October 21, 2025 • 37 mins
Ever wonder what it takes to turn a small retail dream into a lasting fashion empire? Clare V, founder of her namesake brand, proves that steady growth, not viral fame, builds a real legacy. Starting with a 500-square-foot shop in Silver Lake, Clare turned local roots into a thriving retail network by prioritizing people over transactions. From matching a friend’s salary to open her first boutique to hosting in-store events and community-driven experiences, she redefined what modern brick-and-mortar can be—authentic, intentional, and profitable.
Her strategic discipline is what sets her apart. Clare walks us through how she uses e-commerce heat maps to pick new locations, tests markets through pop-ups before signing leases, and balances wholesale for both cash flow and discovery. She shares how retail exclusives protect brand integrity, how data informs design and merchandising, and why the shift from “Clare Vivier” to “Clare V” became a masterclass in rebranding with grace.
💡 Key Takeaways:
- Growth works best when it’s deliberate, data-driven, and community-minded.
- Protecting your name and pricing builds long-term trust.
- Wholesale and retail can thrive together when strategy leads the way.
🎧 Listen now for a founder’s blueprint on sustainable success, creative resilience, and building a fashion brand that lasts.
Our Guest:
Clare V is the founder and designer behind Clare V, a California-based lifestyle brand known for its effortless French-meets-LA aesthetic, community-driven retail, and commitment to thoughtful growth.
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.
#ClareV #HandbagDesigner101 #SustainableGrowth #FemaleFounders #RetailStrategy #ModernLuxury #IntentionalDesign
Youtube: / Handbagdesigner101-ihda | Instagram:/ Handbagdesigner
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
So yeah, that was that was another leap of faith
as well.
You know, asking a friend toleave a job, a secure job to
come work for you is and withyou is is That's terrifying.
It's terrifying.
I think I had a lot ofconfidence.
We were doing really well.
And I think it just felt like itwas going to be more fun with
(00:21):
her there.
So thankfully she did it, andshe's still with the company
today.
SPEAKER_01 (00:26):
Hi, and welcome to Handbag Designer 101, the
podcast, with your host, EmilyBlumenthal, handbag industry
expert, and the handbag fairygodmother.
Each week we uncover the storiesbehind the handbags we love from
the iconic brands and topdesigners, the creativity,
craftsmanship, and culture thatdefine the handbag world.
Whether you're a designer,collector, or simply passionate
(00:48):
about handbags, this is yourfront row seat to it all.
Welcome, Lady Claire V, akaClaire Vivier, aka the
California handbag designer thateverybody aspires to be best
friends with.
(01:08):
And now I'm like tier four foryou.
So I'm so excited.
We're having you back for parttwo.
Also very excited that I get tosay this is with me.
So thank you for joining usagain, Miss Claire.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_00 (01:20):
Thank you for having me, Emily.
Happy to be back.
SPEAKER_01 (01:24):
Yay, good.
Uh your publicist and I are bestfriends now because after our
last recording, she's like, wehave to do the part two.
And I said, Oh, I know we haveto do the part two.
Don't worry about that.
But I I told you we we left off.
And for anybody listening, um,if you missed the part one, it
was um it was, I'll I'll put itin the the comments where to
(01:47):
find the first one.
But your story is so unique andso special.
And you know, it's interestingbecause we we are doing
something with New York now.
We have something called the itbag, and uh it's a unique
section that has never been donein trade shows.
As you know, in trade shows, youhave a big booth or they'll put
(02:09):
you at like an emerging designertable, and it's really
problematic for buyers becausethey can't really see, feel,
touch, and for designers becausethey overproduce, overcreate,
overdevelop.
So the premise of this is makingit kind of a new way to trade
show that the designers are onlyable to show eight to 10 bags at
most, and the bags aremerchandised kind of like a
(02:30):
Nordstrom, so the buyers canwalk through.
There's nothing there.
It's just the bags merchandisedand uh a table, and that's it.
So I can't tell you how manydesigners out of California have
said, oh, we're working withClaire Vivier's factory.
Oh, we we spoke to the factorythat did Claire's bags.
Oh, after your episode, Ifollowed what Claire did and
(02:50):
went and tried to find thatfactory.
So you you would be you've beena role model to so many without
even knowing it.
SPEAKER_00 (02:57):
Well, you know what I like about that is that it's
giving work to our localfactories.
And I'm a huge proponent ofkeeping keeping some production
here in Los Angeles because I'dlove to see how we have grown
that community and happy thatit's creating more jobs in our
own community.
So that's cool.
SPEAKER_01 (03:16):
Well, thank yourself, as they say, give
yourself a high five or a pat onthe back.
Whatever, because it all goesback to you.
But we left off that you hadjust been able and took the bold
step of having your ownboutique.
And uh you had initially sharedit with another woman who who
(03:38):
you had said had opened her ownboutique with name like heaven
something.
It was something existentialthat she had gone out.
I'm trying to remember what itwas called, the forgive me.
SPEAKER_00 (03:47):
I'm trying to as well.
Her name is Catherine Bentley,and she no longer uses that
other name for her jewelry line.
She just goes, her fine jewelryline is just called Catherine
Bentley.
Oh, it was called Oh, her storewas called Dream Collective.
SPEAKER_01 (04:02):
That was it.
That was it.
I remembered, I was like, stars,moon, clouds, hopes, wishes.
SPEAKER_00 (04:09):
Totally, yeah.
I would have made it to dream.
Some triangle symbolismsituation.
Yeah.
As you do.
SPEAKER_01 (04:16):
So was it bold for you to have your own store?
I mean, your son Oscar must havebeen like five by then.
He was still little.
SPEAKER_00 (04:25):
Yeah, he was little.
No, I think he must have beennine when we opened that first
store in Silver Lake, because weopened it in 2012.
So yeah, 2012.
Was I scared or was I nervous?
I don't remember that.
It just felt like a very naturalprocess and it felt like, yeah,
this is the next step.
I think I'm always somewhatnervous to sign a new lease.
(04:47):
I mean, I think I would beinhuman to not be a little bit
nervous when signing leasesbecause you know the it's a huge
leap of faith every time youtake a you sign a lease.
And and we have a lot of leasesright now.
So it's uh it's a lot to thinkabout.
But back then it was my firstsolo lease besides my uh office
(05:10):
space.
How many square feet was thestore?
The store on the corner ofMitchell Torina and Sunset was
pretty small.
It's such a beautiful spacebecause it's a corner, so you
get tons of light, sunlight.
And it's the best peoplewatching, watching everyone walk
by in Silver Lake on the on thatcorner.
But it was quite small.
(05:30):
I think it was around 500 squarefeet.
And just recently, just this inthe past few months, we expanded
to the space next to us.
So we broke down the wall, andnow we have double the square
foot or more than double thesquare footage now in that in
that flagship shop.
SPEAKER_01 (05:50):
Were you there all the time?
Like were you the oneinteracting?
SPEAKER_00 (05:55):
No.
No, because I was running thebusiness.
So I was at the studio designingand doing production work and
working with my team.
And I mean, I had a very smallteam at the time, but yeah, no,
someone had to keep the businessafloat.
So at the time, it was a funwatershed moment for me because
I I thought, what am I gonnawho's gonna run this store?
(06:18):
Who understands who understandsthe brand, you know, who
understands my aesthetic and mymy whole vibe and the whole kind
of mission of the store.
And the only person I couldthink of was my friend Greta
Heikemer.
And Greta at the time wasworking, she had already always
worked in fashion.
She worked in showrooms downtownLos Angeles.
(06:40):
And at the time she was workingat a showroom, and I asked her
if she would consider leavingher job and I would match her
salary, and I would um see ifshe wanted to come over and run
the store.
SPEAKER_01 (06:54):
And was that scary for you to say matching an adult
salary?
Because it's not like you couldsay, I'm gonna bring you in,
I'll pay you hourly like anormal floor sales person.
SPEAKER_00 (07:05):
I know I knew I had to do it, you know.
So so yeah, that was that wasanother leap of faith as well.
