Networking in Style

So much of Fashion Week’s festivities are about celebrating the established, successful brand. And Wednesday night’s Style Coalition Fashion 2.0 awards for social-media innovation in the field was no exception—but it did offer a twist.

While the awards, sponsored by online retail aggregator TheFind, feted brands like DKNY, which made a near clean sweep of categories including best Twitter Feed, best blog, and best Facebook page, it was the rest of the audience that made the event interesting. Mingling and sipping on cocktails alongside the biggies, including reps from Bergdorf Goodman, Chanel, Giorgio Armani, Tumblr, Fashion GPS, and ASOS, among others, were small-business owners and fashion entrepreneurs looking to make new contacts, catch up with old ones, and forge some deals.

Take, for example, 24-year-old Sarah Paris. After a few years of working in private equity she no longer wanted to deny her love of apparel. Together with her sister, she established Messes of Dresses, an online retailer that sells '30s- and '40s-themed clothing sourced from independent designers. And nothing retails above $100.

“I love designer clothes, but most people can’t afford them,” said Paris. She finds working with young, up-and-coming designers who haven’t made it big yet very rewarding. “It’s great to become a part of someone’s success and showcasing their talent to people who may never have heard of them otherwise,” she explained. “I love Marc Jacobs, but I get just as inspired by the people my sister and I discover at local trade shows.”

Paris has only been in business since July 2010, and although her site hasn’t yet turned a profit, she’s prepared to give the venture at least a year to grow. And she’s enlisting the help of smaller Groupon-like social shopping sites to help raise her brand’s awareness. “We count an average of 600 daily uniques, but last week’s promotion with our Groupon-ish partner netted 2,000 daily visitors,” she said.

As we chatted about social media and working with family members, Stacey Blume, 36, owner of Blume apparel and lingerie, joined the conversation, sharing the story of how she spun off a business of her own from her family’s uniform business. How did her parents and brothers react when she first showed them samples of frilly undies bearing men’s names on them? “They were thrilled, they thought it was a natural extension of their brand,” she recounted. Her inspiration for the line was the vintage name tags that graced many a blue-collar uniform. “I noticed that trend-setters were repurposing old uniforms as funky T-shirts, and I thought, This could start a new trend in underwear.”

Blume, in business for several years now, has landed deals with Barneys and Saks, but the most significant part of the business comes from small-business-owned specialty boutiques. “It’s difficult to get a buyer at a more conservative department store to take a chance on your line. But the interaction with a small-business owner can be so much more intimate,” Blume said. “They’re not as afraid to give me space in their store, let me merchandise it, and see whether the sales happen or not. What’s strange is that when they sell-through an order, they’re more likely to reorder right away. That’s not the case with the big-box retailers.”

Besides sharing her insights about selling to big versus small businesses, Blume also had a connection to share with Paris. Exchanging cards, the two make a plan to check back in—which is what events like the social-media bash are all about: the networking. “Being a part of a group like this one is essential for entrepreneurs,” said Blume. “Having the opportunity to come together and meet not only other people in our industry, but to also have the chance to speak with the bigger brands helps many of us gain insight into the state of the industry.”

And perhaps make a few lasting connections that lead to real sales and growth.

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Romy Ribitzky is an associate editor at Portfolio.com.