years would you say onaverage?
Speaker 2 (19:29):
I'd say you need at least two years, at a minimum,
at least two.
I think you know I always sayinception.
What I teach at my class isinception to shelf, to repeat
business, to customeracquisition and all the stuff
that comes after that, withcollaborations and the narrative
of sustainability, which now,right now, needs to be part.
(19:50):
But it cannot be your fullstory because it will be
debunked and you can't beprofitable that way.
So it needs to be woven in.
I always show this clip at the.
I think it's my first class ormy second class.
It's a Marie Forleo clip.
It's old.
I admire what she does.
I don't really follow her toomuch but I know she's got some
(20:10):
solid nuggets out there whereshe does this clip about
Poo-Pourri, which is a spraythat you know you use for the
bathroom.
After you've done your business.
You spray it on the toilet.
Yes, right, bingo, yeah, but itwas.
You know it was an innovatorand you know, when you're
launching a brand or evenyourself, you have to be the
fastest, the first or the best,and unless you're checking one
(20:32):
of those boxes, it's very hardto stand out.
So what lane are you going tobe in?
The fastest, the first or thebest?
The?
Speaker 1 (20:40):
first or the best.
I love that.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
You know who taught me that, which is even funnier
Trini Woodall, from Trini London.
As I had mentioned, I worked inLondon and I had a lot of good
friends there and I wasconnected with her.
I went to London for a tradeshow right when I'd started my
brand, and he's like I can hookyou up with a meeting with Trini
(21:03):
and I said, oh damn sure.
And she was doing, how do Ithink it was?
How do I look?
She was still doing that there,her house.
She was still married at thetime.
She took me up to her closet ithad a key, the whole thing and
she sat me down and she's likewhere do you fall within this?
Like what's your?
(21:26):
And she's the one that saidthat to me and I've repeated it
ever since.
I doubt she even remembers.
And then you know how are yougoing to develop your line?
Are you doing it inspired by atrend?
Are you doing something that'sinspired by the runway?
Are you taking it fromsomething historical?
Like, where do you fall interms of your narrative?
And it was so eye-opening tosay, okay, where would I be?
Because to be a pioneer is tooexpensive, it just is.
(21:51):
So you have to fall into onespecific window in order to
understand your narrative.
Because to educate a customerand to have them change their
mind, you're taking anddeveloping this precious 20
percent and that 20 percentcovers 80 percent of your
business.
So how are you going to buildup that 20 percent?
(22:13):
And if you have to educate thiscustomer and convert them,
literally convert them to wantto use your product, do you have
the time, value of money thatyou can afford to do that?
So I would say you know twoyears to maneuver and manipulate
your way into their life, butyou have to do the.
(22:33):
You know I'm a huge fan ofethnography and I show again
this vintage video of this womanfrom Miami it's so grainy at
this point where they'reinterviewing her, making dinner
and writing down like here's theshow she watches, here's her
commute, here's the food shelikes to cook.
And those are the things thatyou have to do to get into the
(22:54):
mindset of your customer.
Yeah, your avatar, exactly, andwe talk so much about.
And I always use UrbanOutfitters, as my case study
does Urban Outfitters, justbecause it's of the generation.
It's at least easy to teach andsay okay, if you're in Urban
Outfitters, do you think theysell the same product uptown and
(23:15):
downtown.
Do you think they sell the sameproduct from where you are to,
you know, virginia, or in Texasor in Miami?
And the answer is no.
And then we have this deep diveconversation why, why do they
not do that?
Could your product sell in allof those stores?
And if not, then you need tohave a clear picture of who your
(23:36):
customer is.
That's right.
So I say two years at a minimum.
Speaker 1 (23:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (23:43):
That's a long story.
Short answer no, no, no, no, Ilove the in-depth, but I love
what you said about the first,the quickest, or?
the best the fastest, the first,the quickest or the fastest,
the first or the best.
I remember when I was, when Igot transferred to next in New
York, I was dealing withmanagers that had been dealing
with celebrities, right Causethis is my first time with
celebrities like truecelebrities, and you know,
(24:07):
everybody was in like their lateforties, early fifties.
And here comes, like this, 31year old, in charge of New York
City, which was a big market.