You know, asking a friend toleave a job, a secure job to
come work for you is and withyou is is that's terrifying.
It's terrifying.
I think I had a lot ofconfidence.
We were doing really well, and Ithink it just felt like it was
(07:29):
gonna be more fun with herthere.
So thankfully she did it andshe's still with the company
today.
SPEAKER_01 (07:34):
Wow.
It's a unique transition becauseI don't want to say it's a step
down, right?
Because you're in a showroom,you get fancy, you have
meetings, you buyers comingthrough, you have the muffins
and the breakfasts and all thatstuff.
Like somebody else is coveringthat overhead.
Like I've been to these buyersmeetings, I've been part of
them.
I've been, you know, it's it's ait's a lot of uh fanfare, right?
(07:58):
Because these buyers areexpecting stuff.
They're expecting to be fed andcoffee.
Like 100%, yeah.
And now you're bringing her to alike brick and mortar.
How is like did she come throughsaying, hold on, we need to
because running a boutique, asyou know, there's a lot of like
dead time, right?
(08:19):
There's a lot of slow timeduring the day.
SPEAKER_00 (08:21):
Like, was she like, okay, I've got ideas that we
could do to make it work?
At the time I was bringing heron also as a creative partner
and as a creative member of theteam and someone that I could
exchange ideas with.
I didn't have anyone at the timewho was kind of my equal on a
creative level.
So I think at the time webrought her in as a she was
(08:45):
managing the store, but sheprobably had like one day a week
at the studio.
So I think that was also quiteinteresting to her to have that
also creative time.
SPEAKER_01 (08:54):
So I think that's how I also but she wouldn't work
weekends though, right?
Like you couldn't have herthere.
I don't remember.
Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_00 (09:02):
I mean, now I know that we ask our st our store
managers to always work oneweekend day, preferably the
Saturday, because that is thebusiest day at all of our
stores.
And we really like to havesomeone most experienced working
that day.
So I don't remember at the timeif we had that policy or not.
Isn't that a blur?
Isn't that crazy?
(09:24):
Yeah, so many details.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (09:26):
It's just, you know, I know having worked with enough
designers and telling them like,okay, the best time to pitch a
boutique is when you know thatit's like dead time, right?
It's Tuesday at, you know, uhlike four o'clock when nobody's
shopping, or theoreticallynobody's shopping.
(09:48):
And how to keep someone at sucha high level and keep them
inspired and being like, oh myGod, because working in an
office when there's nobody thereis one thing, but working in a
boutique when no one's comingin, it's a huge brain shift of
like I need to keep themomentum.
SPEAKER_00 (10:04):
It's changed a lot.
And I think COVID really changedretail a lot, brick and mortar
retail, because you know, at thetime all of our stores closed,
and I think we all realized thatin, you know, online shopping
was in the process of decimatingbrick and mortar at the time,
anyway.
So I think we had to figure outhow to be a little bit more
(10:26):
innovative with with our brickand mortar stores.
And that means doing a lot moreclientele and reaching out to
the people to people who can'tcome into your stores and
getting those people who wouldbe shopping online, but they
live in your neighborhood.
And so talking, you know,texting them, emailing them,
telling them about new products,it's a lot more interactive than
(10:47):
retail used to be.
Used to be deadtime where peopleweren't coming in.
Now that dead time is no longerdead time because you're
supposed to be, you're notsupposed to be, you are, you're
reaching out to your customersand you're saying, Hey, we got
this new drop.
I'm sure that you're gonna likeit.
I know you love woven bags.
I think this one looks like, youknow, so we're sending pictures,
we are sending even themerchandise is going to people's
(11:10):
homes.
If they want it, they keep it.
If not, they return it.
You know, there's all sorts ofdifferent, you know, retail
models that are happening.
It's no longer just waitingaround for people to come in.
SPEAKER_01 (11:21):
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(11:45):
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That's really, really goodadvice.
And it's it's so on pointbecause, like what we've spoken
to a lot with boutiques is that,you know, offering out your
services as a designer issaying, I would love to host a,
you know, meet the designerevent with you.
(12:07):
Like, I will bring the wine,cheese, crackers, grapes, like
bring your best customers in,have them bring their friend of
a friend and theirfriend-in-laws and their tier
two friends.
SPEAKER_00 (12:16):
And yeah, you were talking about events.
So yeah, this is that's anotherway that retail has changed, is
that now we are actively doingevents in our stores to get
people in.
And there's just a multitude ofways that retail has really
evolved to be more of acommunity space, even.
SPEAKER_01 (12:35):
Yeah, you know, and I think a good template or
litmus to test the waters is tosee like how bookstores are busy
again because people are lookingfor places to congregate and to
meet and to find like-mindedpeople that they can connect
with.
And even if it's a retail space,that's still the same customer
(12:57):
who's looking for this book,who's looking for this bag,
who's looking for, you know, thesnack.
SPEAKER_00 (13:04):
Yeah.
Well, I love I love going intobrick and mortar and I love
being a part of ourneighborhoods where we are with
all of our stores and being partof this, you know, lifeblood
that runs through neighborhoodsbecause we don't want shuttered
retail spaces.
We want places that we can walkto when we're not in the office,
when we are in our home.
(13:24):
We want to get out of our houseand we want to walk around and
talk to people and seeinteresting new things.
And I'm the type of personthat's, you know, of course,
loved fashion.
So I love going into boutiquesand I love seeing the new
products and seeing what peopleare doing and then talking to
the knowledgeable employees whocan tell me about it.
So I love all of that.
So I love that.
SPEAKER_01 (13:43):
That's I love that you're not retail shy, retail
averse or uh space averse.
Just just a question.
So here you are, you're thisbrand, you're growing, you are
opening up boutiques.
You still have stores that aretheoretically carrying your
(14:04):
product, right?
You're still trying to haveother boutiques carry you,
you're still trying to have uhdepartment.
SPEAKER_00 (14:10):
A wholesale business?
SPEAKER_01 (14:11):
Yeah.
How are you able to juggle thatin terms of prioritizing product
that would be at your storeversus the other stores versus
online and to make the customerfeel still feel like she's
getting something that shewouldn't be able to get anywhere
else because she's special?
How do you juggle that?
SPEAKER_00 (14:33):
Well, there's a certain amount of product that
only goes to our retaillocations.
It's called, we just call it CVretail exclusives.
And those are sometimes marginchallenged.
We know that if we if wewholesale them, they are going
to be much more expensive thanwe want them to be.
So we keep them at our retaillocation so we can keep the
price at a at a price that wethink is the right price for for
(14:57):
our customer.
And sometimes we have, you know,the majority of the collection
is available to our wholesaleaccounts as well as our CV
retail.
I mean, we have an amazingwholesale team.
We have a showroom.
We're in Finding Showroom in NewYork and Los Angeles.
They do us such an amazing jobwith our retail wholesale sales.
(15:19):
I think it's important to haveboth.
I don't know.
For me, that's just the way thatI've always been.
I've I mean, I started with awebsite, so I started direct to
consumer, but very soon I wentinto the Stephen Allen Showroom,
and he that showroom did so muchfor growing the brand.
I think wholesale is importantbecause it does you are in
(15:41):
markets where you do not havestores.
So you know, say Utah or Idahoor Mont Montana, you know, all
of these places where you're notnecessarily gonna have a
boutique for a while.
You are in great company inboutiques that carry other lines
that are similar to yours andthat the customer is buying
(16:01):
both.
It's a way for the customer tolearn about your collection and
then they might go to yourwebsite.
But the other reason to do it isbecause it's it's good cash flow
for your company.
I mean, when you ship,presumably what happens is that
you you ship these accounts andthey pay you in 30 days.
So that's just a good incomemodel.
You know, it's not like when youhave your own, when you have
(16:23):
your own store, you have to waitfor individual sales to come in.
SPEAKER_01 (16:26):
So Right, right, right, right.
Yeah.
It's a lot less dog and ponyshow because you know you will
get paid, at least with thoseaccounts.
