- your name, name of your store, year opened
erin weckerle, sodafine, opened oct 2002 in philadelphia, moved to fortgreene, brooklyn february 2004, moved to williamsburg, brooklyn august2006
-tell us a bit about your shop and your inspiration to open
Sodafine boutique specializes in innovative and unique handmade clothing and accessories by indie designers and artists. We also carry lines utilizing eco-friendly fabrics and sustainable labor practices, and a small selection of vintage clothing. Many of the items you'll find at Sodafine are made by individuals who call themselves artists and see their production of clothing/accessories as just one facet of theirartistic process.
Most of our handmade items are one (or some) of a kind and our attitude is very D.I.Y. inspired. Sodafine hopes to provide an interesting model of the intersection of art, craft, and fashion.
The inspiration for opening... well, i had recently graduated fromart school, and was obsessively knitting. I was selling my wares in boutiques in Philadelphia and was asked to take over the backroom space of Vagabond Boutique as my own shop.
So i sort of happened into it actually, it found me! Sodafine started out as mainly vintage (and with2 business partners- Emily Geddes and Rebekah Maysles) but also with handmade stuff from myself and my friends, and it sort of grew organically from there.
-what item is currently on your covet list? What item could you notresist buying for yourself?
There are so many things at the shop that i covet all the time! Rightnow, it's Feral Childe's Holeotosis Dress, a super cute Hodge Podge hot pink fleece tunic with crocheted detail, Talla's silk woodgrain printdress, and the Passenger Pigeon Mod Herringbone Dress with the treeprint. Somehow i was able to resist the Chie Mihara boots, and now mysize is sold out!
There's actually a lot of things that i couldn't resist, and right after Christmas, i allowed myself to indulge in a Sodafine shopping spree. I got: Chie Mihara Amore pumps (so 1940's glamorous!), Passenger Pigeonbell sleeved coat made from recycled army blankets, a Talla t-shirt, She-bible overall's romper, and a Panda Snack bamboo tank top. I also have the Loomstate cords, and the flux jeans in current, a Fortes woolstripey tunic, and Matiko's Laura flats. That's a lot i guess!!
-who is your personal "it" designer right now?
That's a hard question! There's so many! I'm really looking forward to carrying Bahar Shahpar this spring. She used to design for Agricult and just began her namesake line. It's eco and beautiful! And of course, Chie Mihara continues to astound me with her quirky take on classic footwear. Plus her construction is impecable and the leathershe uses is so lush.
-what is your advice for designers who want to be be carried in your store?
Check out the shop in person if you live near Brooklyn, or the online shop if not. Really get a feel for what Sodafine is about before sending a linesheet. I'm very picky about what i'll carry because of my ideals as well as the size of my shop.
-what is the biggest trend that is currently impacting your buying decisions?
I'm extremely happy with the direction of eco-fashion in the past year or so. Suddenly there's so many more interesting and fashion forward lines, whereas before it seemed like all that was available to the ecoconscious customer was yoga wear.
erin, owner/buyer of Sodafine boutique
119 grand street
brooklyn, ny 11211
3 comments:
I loved this interview, please do more profiles like this. It's so interesting and inspiring to learn how thriving small businesses were started.
Hi K,
Loved this interview. I used to shop at Sodafine when it was in Philly. It's so inspiring to see how much the shop has grown.
Hi! I currently work at Panda Snack, which is the company of the tank top mentioned during this interview. I wanted to thank you for mentioning our company. If you would like to check out some more of our designs feel free to take a look at our website www.pandasnack.com....also take a look in Sodafine to find some more of our clothing! Hope you enjoy!!
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