And I remember thinking tomyself okay, well, I'm obviously
not the first.
I mean, I'm the first withinfluence with bloggers, but not
with celebrities.
I'm not the best.
I don't have that many yearsbehind me in this sector.
(24:31):
So I decided to be the fastest.
And I remember that, a lot ofthe pain points that I went out
when I would meet thesecelebrities, like, oh, my
manager doesn't get back to meuntil like two or three days
later, or oh, you know, I askeda question and I thought to
myself, well, what if I answeremails within 24 business hours?
And what ended up happening isafter two years.
And what ended up happening isafter two years, people in Paris
(24:54):
would be emailing me because Iwould answer quicker than
someone in Paris in the sametime zone.
And to this day I take thatwith my company, idalia Inc.
It's like, okay, well, you know, now I could say, yes, my
company is the first to do this.
I would like to think we're thebest just because of the years
and the experience, and we'realso the fastest.
(25:19):
So you know, to your point,like if you need one of the
three to start with, but if youcan maneuver your way into not
crossing out all those threelike you're good, you're good.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
Yeah, and also, you know how niche can you afford to
be?
That's also a problem.
You know, if you get too niche,where do you fall?
Is there enough for people tofollow you, to work with you, to
want to do a partnership, to doa collab with you?
How much are you voicing?
Personally, I always sayprofessionally keep your
(25:51):
opinions to yourself, no matterwhat's going on, whatever the
climate is, because it will comeback to haunt you one way or
another.
People want you for you, notfor what your opinions are on
topics that are divisive.
Speaker 1 (26:04):
Yeah, I was dealing with a situation right now, with
an influencer going throughthat, and I said you know, do
you want the climate right nowto be part of your business
model?
Want the climate right now tobe part of your business model?
That's all you got to askyourself.
Because if the answer is yes,you know, and you want to
transition, go for it, Like I.
You know it's, that's yourprerogative.
But once you do start offeringyour opinion, you are opening
(26:27):
Pandora's box, which is notnecessarily bad.
It's just you need to understandthe consequences, both good and
bad, that are going to comefrom it and how is it going to
affect your business.
Do you want this to be part ofyour business model?
Speaker 2 (26:38):
Yeah, that's all it is to do with what their
personal opinions are.
They want their personalopinions based on you know how
they look, how they dress, howthey shop.
Which line are you going tocross?
(27:00):
So it's something I don't know.
Especially as someone whoteaches, I make sure, and make
it very clear, that my personalopinions are never, ever, part
of the dialogue, because it'snot my business.
My business is to teach, it'sto educate, it's to make sure
that you understand this process, how and what you want to do
with it.
That's on you.
(27:20):
I can't control that.
Speaker 1 (27:21):
Yeah, I can only make sure that I'm right there with
you.
Speaker 2 (27:24):
I'm right there with you.
I'm right there with you as aneducator.
Speaker 1 (27:27):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
Oh my gosh, Idalia, I don't want to take any more of
your time.
This has been an absolute treat, delight.
How can people find you?
Follow you get more amazingstuff.
Speaker 1 (27:38):
So you can find me on Instagram idaliasalsamendi
I-D-A-L-I-A and then Salsamendi.
My agency is idalia Inc, soI-D-A-L-I-A-I-N-Ccom.
You can go on my website and Ido offer free exploratory calls.
I offer free worksheets and,again, if you are either a
designer or a content creator,you fall somewhere in between,
(27:59):
or neither.
You just want to understand thecontent creation business a
little bit more.
I do offer again a freeexploratory call and free
worksheets, and then Substack,which is how you and I met Emily
Substack.
Speaker 2 (28:08):
I was just going to say, if you didn't say it, yeah,
no-transcript.
Speaker 1 (28:44):
So Instagram TikTok.
Same thing, my website, deliInc and Substack.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
Beautiful.
Thank you so much for joiningus today.
This has been an absolutepleasure All mine Thank you
joining us today.
This has been an absolutepleasure, oh my, thank you.
Thanks for listening.
Don't forget to rate and review, and follow us on every single
platform at Handbag Designer.
Thanks so much.
See you next time.
And I remember thinking to myself okay, well,
I'm obviously not the first.
I mean, I'm the first withinfluence with bloggers, but not
with celebrities.