Yes.
How did you go from that onestore to saying like, hey there,
I'm not busy enough.
My life isn't challengingenough.
Let's open more stores.
(16:46):
Hey guys, what do you think?
SPEAKER_00 (16:48):
Yeah, it was really it was really easy because the
store did really well in SilverLake, and we were looking at our
e-commerce and we knew that wehave a lot of we had a lot of
customers in New York.
And so I just it was verylogical and easy to just say we
should be opening a store in NewYork.
And so I started to look.
I found a real estate agent andI started looking for spaces,
(17:12):
and I found a really cute spaceon Elizabeth Street, and that
was just one year after I openedmy Silver Lake store.
That's wild.
SPEAKER_01 (17:20):
And I you said looking at your e-commerce
e-commerce, and so many brands Ithink neglect their not so much
their customers, but the zipcode of where their customers
are located.
So if you see people areshopping and buying your product
from one particular area, if youhave the means or capacity, it's
(17:44):
logical to open up a retaillocation in that space.
In that city.
SPEAKER_00 (17:50):
Exactly.
If you have the ability, I meanit is difficult to open it in a
in a city that's far away fromyou.
New York felt a little biteasier because it was a place
that I was traveling to all thetime.
Stephen Allen is a partner inthe company and he's in he's
based in New York.
It just felt a little bit morelike home base for me.
I think the first time it felt alittle bit like, oh wow, that's
(18:13):
crazy.
It's a little bit out there wasprobably the maybe Seattle or
the Chicago boutique, becausethey were just places that I
didn't travel to very often.
And we opened there because weknew we had a good customer
base, but it felt like, oh, oneof those moments when you're
like the brand is much biggerthan I am, you know.
SPEAKER_01 (18:33):
Did you open in a city that you were like, God, we
bet on it, but it just it fellshort, or you know, to create
all that hype and then not haveit work, like did you experience
that with certain locations?
SPEAKER_00 (18:47):
We haven't closed any stores.
Uh we did a pop-up in Denver,downtown Denver, in in a new
development.
And it was a pop-up, and wedecided not to pursue a
long-term situation therebecause it was not a big retail
destination.
So I think that was our ourtaste of like you gotta really
(19:09):
choose well and be in areas thatyour custom where your customer
is shopping.
And I think what we havediscovered is that it is really
helpful when maybe there's abuilt-in audience already there
because there's already othergreat stores around you.
So in Chicago, we're onArmitage, and there's really
great shopping.
(19:30):
And Armitage, Seattle's a reallygood example of that.
Because we're at UniversityVillage, great stores at
University Village.
It's just packed all the time.
So yeah, I think Dallas was ourtaste of that.
But other than that, we haven'tclosed any stores.
SPEAKER_01 (19:44):
That's so interesting.
What made you think, like, let'sdo a pop-up and not open up a
full store?
SPEAKER_00 (19:49):
Like, what made you think like friends?
Friends were doing it too.
I have really good friends, uhRen and Lindsay Parton, who are
behind a store called AlchemyWorks.
And they're also kind of realestate developers and they're
big dreamers and they love doingnew projects.
And I love their taste level andI love everything they do.
So a lot of times, if it's afriend who's asked me to do
(20:11):
something, I'm gonna go alongand take a take a little risk
with them because I know it'sgonna be fun as long as we can
figure out if there's a get outplan if it doesn't work out.
So yeah, Rand and Lindsay werethe two people that asked us to
go to Denver and we said, sure,we'll try it out.
SPEAKER_01 (20:28):
So Stephen Allen is a full-fledged partner still.
Still.
Because I know we spoke abouthim briefly.
Stephen Allen has touched a lotof brands.
Like I just had Peter Graysonon.
I'm gonna talk to Joy Grayson.
I've had Monica back here, likehe's had it with his showroom.
(20:48):
He's he is definitely uh asoothsayer in terms of seeing
the value of what brands can beif he's involved.
SPEAKER_00 (21:00):
I think so.
Yeah, I think he's got greattaste.
I think he's really smart andgreat taste and a really nice
guy.
And he's not like I don't know,he's just trustworthy.
I think he's a good guy.
SPEAKER_01 (21:12):
Was that hard to get someone else involved?
Were you because you were in ashowroom first, weren't you?
SPEAKER_00 (21:21):
I was in Steven's showroom for about a year before
he introduced me to my currentpartner who is Tom Kart Sodas,
and Steven introduced me and Tomand I decided to become
partners, and then Steven boughtum a percentage of Tom's equity.
So that's how the two of thembecame my my partner, and we've
(21:43):
been partners since 2012.
SPEAKER_01 (21:46):
How because it was essentially just you, wasn't it?
Like it was you, this mom, withyou know, like, okay, hey, now
I'm gonna open up a store, andI'm gonna open up another store.
What made you decide that youneeded a partner?
Or Steve was like, Steven waslike, hey, I've got this guy,
he'd be a great partner for you.
Or were you partner shopping?
SPEAKER_00 (22:07):
I was not, not at all.
I think Tom was looking forbusinesses to invest in, and so
Steven introduced us because hethought my business was
interesting and um a lot of uhpossibility for growth.
And uh the reason I wasinterested is because I am a
creative person.
I think I have a pretty goodbalance of left brain, right
(22:28):
brain, but at the end of theday, where my happy place is is
in the design room and the andcreating things and loving the
world of visual fashion,everything.
So again, the art of gettingdressed, expressing ourselves,
all of that is where my happyplace is.
But to be a successful fashionbusiness, you really have to,
(22:48):
there's business is very, veryimportant.
So to me, it was kind of ano-brainer to take on some
partners that had that businessacumen that I knew that I didn't
have, at least the experience.
I know that I can trust myself,trust my gut, and I think that's
so much of being successful isabout is listening to yourself.
(23:09):
And yeah, it just made sense topartner with paper business
experience.
SPEAKER_01 (23:15):
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today.
So you said 2012 and this waslike five, six years in about?
unknown (24:55):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (24:56):
Wow.
So how did you like when you metTom, were you because I just
find this so interesting, liketaking on a partner because when
you're on your own and you know,you hired, and I can't recall
her name, your friend colleagueat the showroom to run the
store, like you've put a lot ofblind faith into people that you
(25:19):
knew, or at least got reaction,like, okay, I know with this
person involved, it will beokay.
How was it like you met Tom forthe first time?
And you know, it's likecommitting to a marriage
relationship with someone.
Like you're like, hey, you'reshopping for something.
I might have that something.
Let's because then all of asudden now you're reliant on
(25:39):
this person that you reallydon't know, except for the word
of someone that you trust.
Which is a lot, right?
SPEAKER_00 (25:48):
Very much so a lot to get a very good
recommendation from somebody youtrust, but it is also a got a
gut feeling.
I had a good feeling when I metwith Tom.
He seemed like a really goodguy.
I met with his CFO who became myCFO for a few years, and they're
just very nice, down-to-earth,very smart business people who
(26:11):
maybe didn't understand me andthe what makes the magic of this
company tick, but theyunderstand that the company's
doing well, and they were gonnabe there to support this company
that was doing well.
And they've always been like,hey, do what you're doing.
You're doing an amazing job.
We don't even know how you'recreating this magic, but we love
it and keep going.
(26:31):
So, and they were there to bethat foundation for me.
So yeah, I think I think everythere's so many nightmare
stories about business partnersand like for fashion companies.
And I think everyone has adifferent experience.
And this is this has been mine.
I have yeah, so far just nothingbut positive things to say about
(26:55):
this partnership so far.
So thankfully I've had somepartners who have really trusted
me and I've trusted them.
And I know they've been therefor me when things get tough,
and you know, things sometimesyou just have these crises in
company, and it's so nice tohave someone to call.
They neither of them live herein Los Angeles, so they are at a
distance and they're not part ofour day-to-day running the
(27:15):
business, but they're which isprobably better.
Yeah.
Exactly.
SPEAKER_01 (27:19):
Because that's amazing.
Like this is you are such aunique individual because I
think you can like you can sniffpeople out pretty quick.
