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Disrupting The Fashion Industry With Sabinna Rachimova
On this episode of the Lead With Purpose podcast host, Tze Ching Yeung talks to Sabinna Rachimova, founder of her own sustainable fashion brand, Sabinna to talk about her career and what drives her.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- I don’t have a family background in fashion or the creative industry. I learned traditional Tartar handcraft from my grandmother who was a teacher but was very into making, because back in the USSR you didn’t have the money to buy anything so you had to teach yourself those skills. This is how I got into fashion and why I wanted to work in the industry. I didn’t know anyone in the industry, so I had to start from scratch building my network, understanding how it worked, getting support and backing from people. It’s always been about handcraft for me: I wanted to be a designer, creating beautiful things, selling my products.
- I always knew I wanted to start my own business. I went out there and saw how other people did things, how corporations worked, how luxury worked, how fast fashion worked. You have to walk the walk to talk the talk, especially without the background or contact in the industry. Being an immigrant child probably helped because that’s exactly what you’re doing for your entire childhood when you move a lot with your family. I saw how the entire fashion industry worked and was able to apply that to my own business in terms of what I can change.
- I’m actually quite an introverted person. As a child I never wanted to talk because most of my childhood I had to cope with language barriers and I would not always be very confident in speaking the language of where I was living at that time. I was desperate because I had something to say and if I didn’t up my game and advocate for myself nothing would happen.
- Every year that you work in the industry you have higher exposure, bigger network, and with that comes responsibility. It’s not only that you should be using it for yourself but what can you actually do to create more spaces for marginalised groups or your own communities. How can you make sure people from different backgrounds are heard?
BEST MOMENTS
‘I have a naive approach towards the industry, but not in a negative sense, more that I only saw the magical lens of the beauty of creating something, connecting your emotions, your story, the heritage of your family that has been passed on.’
‘Sustainability is rooted in my thoughts since I always had that huge focus on the maker, it just never crossed my mind that for other professionals this wasn’t the case.’
‘In the first three years of the business there was a lot of trial and error and a journey of finding myself, my voice and the confidence to actually communicate properly what we need in terms of change in our industry.’
‘People created space for me which is why I’m so big on mentoring programmes, passing on my knowledge and expertise, and supporting the next generation where I can. People like me profited a lot from all these approaches.’
ABOUT THE GUEST
Sabinna Rachimova is an opinion leader for the future generation of creatives. After graduating from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, she worked for the leading fashion house Christian Dior and contemporary London brand Mary Katrantzou. As a child, she learned traditional soviet handcraft from her grandmother, developing a deeply ingrained appreciation for the craft. This early influence was a key inspiration for her namesake brand. As a double immigrant (born in Central Asia, raised in Europe, and now based in London) Sabinna is incredibly passionate about inclusivity and equal opportunities.
In addition to her work as an acclaimed designer, Sabinna is a public speaker, spreading the word about both fashion tech and sustainable fashion, as well as a consultant with a focus on fashion start-ups and education across Europe and the UK. Since 2018, she has lectured at the University of Arts London, teaching on the MA Fashion Entrepreneurship & Innovation course, focusing on sustainable business concepts to encourage her students to disrupt the industry. In 2019, Sabinna was named one of Forbes 30 under 30 DACH for her achievements as an entrepreneur in the sustainable fashion industry.
Website: https://www.sabinna.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sabinna-rachimova/
Instagram: @sabinna_rachimova
ABOUT THE HOST
Tze Ching started her entrepreneurial journey back in 2007 with the launch of a sustainable clothing and home furnishing ecommerce business. Next, she created a sustainable fashion brand.
In 2019, she launched a social enterprise to help raise awareness about the negative impact of fashion at schools and colleges.
Through the 15-year journey, she learned so much, but easily the most meaningful lesson learned was about the importance of marketing. She now focuses on channelling those insights to help others succeed, through We Disrupt Agency, a business coaching, mentoring and digital marketing company.
Tze Ching’s mission is to create a community of global change makers and to contribute to positive change in both people and planet.