I'm not the best.
I don't have that many yearsbehind me in this sector, so I
decided to be the fastest.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Hi and welcome to Handbag Designer 101, the
podcast, with your host, emilyBlumenthal, handbag industry
expert and the handbag fairygodmother.
Each week, we uncover thestories behind the handbags we
love, from the iconic brands andtop designers to the creativity
, craftsmanship and culture thatdefine the handbag world.
Whether you're a designer,collector or simply passionate
(00:44):
about handbags, this is yourfront row seat to it all.
Welcome, idalia Salsamendi, toHandbag Designer 101, the
podcast.
Idalia, welcome, welcome,welcome.
I'm so excited to have you.
This is so exciting.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Thanks for having me.
Emily Blumenthal, I love howyou say my entire name.
You're probably one of the fewpeople that when you asked me,
did I pronounce this correctly?
I'm like, yes, you got my firstname correct, idalia.
Normally I have to give like astory and like Italy, italia,
but with a D, idalia.
You got it right.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
So Idalia, you have morphed into an influencer and
someone who has just so muchimpact on so many people.
How did all this get started?
Like, what did you do with yourbackground to get to this point
?
Because you know, on ourpodcast we talk a lot about
small business and growth andentrepreneurship and really
(01:40):
finding your voice, andobviously it doesn't necessarily
need to be within handbags, butit's more about business and
you know, taking something fromnothing and turning it into
something Sure.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
So great.
First question I actually grewup in the industry.
So my mom did public relationsfor Univision, like the TV
network.
So yeah, I would go to upfrontswith her.
When I was a little kid I usedto go to like all her events.
So I knew at a very early agewhat public relation was and I
really understood at an earlyage what talent management like
took.
I thought it was just a reallyinteresting avenue.
(02:12):
So I at 19 years old I'm 41 now, so for 21 years 19 was my
first job at a peer agency herein Miami and that segued over to
me working at two of the topmodeling agencies in the States,
which was Ford, and then atNext.
So by the time I came to Next,we were just beginning to sign
(02:32):
what we call bloggers, Right.
So Chiara Farani, JulieSariania, Sincerely, Jules,
Danielle Bernstein so we werereally at the forefront of this
blogger movement.
I was transferred over to theirNew York office because this
was in LA and I became theforefront of this blogger
movement.
I was transferred over to theirNew York office because this
was in LA and I became thedirector of talent.
So that's where I really got towork with top stars like Pamela
Anderson and Dua Lipa.
(02:54):
So I really, from a very earlyage, I understood the public
relations side of the businessbecause I worked PR.
I grew up in PR.
Did you go to college?
Yeah, I went to FIU, FloridaInternational University.
I studied journalism and masscommunication with a minor in
business administration.
So were you working while youwere going to school?
Oh yes, ma'am, I'm afirst-generation American.
(03:15):
My parents were like study andwork, study and work.
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah.
So it was during college that Iwas getting my bachelor's in
journalism and working at a PRagency and vice president of my
sorority and vice president of,like, the number one
non-for-profit that they have,which is Dance Marathon.
So, yeah, I was a very busystudent.
(03:37):
That really shaped who I wasfor various reasons.
The PR agency that I worked forwere all women and it was women
run, which, you know, 20 yearsago that wasn't anything that
you would say out loud, not forany particular reason, it just
was a point of conversation.
But I knew there was somethingspecial there because I was
surrounded by very strong,beautiful women and you know to
(03:59):
this day they're very closefriends of mine.
And then I was in authority andthat also was very strong women
.
You know you had to keep acertain GPA, you had to do X
amount of community servicehours.
They held you to a standard asa civilian that you know.
I thought that that was areally good fit for me, you know
.
So my university life thatreally shaped me into oh, this
(04:20):
is what a business would looklike.
Oh, this is what giving backlooks like.
Oh, is what a business wouldlook like.
Oh, this is what giving backlooks like.
Oh, this is what being part ofa community looks like.
So by the time I hit next modelsand next management in New York
and I was dealing with thecelebrities, that's where I
realized I think there's a whitespace in this creator economy
where consulting and strategyreally need to take the
forefront.