SPEAKER_00 (27:29):
And I I think so.
I don't know.
I just like nice, kind peopleand like hardworking, kind
people.
I'm not I think that's shown inthe growth of this business why
it has just been such a steadyorganic growth, and we haven't
like skyrocketed and we haven't,you know, there isn't been this
crazy growth where we've gotteninto tons of different
(27:51):
categories.
You know, it's like this is slowand steady.
We are a handbag company, we dosome apparel, we are getting
into different scents andcandles, but everything is very
like a measured approach becausewe um know your customer.
Yeah, you know what she'slooking for, right?
We know our customer, we knowwhat she's looking for, but also
we just I don't I think we enjoyrunning the company.
(28:14):
I think we enjoy working here.
I want to make sure that peoplehave a good quality of life, and
I think that's what we're aimingfor.
Can I ask you something when youget to this point where you're
like, No, this is it.
This is it.
This is it's not like we'reworking.
I mean, we are constantlyworking towards a goal and we
(28:35):
are trying to grow and we areloving the success that we're
having, but also we're justlike, this is your one life.
Make sure that you're doingsomething that you enjoy and
that you are creating anenvironment for the people
around you to be able to enjoyas well.
So that's what we're trying todo.
SPEAKER_01 (28:54):
This is like, I honestly, I want people to
listen to this this interviewlike a hundred times.
This is because you're very,you're not.
I mean, again, from the handfulof times we've spoken, you seem
very grounded.
Like you're not the person who'sgonna jump and go, like I could
be wrong, but I think there'ssomething very calm person.
SPEAKER_00 (29:15):
I think that's probably if you were to if I get
the question of what's yoursuperpower, it's probably that
I'm that very calm person.
SPEAKER_01 (29:23):
Yeah, that that is 100% a superpower.
I I just want to ask you twothings.
One, was Tom there with the nameevolution?
Was he part of that when we wentfrom Claire Vivier to Claire V?
Was he there for that?
SPEAKER_00 (29:39):
We were partners.
Yeah, we were partners at thetime.
Yeah, when we had the lawsuit,yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (29:45):
Yeah, did that ruffle you, or was he like,
okay, let's just be strategicand methodical, or was it you
who said, you know what, ClaireVivier is now Claire V.
You know, I don't need this.
How was that handled?
SPEAKER_00 (29:58):
We didn't have a choice.
We had to get rid of Vivier sowe had to move on and we
workshopped some ideas of uh Idon't know like things you could
we could do like Claire Vivieror Claire V by Claire Vivier you
know you could I could do thator I don't remember what were
the other options but at at acertain point I just said no
(30:19):
just let's let's do Claire V.
I am still Claire Vivier I'mstill the person behind the
brand and we're gonna do itwe're gonna be okay and I think
we were just at such a earlystage but at a at a really high
growth stage as well so it wasjust kind of an easy transition
for us.
I mean it was painful for me Iloved I loved having Claire
Vivier as the name of the brandit's who you are it's who I am I
(30:41):
think Vivier is a really prettyname and it is but you know I've
always been a huge fan of AgnesB and I thought you know if
Agnes can do it like we can doit as well.
SPEAKER_01 (30:53):
Have you seen Roger in any capacity ever since?
Like have you crossed paths withhim?
SPEAKER_00 (30:59):
Well he's been dead for a long time.
SPEAKER_01 (31:02):
Oh my bad yeah he's it's it's the Todd's group in
Italy who own Roger Vivier thethe name but that that person
the original shoe designer hehas been dead for a long time so
it was Todd's who came after youper se oh yeah that makes it
that much harder doesn't itcan't really go up against them
(31:24):
no you don't want to fight thatone more quick question about
understanding your customer Iteach within my class we have
one lesson on ethnography whichI show this video and any of my
students can speak to and it's areally archaic video of this
woman in Miami who is of Cubandescent and they're watching her
(31:48):
come home and make dinner andshe's talking about 30 minute
meals and how Rachel Ray hasthis and she wants to cook
healthy and you watch the foodshe's cooking and it's not
healthy at all because it's anold video.
And so that's something we talkabout kind of ad nauseum is
understanding your customer sowell that you can almost predict
(32:10):
what they're watching, whattheir show you know, what
they're gonna buy, how manybags, what car, like how you
know one location they mightlike more color in this location
they like less color like youknow anybody who's in Miami,
obviously you need more colorand we speak about this and I
make it like a digestible casestudy that an urban outfitter's
(32:32):
downtown would be very difficultin New York City would be very
different from an urbanoutfitter's on the upper west
side.
How have you been able toutilize this kind of information
about your customer to say,okay, I know her life I know
what she's gonna want to buynext I know that in Seattle
(32:52):
she'd want this but in New Yorkshe'd want that.
Like how do you deal with thatas a designer in a team?
SPEAKER_00 (32:57):
We're looking at a lot of different data points and
thankfully have members of myteam who do that a lot better
than I do.
But they're constantly lookingat the data points of who our
her demographic is who ourcustomer is who our woman is who
our person is but all of ourstores are kind of merchandised
differently we see we look atthe sales patterns and we have
(33:19):
buyer a buyer a main buyer whois buying for each of the stores
and that's such an interestingconcept is that someone has to
buy your own collection to sendto weird yeah and it's you know
you have something called opento buy dollars that you're
spending to basically furnishyour store merchandise your
stores with the entirecollections they're all
(33:41):
different sizes all the storesso they all have different
capacities but we're alsowatching what are the trends in
those areas and they are gettingmore of whatever you just
described you know more colorfulbags for certain areas more
black bags for New York Citymore they're watching these
things these trends for thedifferent areas that's isn't
that interesting how you are ananthropologist without even
(34:05):
knowing like understanding thepatterns of her and how are you
able as a team to say okay youknow you've been doing this for
quite some time you know yourcustomer is getting older how
are you able to say low-hangingfruit let me get her daughter
let me get people within herfamily to keep them as loyal
Clear V customers well again weare seeing because we have our
(34:31):
stores we get to see thecustomers and get to know them.
So we do see moms coming in withtheir you know 18 year old
daughters and the daughtersbuying something to bring to
college with them for the firsttime and then them telling their
friends about it and coming inwith a group of their
girlfriends and then they're allbuying so we are seeing these
trends we're also you knowactively going after marketing
(34:54):
for different demographics youknow so we're not trying to stay
within the exact samedemographic as this person is my
age and getting older we're alsogoing after you know my niece's
age because my niece works withtwo nieces work with the company
but you know we want to makesure that these are those are
the two at their age group theywant to carry Claire B as well
(35:15):
well they should they do theybetter they do and all of their
friends.
SPEAKER_01 (35:20):
I mean you you'd be the coolest aunt to have I could
say that it's I mean I think youjust hit the nail on the head
that like the daughter of yourcustomer ends up becoming the
influencer that you need tosupport because she's the one
that carries more weight thaneven outsource college a college
influencer program which is socool.
SPEAKER_00 (35:40):
And this is mainly we're starting with a lot of my
my friends' daughters who are atcollege and they're so they're
so cute and they're so stylishand they carry their mom's
clairvi and I'm like she carriesclair V awesome let's get her
some more Clair V and let's gether to do a little TikTok video
about it.
So we're starting in thatcollege influencer program as
well.
SPEAKER_01 (36:00):
So are you checking those girls uh TikTok following
before you bring them on kind ofthing like the same you would
with the regular influencer.
SPEAKER_00 (36:09):
Yeah I mean but she doesn't have to have a huge
following it's it's we love themicro influencers too.
SPEAKER_01 (36:13):
Okay.
Well I want to thank you forfinishing our part two I I think
this has been absolutelyamazing.
I think being able to have youwith the extended story and even
your whole back retail strategyand growth strategy and
understanding how you took on apartner and I just think 100% I
(36:37):
think your grounded calm I Idon't even want to use the word
vibe because it's so trite but Ithink that totally lends itself.
Vibe?
Okay it's the vibe.