CONTACT DETAILS
Tze Ching’s website: https://wedisruptagency.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wedisruptagency
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wedisruptagency/
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/wedisruptagency
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tzechingyeung/
View all episodes
By Tze Ching Yeung
5
44 ratings
On this episode of the Lead With Purpose podcast host, Tze Ching Yeung talks to Sabinna Rachimova, founder of her own sustainable fashion brand, Sabinna to talk about her career and what drives her.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- I don’t have a family background in fashion or the creative industry. I learned traditional Tartar handcraft from my grandmother who was a teacher but was very into making, because back in the USSR you didn’t have the money to buy anything so you had to teach yourself those skills. This is how I got into fashion and why I wanted to work in the industry. I didn’t know anyone in the industry, so I had to start from scratch building my network, understanding how it worked, getting support and backing from people. It’s always been about handcraft for me: I wanted to be a designer, creating beautiful things, selling my products.
- I always knew I wanted to start my own business. I went out there and saw how other people did things, how corporations worked, how luxury worked, how fast fashion worked. You have to walk the walk to talk the talk, especially without the background or contact in the industry. Being an immigrant child probably helped because that’s exactly what you’re doing for your entire childhood when you move a lot with your family. I saw how the entire fashion industry worked and was able to apply that to my own business in terms of what I can change.
- I’m actually quite an introverted person. As a child I never wanted to talk because most of my childhood I had to cope with language barriers and I would not always be very confident in speaking the language of where I was living at that time. I was desperate because I had something to say and if I didn’t up my game and advocate for myself nothing would happen.
- Every year that you work in the industry you have higher exposure, bigger network, and with that comes responsibility. It’s not only that you should be using it for yourself but what can you actually do to create more spaces for marginalised groups or your own communities. How can you make sure people from different backgrounds are heard?
BEST MOMENTS
‘I have a naive approach towards the industry, but not in a negative sense, more that I only saw the magical lens of the beauty of creating something, connecting your emotions, your story, the heritage of your family that has been passed on.’
‘Sustainability is rooted in my thoughts since I always had that huge focus on the maker, it just never crossed my mind that for other professionals this wasn’t the case.’
‘In the first three years of the business there was a lot of trial and error and a journey of finding myself, my voice and the confidence to actually communicate properly what we need in terms of change in our industry.’
‘People created space for me which is why I’m so big on mentoring programmes, passing on my knowledge and expertise, and supporting the next generation where I can. People like me profited a lot from all these approaches.’
ABOUT THE GUEST
Sabinna Rachimova is an opinion leader for the future generation of creatives. After graduating from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, she worked for the leading fashion house Christian Dior and contemporary London brand Mary Katrantzou. As a child, she learned traditional soviet handcraft from her grandmother, developing a deeply ingrained appreciation for the craft. This early influence was a key inspiration for her namesake brand. As a double immigrant (born in Central Asia, raised in Europe, and now based in London) Sabinna is incredibly passionate about inclusivity and equal opportunities.
In addition to her work as an acclaimed designer, Sabinna is a public speaker, spreading the word about both fashion tech and sustainable fashion, as well as a consultant with a focus on fashion start-ups and education across Europe and the UK. Since 2018, she has lectured at the University of Arts London, teaching on the MA Fashion Entrepreneurship & Innovation course, focusing on sustainable business concepts to encourage her students to disrupt the industry. In 2019, Sabinna was named one of Forbes 30 under 30 DACH for her achievements as an entrepreneur in the sustainable fashion industry.
Website: https://www.sabinna.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sabinna-rachimova/
Instagram: @sabinna_rachimova
ABOUT THE HOST
Tze Ching started her entrepreneurial journey back in 2007 with the launch of a sustainable clothing and home furnishing ecommerce business. Next, she created a sustainable fashion brand.
In 2019, she launched a social enterprise to help raise awareness about the negative impact of fashion at schools and colleges.
Through the 15-year journey, she learned so much, but easily the most meaningful lesson learned was about the importance of marketing. She now focuses on channelling those insights to help others succeed, through We Disrupt Agency, a business coaching, mentoring and digital marketing company.
Tze Ching’s mission is to create a community of global change makers and to contribute to positive change in both people and planet.
CONTACT DETAILS
Tze Ching’s website: https://wedisruptagency.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wedisruptagency
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wedisruptagency/
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/wedisruptagency
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tzechingyeung/