Because, yes, you can go intoan agency and they say, yeah,
we're going to strategize, yes,we're going to do this, but you
(04:42):
may talk to your agent in thatcapacity maybe once, twice,
three times a year.
And what I realized is a lot ofthese young entrepreneurs I
mean literally these bloggerswere 19, 20 years old, making
seven figures.
They really did understand howthe business worked and why
should they?
Like no one ever taught them.
So Idalia Inc really stemmedfrom educating content creators
(05:04):
and saying, ok, well, if you dowant to make this a business,
how can you protect yourselfintellectually, financially,
legally?
And that was like the start ofwhat my company.
That was like the literally thebirth of Idalia Inc.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
What was the incentive for you to say, OK,
I'm going off on my own.
What brought you to that point?
Speaker 1 (05:22):
It's interesting.
I was working with a co-workerof mine, jane Lim, who's Chris
Soutland's little sister, andshe turns to me one day and she
says you know, you're not happy.
And I'm like Jane, of courseI'm happy.
I'm like I get into the bestrestaurants, I go to the best
parties, I go to Fashion Week.
She's like, yeah, that's notfilling your cup, Right?
And it was the first timesomeone really looked at me and
(05:43):
said that's not what life isabout.
And I was in my early 30s andI'm like isn't that?
Like?
It reminded me of the scene inthe Devil Wears Prada where
Meryl Streep turns to AnneHathaway Everyone wants to be us
, everybody wants to be us, yep,and Anne Hathaway really had to
take that in, absorb it, digestit and say is this true?
(06:04):
And for me it wasn't true.
Sure, everybody wants to be us,but once you see the amount of
work that goes into thebackground, once you see the
sacrifices you need to make,does everybody want to do that?
Obviously not, because if not,everybody would be doing what
we're doing.
So I had to figure out whatmade sense for me, and for me it
was really really communicatingwith young entrepreneurs mostly
(06:25):
women, right, because bloggersback then.
I mean, maybe you had one ortwo guys, but it was mostly
women.
I go wow, this is an industrywhere women make more than men.
This is amazing.
You know, like so cool.
What if I could teach them tobe CEOs?
Speaker 2 (06:48):
What would that look like?
That's so fascinating.
But while you were still dayjobbing, had you templatized how
you work with clients, likewhat was the first thing you
would look for?
Like you took on someonebecause dealing with brands and
designers?
Yes, especially teachingstudents who are aspiring
designers.
So much of that is never, evertaught.
What are the keystones that youwould say okay, what are the
things that you have or need toget locked down before we even
(07:11):
move forward?
Speaker 1 (07:12):
As a content creator?
Yeah, I think number one, and Iapologize for the vague answer,
but it's just knowing thebusiness.
That's just it.
There's so many people thatdon't realize that you need to
pitch, that you need to have amedia kit that you have.
You know personal branding, youknow this, your professor,
right?
So it's the 101 of you know.
(07:33):
Yes, we can go into, like, howto sell your IP.
Yes, we can go into capsulecollections, but that's like
fourth year, right?
The majority of content creatorsright now don't even know and
they don't have access to likethat quote-unquote first year
knowledge.
So it is just looking at thebusiness and saying, okay, well,
what do you need to do?
And the same way, like, we canapply it to like okay, let's say
(07:55):
you want to get a job, right,you want to get a job in finance
.
You probably may want to go touniversity and study finance.
You may want to be good atnumbers.
You may want to know how towork this application, whether
it's Excel or whateveraccountants do now.
But imagine a world wherecontent creators don't even know
that they need to be educated.
(08:15):
They don't even know they needto be good at numbers.
They're just throwing cautionto the wind, crossing their
fingers and praying, somethingsticks, and very, very few
people are able to create asustainable business that way.
Those are the exceptions, notthe rule, so I'm out to teach
the rules.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
What would you say that those rules are going in?
Like, okay, because if we're tolook at this as like,
hypothetically, a designer or abrand owner and saying, okay,
you need to know the business,Typically, at least with my
students and the designers withwhom I've worked, before we even
do a damn thing, I ask themlike what's your brand DNA?
(08:55):
Who's your competition?
You know, if you're doing yourfour P's, give it to me in the
shortest breakdown.
Like, who is the customer inthe middle?