But I think that really lendsitself to someone feeling
confident speaking with you andthen to trust you I think that
conversion is pretty solid thatwith you it doesn't feel
(37:00):
transactional it feelsauthentic.
And I think that clearly comesthrough with with your with your
bags and your product so thankyou for being part of this once
again.
SPEAKER_00 (37:09):
Thank you Emily really honored to be on the
podcast again.
Thank you so much for having medoing this part too.
SPEAKER_01 (37:15):
Wonderful okay thanks so much we'll have you
back we'll have you back soon totalk about your next collection
thanks Emily bye bye all righthave a good one bye thanks for
listening don't forget to rateand review and follow us on
every single platform at handbagdesigner thanks so much.
See you next time
So yeah, that was that was another leap of faith
as well.
You know, asking a friend toleave a job, a secure job to
come work for you is and withyou is is That's terrifying.
It's terrifying.
I think I had a lot ofconfidence.
We were doing really well.
And I think it just felt like itwas going to be more fun with
(00:21):
her there.
So thankfully she did it, andshe's still with the company
today.
SPEAKER_01 (00:26):
Hi, and welcome to Handbag Designer 101, the
podcast, with your host, EmilyBlumenthal, handbag industry
expert, and the handbag fairygodmother.
Each week we uncover the storiesbehind the handbags we love from
the iconic brands and topdesigners, the creativity,
craftsmanship, and culture thatdefine the handbag world.
Whether you're a designer,collector, or simply passionate
(00:48):
about handbags, this is yourfront row seat to it all.
Welcome, Lady Claire V, akaClaire Vivier, aka the
California handbag designer thateverybody aspires to be best
friends with.
(01:08):
And now I'm like tier four foryou.
So I'm so excited.
We're having you back for parttwo.
Also very excited that I get tosay this is with me.
So thank you for joining usagain, Miss Claire.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_00 (01:20):
Thank you for having me, Emily.
Happy to be back.
SPEAKER_01 (01:24):
Yay, good.
Uh your publicist and I are bestfriends now because after our
last recording, she's like, wehave to do the part two.
And I said, Oh, I know we haveto do the part two.
Don't worry about that.
But I I told you we we left off.
And for anybody listening, um,if you missed the part one, it
was um it was, I'll I'll put itin the the comments where to
(01:47):
find the first one.
But your story is so unique andso special.
And you know, it's interestingbecause we we are doing
something with New York now.
We have something called the itbag, and uh it's a unique
section that has never been donein trade shows.
As you know, in trade shows, youhave a big booth or they'll put
(02:09):
you at like an emerging designertable, and it's really
problematic for buyers becausethey can't really see, feel,
touch, and for designers becausethey overproduce, overcreate,
overdevelop.
So the premise of this is makingit kind of a new way to trade
show that the designers are onlyable to show eight to 10 bags at
most, and the bags aremerchandised kind of like a
(02:30):
Nordstrom, so the buyers canwalk through.
There's nothing there.
It's just the bags merchandisedand uh a table, and that's it.
So I can't tell you how manydesigners out of California have
said, oh, we're working withClaire Vivier's factory.
Oh, we we spoke to the factorythat did Claire's bags.
Oh, after your episode, Ifollowed what Claire did and
(02:50):
went and tried to find thatfactory.
So you you would be you've beena role model to so many without
even knowing it.
SPEAKER_00 (02:57):
Well, you know what I like about that is that it's
giving work to our localfactories.
And I'm a huge proponent ofkeeping keeping some production
here in Los Angeles because I'dlove to see how we have grown
that community and happy thatit's creating more jobs in our
own community.
So that's cool.
SPEAKER_01 (03:16):
Well, thank yourself, as they say, give
yourself a high five or a pat onthe back.
Whatever, because it all goesback to you.
But we left off that you hadjust been able and took the bold
step of having your ownboutique.
And uh you had initially sharedit with another woman who who
(03:38):
you had said had opened her ownboutique with name like heaven
something.
It was something existentialthat she had gone out.
I'm trying to remember what itwas called, the forgive me.
SPEAKER_00 (03:47):
I'm trying to as well.
Her name is Catherine Bentley,and she no longer uses that
other name for her jewelry line.
She just goes, her fine jewelryline is just called Catherine
Bentley.
Oh, it was called Oh, her storewas called Dream Collective.
SPEAKER_01 (04:02):
That was it.
That was it.
I remembered, I was like, stars,moon, clouds, hopes, wishes.
SPEAKER_00 (04:09):
Totally, yeah.
I would have made it to dream.
Some triangle symbolismsituation.
Yeah.
As you do.
SPEAKER_01 (04:16):
So was it bold for you to have your own store?
I mean, your son Oscar must havebeen like five by then.
He was still little.
SPEAKER_00 (04:25):
Yeah, he was little.
No, I think he must have beennine when we opened that first
store in Silver Lake, because weopened it in 2012.
So yeah, 2012.
Was I scared or was I nervous?
I don't remember that.
It just felt like a very naturalprocess and it felt like, yeah,
this is the next step.
I think I'm always somewhatnervous to sign a new lease.
(04:47):
I mean, I think I would beinhuman to not be a little bit
nervous when signing leasesbecause you know the it's a huge
leap of faith every time youtake a you sign a lease.
And and we have a lot of leasesright now.
So it's uh it's a lot to thinkabout.
But back then it was my firstsolo lease besides my uh office
(05:10):
space.
How many square feet was thestore?
The store on the corner ofMitchell Torina and Sunset was
pretty small.
It's such a beautiful spacebecause it's a corner, so you
get tons of light, sunlight.
And it's the best peoplewatching, watching everyone walk
by in Silver Lake on the on thatcorner.
But it was quite small.
(05:30):
I think it was around 500 squarefeet.
And just recently, just this inthe past few months, we expanded
to the space next to us.
So we broke down the wall, andnow we have double the square
foot or more than double thesquare footage now in that in
that flagship shop.
SPEAKER_01 (05:50):
Were you there all the time?
Like were you the oneinteracting?
SPEAKER_00 (05:55):
No.
No, because I was running thebusiness.
So I was at the studio designingand doing production work and
working with my team.
And I mean, I had a very smallteam at the time, but yeah, no,
someone had to keep the businessafloat.
So at the time, it was a funwatershed moment for me because
I I thought, what am I gonnawho's gonna run this store?
(06:18):
Who understands who understandsthe brand, you know, who
understands my aesthetic and mymy whole vibe and the whole kind
of mission of the store.
And the only person I couldthink of was my friend Greta
Heikemer.
And Greta at the time wasworking, she had already always
worked in fashion.
She worked in showrooms downtownLos Angeles.
(06:40):
And at the time she was workingat a showroom, and I asked her
if she would consider leavingher job and I would match her
salary, and I would um see ifshe wanted to come over and run
the store.
SPEAKER_01 (06:54):
And was that scary for you to say matching an adult
salary?
Because it's not like you couldsay, I'm gonna bring you in,
I'll pay you hourly like anormal floor sales person.
SPEAKER_00 (07:05):
I know I knew I had to do it, you know.
So so yeah, that was that wasanother leap of faith as well.
You know, asking a friend toleave a job, a secure job to
come work for you is and withyou is is that's terrifying.
It's terrifying.
I think I had a lot ofconfidence.
We were doing really well, and Ithink it just felt like it was
(07:29):
gonna be more fun with herthere.
So thankfully she did it andshe's still with the company
today.
SPEAKER_01 (07:34):
Wow.
It's a unique transition becauseI don't want to say it's a step
down, right?
Because you're in a showroom,you get fancy, you have
meetings, you buyers comingthrough, you have the muffins
and the breakfasts and all thatstuff.
Like somebody else is coveringthat overhead.
Like I've been to these buyersmeetings, I've been part of
them.
I've been, you know, it's it's ait's a lot of uh fanfare, right?
(07:58):
Because these buyers areexpecting stuff.
They're expecting to be fed andcoffee.
Like 100%, yeah.
And now you're bringing her to alike brick and mortar.
