You’re someone who spends hours getting lost in a fashion idea, drawing and redesigning a garment over and over again until it’s just right. But once those ideas are perfected you’re not sure how to go from hand drawing on a napkin to holding that garment in your hands.

But you can wade through the uncertainty of becoming a startup fashion designer, your dream can come true!

Which is exactly what Anouchka Santella of Wear Gold clothing line did.  And in this episode of the Successful Fashion Designer podcast, Heidi introduces you to her, where they talk about how she became a startup fashion designer.

• How to take napkin drawings from concept to an actual product line
• Finding a reliable team of seamstresses and pattern makers
• Deciding to keep your garment production local and cost effective
• Why you shouldn't be afraid to take risks with your first fashion Line
• How to drive sales to your design website in a cost effective way
• Why it's important to take the right margin on your final garments
• Her decision to design something that would create less waste in our landfills
• Why you shouldn't be ashamed of your retail price point
• How she funded her startup fashion design brand
• The importance of having the self discipline to get to the finish line slowly

Anouchka Santella was a journalism major who has taken her pipe dream and made herself into a full fledged fashion designer with her startup fashion line called Wear Gold, in only 6 months.

She had no experience or education in fashion design, pattern making or sewing, so she never thought she could become a designer. That was as big of a dream as becoming a “big music star or movie actress”. Like many designers she noticed a hole in the fashion marketplace that she wanted to fill. Where fast fashion is on the rise and so are the piles of garbage in the landfills, she wanted to create a line that would stand the test of time.

She shares the trials and tribulations of creating a fashion line that is manufactured in her country of origin and keeping the price point reasonable. She shares some of her “ahh ha” moments about what it really costs to have clothing made and how flighty people in the industry can be.

Download my Freelance Price List just for fashion (it’s free!): sewheidi.com/price