What does she eat for breakfast?
What car does she drive?
Like, you know, what would shecarry in her bag?
Like all these and do a quickcompetitive analysis and all of
these things.
And you know, I had designerssaying, oh, I almost got into
(09:17):
sex.
And I said I almost got intosex too, but then I went to have
sushi.
Like it's not about almostgetting in.
You either are or you're not,and if you're not, it's for good
reason.
And you have to figure outwhat's the why of that.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
I love that.
Yeah, it was interestingbecause I, two summers ago, I
taught a semester at the JimmyChoo Academy and it was all
these designers and everythingthat you said like.
I 100% echoed that, that.
You have to understand that andyou know.
Going back to your originalquestion, when I work with
designers, when I work withbrands, it's number one what's
your why?
So that goes, and I do thatwith content creators, personal
(09:57):
branding and something as simpleas what's your font, what's
your logo.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
What are your?
Speaker 1 (09:59):
color schemes.
Do you want that to be seasonalor do you want that to be
forever?
Right?
Because look at YSL, yves,saint Laurent we went from YSL
to YSL to Saint Laurent to likeright now, you know.
So it's not saying that onceyou decide on something you need
to like, follow it to, you know, the day's end.
But what is that ethos of thebrand?
And then understanding, like,if you are going to pitch
(10:20):
yourself out to celebrities, ifyou are going to pitch yourself
out to influencers or KOLs, doyou have a press?
Speaker 2 (10:27):
kit, and what would a press kit consist of, based on
your experience, Because, somany people think it's a million
different things.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
So I do want to preface this by saying that for
me, a press kit and a media kitvary differently.
So I would say that if you area designer, listening to this,
I'll give you the answer.
If you are an influencer orcontent creator, I do think it
varies.
But as far as a press kit, whenI work with brands it's
definitely understanding who'sthe owner, what's the vision.
You just finished saying giveme your four Ps, what's your why
(10:58):
?
Right?
So immediately start off withwho are you?
Give me a true why, like I don'twant to like at this point, how
inundated this industry is,like you are not going to catch
someone's attention.
Oh, I grew up loving handbagsand I don't, right?
No, you know, give me the JaneBirkin story.
Give me that.
You were sitting down next toyou, know, somebody in a flight.
(11:20):
You realize that she couldn'tcarry everything and she wanted
sheet bag.
You came back to the studio andyou created the Birkin bag.
Right, like that's the storythat I want to hear.
That's the story that's like,yes, that's going to sell me on
the bag.
So your why and your story hasto be, has to be catching.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
Like make me remember that story you know, to that
point, two things.
To that point, one of thethings that I've dealt with a
lot specifically within what'sthe why, is number one trying to
teach that your why can't becoming from something negative
because nobody wants to hearanything negative, so it needs
to be flipped.
When I started out 100 millionyears ago, advertising was the
(11:57):
hot, cool thing.
The one thing they always saidis don't go into a meeting or an
interview saying I lovecommercials.
It's like no, what do you like?
What do you think about themessaging that it's emoting to
you?
What stands out?
Why?
Why are you feeling this?
And also in terms of trying tothink like okay, something was
(12:17):
missing on the market.
You have your Jane Birkin story, but like okay, where your
product will potentially sell.
Do you shop there?
The answer, nine times out of10, is no, because no new
designer will ever be carried inthe sacks.
Maybe they shouldn't right now,but in a major retailer,
because they won't touch youwith a 10 foot pole until you
(12:39):
have traction and followers andbrands with fans and you can say
that you know, when you startcarrying my products, I can
guarantee people will come andbuy it.
So, there's got to be more thanjust the Birkin story.
Speaker 1 (12:51):
It's like and I've researched it and realized- that
, yes, and that's where the restof the press kit goes.
Like, where, like, are youshowing samples or are you
showing your products?
Are you showing, like a presspart of your you know your press
kit where you see we'recelebrities or you know, maybe
whatever that is.
So to your point, yes, like,that's that's part one, and then
(13:12):
part two.
It's like why should that otherperson carry your brand?
And just so that you know also,it ties in beautifully with
content creators because youknow they say, oh well, I want
to work with dior.
Okay, well, there's brandalignment to every.
You know who, at this point,who doesn't want to work with
Dior?