How is like did she come throughsaying, hold on, we need to
because running a boutique, asyou know, there's a lot of like
dead time, right?
(08:19):
There's a lot of slow timeduring the day.
SPEAKER_00 (08:21):
Like, was she like, okay, I've got ideas that we
could do to make it work?
At the time I was bringing heron also as a creative partner
and as a creative member of theteam and someone that I could
exchange ideas with.
I didn't have anyone at the timewho was kind of my equal on a
creative level.
So I think at the time webrought her in as a she was
(08:45):
managing the store, but sheprobably had like one day a week
at the studio.
So I think that was also quiteinteresting to her to have that
also creative time.
SPEAKER_01 (08:54):
So I think that's how I also but she wouldn't work
weekends though, right?
Like you couldn't have herthere.
I don't remember.
Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_00 (09:02):
I mean, now I know that we ask our st our store
managers to always work oneweekend day, preferably the
Saturday, because that is thebusiest day at all of our
stores.
And we really like to havesomeone most experienced working
that day.
So I don't remember at the timeif we had that policy or not.
Isn't that a blur?
Isn't that crazy?
(09:24):
Yeah, so many details.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (09:26):
It's just, you know, I know having worked with enough
designers and telling them like,okay, the best time to pitch a
boutique is when you know thatit's like dead time, right?
It's Tuesday at, you know, uhlike four o'clock when nobody's
shopping, or theoreticallynobody's shopping.
(09:48):
And how to keep someone at sucha high level and keep them
inspired and being like, oh myGod, because working in an
office when there's nobody thereis one thing, but working in a
boutique when no one's comingin, it's a huge brain shift of
like I need to keep themomentum.
SPEAKER_00 (10:04):
It's changed a lot.
And I think COVID really changedretail a lot, brick and mortar
retail, because you know, at thetime all of our stores closed,
and I think we all realized thatin, you know, online shopping
was in the process of decimatingbrick and mortar at the time,
anyway.
So I think we had to figure outhow to be a little bit more
(10:26):
innovative with with our brickand mortar stores.
And that means doing a lot moreclientele and reaching out to
the people to people who can'tcome into your stores and
getting those people who wouldbe shopping online, but they
live in your neighborhood.
And so talking, you know,texting them, emailing them,
telling them about new products,it's a lot more interactive than
(10:47):
retail used to be.
Used to be deadtime where peopleweren't coming in.
Now that dead time is no longerdead time because you're
supposed to be, you're notsupposed to be, you are, you're
reaching out to your customersand you're saying, Hey, we got
this new drop.
I'm sure that you're gonna likeit.
I know you love woven bags.
I think this one looks like, youknow, so we're sending pictures,
we are sending even themerchandise is going to people's
(11:10):
homes.
If they want it, they keep it.
If not, they return it.
You know, there's all sorts ofdifferent, you know, retail
models that are happening.
It's no longer just waitingaround for people to come in.
SPEAKER_01 (11:21):
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Filled with ingenuity, fun, anda hint of steam, Susanna will
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dreams and put in the hard workto get there.
Savvy Susanna is available onAmazon, Barnes and Noble, or
(11:45):
wherever you get your books.
Thanks for your support.
That's really, really goodadvice.
And it's it's so on pointbecause, like what we've spoken
to a lot with boutiques is that,you know, offering out your
services as a designer issaying, I would love to host a,
you know, meet the designerevent with you.
(12:07):
Like, I will bring the wine,cheese, crackers, grapes, like
bring your best customers in,have them bring their friend of
a friend and theirfriend-in-laws and their tier
two friends.
SPEAKER_00 (12:16):
And yeah, you were talking about events.
So yeah, this is that's anotherway that retail has changed, is
that now we are actively doingevents in our stores to get
people in.
And there's just a multitude ofways that retail has really
evolved to be more of acommunity space, even.
SPEAKER_01 (12:35):
Yeah, you know, and I think a good template or
litmus to test the waters is tosee like how bookstores are busy
again because people are lookingfor places to congregate and to
meet and to find like-mindedpeople that they can connect
with.
And even if it's a retail space,that's still the same customer
(12:57):
who's looking for this book,who's looking for this bag,
who's looking for, you know, thesnack.
SPEAKER_00 (13:04):
Yeah.
Well, I love I love going intobrick and mortar and I love
being a part of ourneighborhoods where we are with
all of our stores and being partof this, you know, lifeblood
that runs through neighborhoodsbecause we don't want shuttered
retail spaces.
We want places that we can walkto when we're not in the office,
when we are in our home.
(13:24):
We want to get out of our houseand we want to walk around and
talk to people and seeinteresting new things.
And I'm the type of personthat's, you know, of course,
loved fashion.
So I love going into boutiquesand I love seeing the new
products and seeing what peopleare doing and then talking to
the knowledgeable employees whocan tell me about it.
So I love all of that.
So I love that.
SPEAKER_01 (13:43):
That's I love that you're not retail shy, retail
averse or uh space averse.
Just just a question.
So here you are, you're thisbrand, you're growing, you are
opening up boutiques.
You still have stores that aretheoretically carrying your
(14:04):
product, right?
You're still trying to haveother boutiques carry you,
you're still trying to have uhdepartment.
SPEAKER_00 (14:10):
A wholesale business?
SPEAKER_01 (14:11):
Yeah.
How are you able to juggle thatin terms of prioritizing product
that would be at your storeversus the other stores versus
online and to make the customerfeel still feel like she's
getting something that shewouldn't be able to get anywhere
else because she's special?
How do you juggle that?
SPEAKER_00 (14:33):
Well, there's a certain amount of product that
only goes to our retaillocations.
It's called, we just call it CVretail exclusives.
And those are sometimes marginchallenged.
We know that if we if wewholesale them, they are going
to be much more expensive thanwe want them to be.
So we keep them at our retaillocation so we can keep the
price at a at a price that wethink is the right price for for
(14:57):
our customer.
And sometimes we have, you know,the majority of the collection
is available to our wholesaleaccounts as well as our CV
retail.
I mean, we have an amazingwholesale team.
We have a showroom.
We're in Finding Showroom in NewYork and Los Angeles.
They do us such an amazing jobwith our retail wholesale sales.
(15:19):
I think it's important to haveboth.
I don't know.
For me, that's just the way thatI've always been.
I've I mean, I started with awebsite, so I started direct to
consumer, but very soon I wentinto the Stephen Allen Showroom,
and he that showroom did so muchfor growing the brand.
I think wholesale is importantbecause it does you are in
(15:41):
markets where you do not havestores.
So you know, say Utah or Idahoor Mont Montana, you know, all
of these places where you're notnecessarily gonna have a
boutique for a while.
You are in great company inboutiques that carry other lines
that are similar to yours andthat the customer is buying
(16:01):
both.
It's a way for the customer tolearn about your collection and
then they might go to yourwebsite.
But the other reason to do it isbecause it's it's good cash flow
for your company.
I mean, when you ship,presumably what happens is that
you you ship these accounts andthey pay you in 30 days.
So that's just a good incomemodel.
You know, it's not like when youhave your own, when you have
(16:23):
your own store, you have to waitfor individual sales to come in.
SPEAKER_01 (16:26):
So Right, right, right, right.
Yeah.
It's a lot less dog and ponyshow because you know you will
get paid, at least with thoseaccounts.
Yes.
How did you go from that onestore to saying like, hey there,
I'm not busy enough.
My life isn't challengingenough.
Let's open more stores.
(16:46):
Hey guys, what do you think?
SPEAKER_00 (16:48):
Yeah, it was really it was really easy because the
store did really well in SilverLake, and we were looking at our
e-commerce and we knew that wehave a lot of we had a lot of
customers in New York.
And so I just it was verylogical and easy to just say we
should be opening a store in NewYork.
And so I started to look.
I found a real estate agent andI started looking for spaces,
(17:12):
and I found a really cute spaceon Elizabeth Street, and that
was just one year after I openedmy Silver Lake store.
That's wild.
