EP 199: RETAIL ROUNDTABLE WITH EMMA LEWIS (RARE FORM), SONIA MCMORAN (HOME/WORK), SASHA VARNI (WISH)

Emma Lewis is the owner of Rare Form and The Twentieth, both based in Chicago. Emma works to digitally restore and reinterpret 100-year-old designs to create unique greeting cards, stationery, and more. Through her work, her goal is to empower and affirm others with a brand that combines vintage images with unapologetic contemporary feminist language and over-the-top messages of affirmation.

The Twentieth is a stationery, gift, and design brand that brings historical maximalism together with 21st-century wit and an unapologetic attitude. The brand brings Art Deco imagery into the 21st century with empowering language and more than a hint of sarcasm. Rare Form offers a variety of Emma’s feminist prints, greeting cards, antiques, and other gifts. There, she uses her nerdy, sarcastic sense of humor to create digital collages that combine vintage photographs of women with empowering, contemporary feminist language.

Sonia McMoran spent more than a decade reporting on interior design and technology trends for publications such as The New York Times, Wired, ReadyMade, and Apartment Therapy. While taking a hiatus from journalism, Sonia realized that what she loved most about her job wasn’t the writing, but
the excitement of uncovering cool products and the people who make them and sharing her discoveries with the world. This was the impetus for Home/Work, an affordable and unique shop for the home and home office that celebrates the best in past and present design.

Sasha Varni was raised in Carmel in a family of retailers - it's in her blood! Sasha worked for her mom's candle store growing up and in college. After a brief stint in Italy, Sasha moved to SF and worked for Sephora and bareMinerals. She then moved to Walnut Creek and after taking maternity leave, she decided to go all-in on opening the gift shop Wish with her mom. Thanks to her amazing customers, Sasha has been able to expand her shop and now ships nationwide through her website. This month, Wish is celebrating its 10-year anniversary. 

In this first all-female retail roundtable, Emma, Sonia, and Sasha join Michelle to dive deep into their stores and recap the last holiday season. They also share how they like to tackle gift shows, strategies to boost special event attendance, and how to deal with crappy customers and social media trolls. The roundtable wraps up with tips to handle returns and run a successful loyalty program.

Cadeau Ami Agency is solely a road rep agency of 10+ associates that handle the states of CA, AZ, HI, and parts of Nevada for many of their 23 or so boutique/gift brands, such as Chive, SF Mercantile, Sock it to Me, French Broad Chocolate, Pomegranate, Calypso Cards, Good Juju, Ryland Peters & Small, Kei & Molly and has been a part of the industry for over 30 years now. 

What’s Inside: 

• A recap of the last holiday season
• How to boost attendance at special events
• Tips for handling crappy customers and returns

Mentioned In This Episode:
Wish Walnut Creek on Facebook
Wish Walnut Creek on Instagram
Wishwalnutcreek.com
Shoprareform.com
Home/Work on Instagram
Home/Work on Facebook
Home/Work on TikTok