Right, like, at this point, whodoesn't want to be carried?
(13:32):
You know, at Bergdorf Goodman,you know who like, really, so
you know who doesn't want to beinheritance in London, right,
everybody.
That's like that's the, that'sthe epiphany.
That's like the the right rightright, the promised land, but
what are you doing before then?
So when you ask me, like okay,like what is, what is it?
It's like it's the business.
You need to understand that toget to Dior, there's like 20
other steps that you need toclimb.
But if no one tells you that,how are you going to know that?
(13:54):
If you want to get to Saks or,let's say, harrods, for this,
for sake of conversation youneed to know that Harrods is not
your first phone call, it's notyour first pitch.
God.
Speaker 2 (14:05):
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didn't know where to start, thisis for you.
If you had dreams of becoming ahandbag designer but aren't
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I'm Emily Blumenthal, handbagdesigner expert and handbag
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(14:28):
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For the past 20 years, I've beenteaching at the top fashion
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(15:09):
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(15:32):
masterclass today.
Honestly, my first pitch as ahandbag designer was to Barney's
, which is even funnier.
Yeah, because I was working inmedia and had a lot of
connections and I was connectedto the buyer of handbags and
went in and had a meeting andthey walked in, they looked at
(15:53):
it and they walked right out andI was standing there with my
product on the table like andyou know, it's cute, but and
that but nearly killed me, Iwalked out like.
Oh, deflated is anunderstatement thinking like,
but this was my moment, I wasgoing to arrive, this is.
I was going to be one of thosesuccess stories, like I happened
(16:15):
to stop by Barney's and Ihappened to show my product and
they happened to want it.
Oh, look at me as I was.
The funny thing is thatsometimes naivete is is is a
blessing, because I did not eventhink they wouldn't want it.
Speaker 1 (16:30):
I was listening to a podcast and it was Alex Amozian.
He was saying you know, inbusiness you have uninformed
optimism.
Because you're uninformed,you're like, yes, I'm going to
go into Barney's, everythingthat you said you're like, and
it's that naivete and then thatquickly transitions to informed
negativity or an informedpessimism.
So you have in sorry, it was inuninformed optimism informed
pessimism.
(16:50):
So the big thing is when youget that crush, when you're like
, whoa, this is a lot harderthan what I thought because
you're educating yourself, thenyou know that you're onto
something good, because thatstep after that is informed
optimism.
But the only way to get toinformed optimism is to get to
informed pessimism, because yougot to have that like wake up
(17:12):
moment, you got to have thatwhoa like oh, this is of course,
because if it was that easy,everybody would be in Barneys.
Oh, yeah, of course.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
No one's in Barneys now.
But yeah, and you know this wasin the heyday of Bird Dwarfs
and Bendels and I was discoveredfrom Bendel's Open Sea, which
was their famous casting callfor designers a hundred years
ago, and what they would do isthey would have the designers
come in and do a trunk show butyou would have to stay there
(17:43):
yourself from the moment thedoors opened to the moment they
closed and you could not leavethe floor.
And you know the floor staffhad no incentive to try and help
you sell your products becausethey make commission.
So here I am, standing here andtrying to pull people away who
are looking at other productfrom where their commission was
(18:03):
coming.
It was so uncomfortable and thefunny thing is after the cause,
it was a two day trunk show.
The second day I left and Iwalked out.
I fainted on the street.
It was so intense.
The pressure.
Yeah, and well, also, side note,I was dating some dumb guy and
(18:27):
he's like I don't think this isgoing to work out.
And I totally fainted afterthat.
I hadn't eaten anything and hethought it was because of him
and it wasn't.
You're like, no, I just did atwo day trunk.
I'm like I have nothing.
You know, I was like I justneed a slice of pizza before we
even talk.
And he's like, well, listen,and I said, no, hold that, hold
(18:47):
that, I just need to have aslice of freaking pizza.
So, yeah, I never got my pizzaand I woke up and I was like
what the hell is going on?
Yeah, and you know, it's thisharsh realization that you are
peddling things one customer ata time.
And so many people tend to wantto skip over that and think like
, okay, I've done my one post.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
Where is everybody?
No, it is.