SPEAKER_01 (17:20):
And I you said looking at your e-commerce
e-commerce, and so many brands Ithink neglect their not so much
their customers, but the zipcode of where their customers
are located.
So if you see people areshopping and buying your product
from one particular area, if youhave the means or capacity, it's
(17:44):
logical to open up a retaillocation in that space.
In that city.
SPEAKER_00 (17:50):
Exactly.
If you have the ability, I meanit is difficult to open it in a
in a city that's far away fromyou.
New York felt a little biteasier because it was a place
that I was traveling to all thetime.
Stephen Allen is a partner inthe company and he's in he's
based in New York.
It just felt a little bit morelike home base for me.
I think the first time it felt alittle bit like, oh wow, that's
(18:13):
crazy.
It's a little bit out there wasprobably the maybe Seattle or
the Chicago boutique, becausethey were just places that I
didn't travel to very often.
And we opened there because weknew we had a good customer
base, but it felt like, oh, oneof those moments when you're
like the brand is much biggerthan I am, you know.
SPEAKER_01 (18:33):
Did you open in a city that you were like, God, we
bet on it, but it just it fellshort, or you know, to create
all that hype and then not haveit work, like did you experience
that with certain locations?
SPEAKER_00 (18:47):
We haven't closed any stores.
Uh we did a pop-up in Denver,downtown Denver, in in a new
development.
And it was a pop-up, and wedecided not to pursue a
long-term situation therebecause it was not a big retail
destination.
So I think that was our ourtaste of like you gotta really
(19:09):
choose well and be in areas thatyour custom where your customer
is shopping.
And I think what we havediscovered is that it is really
helpful when maybe there's abuilt-in audience already there
because there's already othergreat stores around you.
So in Chicago, we're onArmitage, and there's really
great shopping.
(19:30):
And Armitage, Seattle's a reallygood example of that.
Because we're at UniversityVillage, great stores at
University Village.
It's just packed all the time.
So yeah, I think Dallas was ourtaste of that.
But other than that, we haven'tclosed any stores.
SPEAKER_01 (19:44):
That's so interesting.
What made you think, like, let'sdo a pop-up and not open up a
full store?
SPEAKER_00 (19:49):
Like, what made you think like friends?
Friends were doing it too.
I have really good friends, uhRen and Lindsay Parton, who are
behind a store called AlchemyWorks.
And they're also kind of realestate developers and they're
big dreamers and they love doingnew projects.
And I love their taste level andI love everything they do.
So a lot of times, if it's afriend who's asked me to do
(20:11):
something, I'm gonna go alongand take a take a little risk
with them because I know it'sgonna be fun as long as we can
figure out if there's a get outplan if it doesn't work out.
So yeah, Rand and Lindsay werethe two people that asked us to
go to Denver and we said, sure,we'll try it out.
SPEAKER_01 (20:28):
So Stephen Allen is a full-fledged partner still.
Still.
Because I know we spoke abouthim briefly.
Stephen Allen has touched a lotof brands.
Like I just had Peter Graysonon.
I'm gonna talk to Joy Grayson.
I've had Monica back here, likehe's had it with his showroom.
(20:48):
He's he is definitely uh asoothsayer in terms of seeing
the value of what brands can beif he's involved.
SPEAKER_00 (21:00):
I think so.
Yeah, I think he's got greattaste.
I think he's really smart andgreat taste and a really nice
guy.
And he's not like I don't know,he's just trustworthy.
I think he's a good guy.
SPEAKER_01 (21:12):
Was that hard to get someone else involved?
Were you because you were in ashowroom first, weren't you?
SPEAKER_00 (21:21):
I was in Steven's showroom for about a year before
he introduced me to my currentpartner who is Tom Kart Sodas,
and Steven introduced me and Tomand I decided to become
partners, and then Steven boughtum a percentage of Tom's equity.
So that's how the two of thembecame my my partner, and we've
(21:43):
been partners since 2012.
SPEAKER_01 (21:46):
How because it was essentially just you, wasn't it?
Like it was you, this mom, withyou know, like, okay, hey, now
I'm gonna open up a store, andI'm gonna open up another store.
What made you decide that youneeded a partner?
Or Steve was like, Steven waslike, hey, I've got this guy,
he'd be a great partner for you.
Or were you partner shopping?
SPEAKER_00 (22:07):
I was not, not at all.
I think Tom was looking forbusinesses to invest in, and so
Steven introduced us because hethought my business was
interesting and um a lot of uhpossibility for growth.
And uh the reason I wasinterested is because I am a
creative person.
I think I have a pretty goodbalance of left brain, right
(22:28):
brain, but at the end of theday, where my happy place is is
in the design room and the andcreating things and loving the
world of visual fashion,everything.
So again, the art of gettingdressed, expressing ourselves,
all of that is where my happyplace is.
But to be a successful fashionbusiness, you really have to,
(22:48):
there's business is very, veryimportant.
So to me, it was kind of ano-brainer to take on some
partners that had that businessacumen that I knew that I didn't
have, at least the experience.
I know that I can trust myself,trust my gut, and I think that's
so much of being successful isabout is listening to yourself.
(23:09):
And yeah, it just made sense topartner with paper business
experience.
SPEAKER_01 (23:15):
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(24:43):
today.
So you said 2012 and this waslike five, six years in about?
unknown (24:55):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (24:56):
Wow.
So how did you like when you metTom, were you because I just
find this so interesting, liketaking on a partner because when
you're on your own and you know,you hired, and I can't recall
her name, your friend colleagueat the showroom to run the
store, like you've put a lot ofblind faith into people that you
(25:19):
knew, or at least got reaction,like, okay, I know with this
person involved, it will beokay.
How was it like you met Tom forthe first time?
And you know, it's likecommitting to a marriage
relationship with someone.
Like you're like, hey, you'reshopping for something.
I might have that something.
Let's because then all of asudden now you're reliant on
(25:39):
this person that you reallydon't know, except for the word
of someone that you trust.
Which is a lot, right?
SPEAKER_00 (25:48):
Very much so a lot to get a very good
recommendation from somebody youtrust, but it is also a got a
gut feeling.
I had a good feeling when I metwith Tom.
He seemed like a really goodguy.
I met with his CFO who became myCFO for a few years, and they're
just very nice, down-to-earth,very smart business people who
(26:11):
maybe didn't understand me andthe what makes the magic of this
company tick, but theyunderstand that the company's
doing well, and they were gonnabe there to support this company
that was doing well.
And they've always been like,hey, do what you're doing.
You're doing an amazing job.
We don't even know how you'recreating this magic, but we love
it and keep going.
(26:31):
So, and they were there to bethat foundation for me.
So yeah, I think I think everythere's so many nightmare
stories about business partnersand like for fashion companies.
And I think everyone has adifferent experience.
And this is this has been mine.
I have yeah, so far just nothingbut positive things to say about
(26:55):
this partnership so far.
So thankfully I've had somepartners who have really trusted
me and I've trusted them.
And I know they've been therefor me when things get tough,
and you know, things sometimesyou just have these crises in
company, and it's so nice tohave someone to call.
They neither of them live herein Los Angeles, so they are at a
distance and they're not part ofour day-to-day running the
(27:15):
business, but they're which isprobably better.
Yeah.
Exactly.
SPEAKER_01 (27:19):
Because that's amazing.
Like this is you are such aunique individual because I
think you can like you can sniffpeople out pretty quick.
SPEAKER_00 (27:29):
And I I think so.
I don't know.
I just like nice, kind peopleand like hardworking, kind
people.
I'm not I think that's shown inthe growth of this business why
it has just been such a steadyorganic growth, and we haven't
like skyrocketed and we haven't,you know, there isn't been this
crazy growth where we've gotteninto tons of different
(27:51):
categories.
You know, it's like this is slowand steady.
We are a handbag company, we dosome apparel, we are getting
into different scents andcandles, but everything is very
like a measured approach becausewe um know your customer.
Yeah, you know what she'slooking for, right?
We know our customer, we knowwhat she's looking for, but also
we just I don't I think we enjoyrunning the company.
(28:14):
I think we enjoy working here.
I want to make sure that peoplehave a good quality of life, and
I think that's what we're aimingfor.
Can I ask you something when youget to this point where you're
like, No, this is it.
This is it.
This is it's not like we'reworking.
I mean, we are constantlyworking towards a goal and we
(28:35):
are trying to grow and we areloving the success that we're
having, but also we're justlike, this is your one life.
Make sure that you're doingsomething that you enjoy and
that you are creating anenvironment for the people
around you to be able to enjoyas well.
So that's what we're trying todo.
SPEAKER_01 (28:54):
This is like, I honestly, I want people to
listen to this this interviewlike a hundred times.
This is because you're very,you're not.
I mean, again, from the handfulof times we've spoken, you seem
very grounded.
Like you're not the person who'sgonna jump and go, like I could
be wrong, but I think there'ssomething very calm person.
SPEAKER_00 (29:15):
I think that's probably if you were to if I get
the question of what's yoursuperpower, it's probably that
I'm that very calm person.
SPEAKER_01 (29:23):
Yeah, that that is 100% a superpower.
I I just want to ask you twothings.
One, was Tom there with the nameevolution?
Was he part of that when we wentfrom Claire Vivier to Claire V?
Was he there for that?
SPEAKER_00 (29:39):
We were partners.
Yeah, we were partners at thetime.
Yeah, when we had the lawsuit,yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (29:45):
Yeah, did that ruffle you, or was he like,
okay, let's just be strategicand methodical, or was it you
who said, you know what, ClaireVivier is now Claire V.
You know, I don't need this.
How was that handled?
SPEAKER_00 (29:58):
We didn't have a choice.
We had to get rid of Vivier sowe had to move on and we
workshopped some ideas of uh Idon't know like things you could
we could do like Claire Vivieror Claire V by Claire Vivier you
know you could I could do thator I don't remember what were
the other options but at at acertain point I just said no
(30:19):
just let's let's do Claire V.
I am still Claire Vivier I'mstill the person behind the
brand and we're gonna do itwe're gonna be okay and I think
we were just at such a earlystage but at a at a really high
growth stage as well so it wasjust kind of an easy transition
for us.
I mean it was painful for me Iloved I loved having Claire
Vivier as the name of the brandit's who you are it's who I am I
(30:41):
think Vivier is a really prettyname and it is but you know I've
always been a huge fan of AgnesB and I thought you know if
Agnes can do it like we can doit as well.
SPEAKER_01 (30:53):
Have you seen Roger in any capacity ever since?
Like have you crossed paths withhim?
SPEAKER_00 (30:59):
Well he's been dead for a long time.
SPEAKER_01 (31:02):
Oh my bad yeah he's it's it's the Todd's group in
Italy who own Roger Vivier thethe name but that that person
the original shoe designer hehas been dead for a long time so
it was Todd's who came after youper se oh yeah that makes it
that much harder doesn't itcan't really go up against them
(31:24):
no you don't want to fight thatone more quick question about
understanding your customer Iteach within my class we have
one lesson on ethnography whichI show this video and any of my
students can speak to and it's areally archaic video of this
woman in Miami who is of Cubandescent and they're watching her
(31:48):
come home and make dinner andshe's talking about 30 minute
meals and how Rachel Ray hasthis and she wants to cook
healthy and you watch the foodshe's cooking and it's not
healthy at all because it's anold video.
And so that's something we talkabout kind of ad nauseum is
understanding your customer sowell that you can almost predict
(32:10):
what they're watching, whattheir show you know, what
they're gonna buy, how manybags, what car, like how you
know one location they mightlike more color in this location
they like less color like youknow anybody who's in Miami,
obviously you need more colorand we speak about this and I
make it like a digestible casestudy that an urban outfitter's
(32:32):
downtown would be very difficultin New York City would be very
different from an urbanoutfitter's on the upper west
side.
How have you been able toutilize this kind of information
about your customer to say,okay, I know her life I know
what she's gonna want to buynext I know that in Seattle
(32:52):
she'd want this but in New Yorkshe'd want that.
Like how do you deal with thatas a designer in a team?
SPEAKER_00 (32:57):
We're looking at a lot of different data points and
thankfully have members of myteam who do that a lot better
than I do.
But they're constantly lookingat the data points of who our
her demographic is who ourcustomer is who our woman is who
our person is but all of ourstores are kind of merchandised
differently we see we look atthe sales patterns and we have
(33:19):
buyer a buyer a main buyer whois buying for each of the stores
and that's such an interestingconcept is that someone has to
buy your own collection to sendto weird yeah and it's you know
you have something called opento buy dollars that you're
spending to basically furnishyour store merchandise your
stores with the entirecollections they're all
(33:41):
different sizes all the storesso they all have different
capacities but we're alsowatching what are the trends in
those areas and they are gettingmore of whatever you just
described you know more colorfulbags for certain areas more
black bags for New York Citymore they're watching these
things these trends for thedifferent areas that's isn't
that interesting how you are ananthropologist without even
(34:05):
knowing like understanding thepatterns of her and how are you
able as a team to say okay youknow you've been doing this for
quite some time you know yourcustomer is getting older how
are you able to say low-hangingfruit let me get her daughter
let me get people within herfamily to keep them as loyal
Clear V customers well again weare seeing because we have our
(34:31):
stores we get to see thecustomers and get to know them.
So we do see moms coming in withtheir you know 18 year old
daughters and the daughtersbuying something to bring to
college with them for the firsttime and then them telling their
friends about it and coming inwith a group of their
girlfriends and then they're allbuying so we are seeing these
trends we're also you knowactively going after marketing
(34:54):
for different demographics youknow so we're not trying to stay
within the exact samedemographic as this person is my
age and getting older we're alsogoing after you know my niece's
age because my niece works withtwo nieces work with the company
but you know we want to makesure that these are those are
the two at their age group theywant to carry Claire B as well
(35:15):
well they should they do theybetter they do and all of their
friends.
SPEAKER_01 (35:20):
I mean you you'd be the coolest aunt to have I could
say that it's I mean I think youjust hit the nail on the head
that like the daughter of yourcustomer ends up becoming the
influencer that you need tosupport because she's the one
that carries more weight thaneven outsource college a college
influencer program which is socool.
SPEAKER_00 (35:40):
And this is mainly we're starting with a lot of my
my friends' daughters who are atcollege and they're so they're
so cute and they're so stylishand they carry their mom's
clairvi and I'm like she carriesclair V awesome let's get her
some more Clair V and let's gether to do a little TikTok video
about it.
So we're starting in thatcollege influencer program as
well.
SPEAKER_01 (36:00):
So are you checking those girls uh TikTok following
before you bring them on kind ofthing like the same you would
with the regular influencer.
SPEAKER_00 (36:09):
Yeah I mean but she doesn't have to have a huge
following it's it's we love themicro influencers too.
SPEAKER_01 (36:13):
Okay.
Well I want to thank you forfinishing our part two I I think
this has been absolutelyamazing.
I think being able to have youwith the extended story and even
your whole back retail strategyand growth strategy and
understanding how you took on apartner and I just think 100% I
(36:37):
think your grounded calm I Idon't even want to use the word
vibe because it's so trite but Ithink that totally lends itself.
Vibe?
Okay it's the vibe.
But I think that really lendsitself to someone feeling
confident speaking with you andthen to trust you I think that
conversion is pretty solid thatwith you it doesn't feel
(37:00):
transactional it feelsauthentic.
And I think that clearly comesthrough with with your with your
bags and your product so thankyou for being part of this once
again.
SPEAKER_00 (37:09):
Thank you Emily really honored to be on the
podcast again.
Thank you so much for having medoing this part too.
SPEAKER_01 (37:15):
Wonderful okay thanks so much we'll have you
back we'll have you back soon totalk about your next collection
thanks Emily bye bye all righthave a good one bye thanks for
listening don't forget to rateand review and follow us on
every single platform at handbagdesigner thanks so much.
See you next time
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