I would love to ask you likewhat do you think the average,
the years that it takes fromconception of a brand to really
feeling like your head is abovewater?
What would you say?
That?
How many years would you say onaverage?
Speaker 2 (19:29):
I'd say you need at least two years, at a minimum,
at least two.
I think you know I always sayinception.
What I teach at my class isinception to shelf, to repeat
business, to customeracquisition and all the stuff
that comes after that, withcollaborations and the narrative
of sustainability, which now,right now, needs to be part.
(19:50):
But it cannot be your fullstory because it will be
debunked and you can't beprofitable that way.
So it needs to be woven in.
I always show this clip at the.
I think it's my first class ormy second class.
It's a Marie Forleo clip.
It's old.
I admire what she does.
I don't really follow her toomuch but I know she's got some
(20:10):
solid nuggets out there whereshe does this clip about
Poo-Pourri, which is a spraythat you know you use for the
bathroom.
After you've done your business.
You spray it on the toilet.
Yes, right, bingo, yeah, but itwas.
You know it was an innovatorand you know, when you're
launching a brand or evenyourself, you have to be the
fastest, the first or the best,and unless you're checking one
(20:32):
of those boxes, it's very hardto stand out.
So what lane are you going tobe in?
The fastest, the first or thebest?
The?
Speaker 1 (20:40):
first or the best.
I love that.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
You know who taught me that, which is even funnier
Trini Woodall, from Trini London.
As I had mentioned, I worked inLondon and I had a lot of good
friends there and I wasconnected with her.
I went to London for a tradeshow right when I'd started my
brand, and he's like I can hookyou up with a meeting with Trini
(21:03):
and I said, oh damn sure.
And she was doing, how do Ithink it was?
How do I look?
She was still doing that there,her house.
She was still married at thetime.
She took me up to her closet ithad a key, the whole thing and
she sat me down and she's likewhere do you fall within this?
Like what's your?
(21:26):
And she's the one that saidthat to me and I've repeated it
ever since.
I doubt she even remembers.
And then you know how are yougoing to develop your line?
Are you doing it inspired by atrend?
Are you doing something that'sinspired by the runway?
Are you taking it fromsomething historical?
Like, where do you fall interms of your narrative?
And it was so eye-opening tosay, okay, where would I be?
Because to be a pioneer is tooexpensive, it just is.
(21:51):
So you have to fall into onespecific window in order to
understand your narrative.
Because to educate a customerand to have them change their
mind, you're taking anddeveloping this precious 20
percent and that 20 percentcovers 80 percent of your
business.
So how are you going to buildup that 20 percent?
(22:13):
And if you have to educate thiscustomer and convert them,
literally convert them to wantto use your product, do you have
the time, value of money thatyou can afford to do that?
So I would say you know twoyears to maneuver and manipulate
your way into their life, butyou have to do the.
(22:33):
You know I'm a huge fan ofethnography and I show again
this vintage video of this womanfrom Miami it's so grainy at
this point where they'reinterviewing her, making dinner
and writing down like here's theshow she watches, here's her
commute, here's the food shelikes to cook.
And those are the things thatyou have to do to get into the
(22:54):
mindset of your customer.
Yeah, your avatar, exactly, andwe talk so much about.
And I always use UrbanOutfitters, as my case study
does Urban Outfitters, justbecause it's of the generation.
It's at least easy to teach andsay okay, if you're in Urban
Outfitters, do you think theysell the same product uptown and
(23:15):
downtown.
Do you think they sell the sameproduct from where you are to,
you know, virginia, or in Texasor in Miami?
And the answer is no.
And then we have this deep diveconversation why, why do they
not do that?
Could your product sell in allof those stores?
And if not, then you need tohave a clear picture of who your
(23:36):
customer is.
That's right.
So I say two years at a minimum.
Speaker 1 (23:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (23:43):
That's a long story.
Short answer no, no, no, no, Ilove the in-depth, but I love
what you said about the first,the quickest, or?
the best the fastest, the first,the quickest or the fastest,
the first or the best.
I remember when I was, when Igot transferred to next in New
York, I was dealing withmanagers that had been dealing
with celebrities, right Causethis is my first time with
celebrities like truecelebrities, and you know,
(24:07):
everybody was in like their lateforties, early fifties.
And here comes, like this, 31year old, in charge of New York
City, which was a big market.
And I remember thinking tomyself okay, well, I'm obviously
not the first.
I mean, I'm the first withinfluence with bloggers, but not
with celebrities.
I'm not the best.
I don't have that many yearsbehind me in this sector.
(24:31):
So I decided to be the fastest.
And I remember that, a lot ofthe pain points that I went out
when I would meet thesecelebrities, like, oh, my
manager doesn't get back to meuntil like two or three days
later, or oh, you know, I askeda question and I thought to
myself, well, what if I answeremails within 24 business hours?
And what ended up happening isafter two years.
And what ended up happening isafter two years, people in Paris
(24:54):
would be emailing me because Iwould answer quicker than
someone in Paris in the sametime zone.
And to this day I take thatwith my company, idalia Inc.
It's like, okay, well, you know, now I could say, yes, my
company is the first to do this.
I would like to think we're thebest just because of the years
and the experience, and we'realso the fastest.
(25:19):
So you know, to your point,like if you need one of the
three to start with, but if youcan maneuver your way into not
crossing out all those threelike you're good, you're good.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
Yeah, and also, you know how niche can you afford to
be?
That's also a problem.
You know, if you get too niche,where do you fall?
Is there enough for people tofollow you, to work with you, to
want to do a partnership, to doa collab with you?
How much are you voicing?
Personally, I always sayprofessionally keep your
(25:51):
opinions to yourself, no matterwhat's going on, whatever the
climate is, because it will comeback to haunt you one way or
another.
People want you for you, notfor what your opinions are on
topics that are divisive.
Speaker 1 (26:04):
Yeah, I was dealing with a situation right now, with
an influencer going throughthat, and I said you know, do
you want the climate right nowto be part of your business
model?
Want the climate right now tobe part of your business model?
That's all you got to askyourself.
Because if the answer is yes,you know, and you want to
transition, go for it, Like I.
You know it's, that's yourprerogative.
But once you do start offeringyour opinion, you are opening
(26:27):
Pandora's box, which is notnecessarily bad.
It's just you need to understandthe consequences, both good and
bad, that are going to comefrom it and how is it going to
affect your business.
Do you want this to be part ofyour business model?
Speaker 2 (26:38):
Yeah, that's all it is to do with what their
personal opinions are.
They want their personalopinions based on you know how
they look, how they dress, howthey shop.
Which line are you going tocross?
(27:00):
So it's something I don't know.
Especially as someone whoteaches, I make sure, and make
it very clear, that my personalopinions are never, ever, part
of the dialogue, because it'snot my business.
My business is to teach, it'sto educate, it's to make sure
that you understand this process, how and what you want to do
with it.
That's on you.
(27:20):
I can't control that.
Speaker 1 (27:21):
Yeah, I can only make sure that I'm right there with
you.
Speaker 2 (27:24):
I'm right there with you.
I'm right there with you as aneducator.
Speaker 1 (27:27):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
Oh my gosh, Idalia, I don't want to take any more of
your time.
This has been an absolute treat, delight.
How can people find you?
Follow you get more amazingstuff.
Speaker 1 (27:38):
So you can find me on Instagram idaliasalsamendi
I-D-A-L-I-A and then Salsamendi.
My agency is idalia Inc, soI-D-A-L-I-A-I-N-Ccom.
You can go on my website and Ido offer free exploratory calls.
I offer free worksheets and,again, if you are either a
designer or a content creator,you fall somewhere in between,
(27:59):
or neither.
You just want to understand thecontent creation business a
little bit more.
I do offer again a freeexploratory call and free
worksheets, and then Substack,which is how you and I met Emily
Substack.
Speaker 2 (28:08):
I was just going to say, if you didn't say it, yeah,
no-transcript.
Speaker 1 (28:44):
So Instagram TikTok.
Same thing, my website, deliInc and Substack.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
Beautiful.
Thank you so much for joiningus today.
This has been an absolutepleasure All mine Thank you
joining us today.
This has been an absolutepleasure, oh my, thank you.
Thanks for listening.
Don't forget to rate and review, and follow us on every single
platform at Handbag Designer.
Thanks so much.
See you next time.
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