Today we’d like to introduce you to Alyssa Chavez.
Alyssa, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Before I decided to start Hinge, I had my heart set on becoming a lawyer. Being a young mom and having three kids meant that I needed to think about what was best for them, financially. I had gotten pregnant at 16 and had two more kids at 17 and 18 years old. I knew I needed to be a great mom for them, so I went to college and got my Bachelor’s degree in Legal Studies. Digging deeper, I realized that my kids need me. Going to law school and being a lawyer would take more time away from them, and I don’t want to miss on any part of their lives.
I always wanted to own my own business, but I could never put my finger on what I wanted to do. As a mom of three, I became obsessed with children’s clothes and dressing up my kids.
Hinge started off with buying wholesale clothes from China. I didn’t like that our clothes were being mass-produced and no love or thought was going into them. My husband decided he would invest in my dream of being a handmade shop. I had no idea how to sew or where to begin. The thought of going handmade scared me, but I knew it was the best thing for my company. We used our income tax return and invested into Hinge. It took a couple of months for me to teach myself how to sew clothes, but I have finally found my passion. I am in love with sewing and never knew it was so relaxing and fun! I am constantly researching unique fabric options that you wouldn’t normally see at other shops.
I have come to realize that the small shop field is a competitive one. I am constantly working to try and make Hinge as different as can be so we can stand out from the crowd, not blend in with it. Hinge today is 100% a handmade shop. Everything is done by one person; from making the website, to sewing and packing orders. Right now, we are still a very small company with little customers. I have had so many bumps in the road and I am still standing strong, and I will keep pushing forward so that one day everyone will be wanting to wear my clothes.
Has it been a smooth road?
I have had so many challenges with Hinge, from teaching myself how to sew, to having no customers, and then having my only sewing machine break. The most devastating thing to happen to me was that my sewing machine broke when I needed it most. Since Hinge doesn’t bring in a lot of income, I have to rely on my husband’s paycheck.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t in our budget for us to buy a new machine, so I had to close Hinge briefly. I was crying and thinking to myself “This is the sign, it’s time for me to close up shop”. I was absolutely devastated. This company that I had invested so much in was going to be gone. All my outfits that the world was never going to see, gone. But something amazing had happened. Someone so generous gave me the money to buy an even better machine then what I had, and I was able to re-open Hinge. Now that I can sew clothes again, I am trying to push even more unique fabrics and outfits. Hinge has been a roller coaster ride and I’m sure it will always be. It’s all about how you handle the bad days. Do you give up? Or do you take all this negative energy and try harder? I will continue to push and try repeatedly to make Hinge a successful handmade shop and hopefully one day I’ll make it.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Hinge Clothing Co story. Tell us more about the business.
Hinge is all about children’s clothes. Nowadays, everyone is dressing up their kids and I am staying with that trend. We offer trendy/unique clothes that no other shop has. I make custom orders for people who have a vision, and I make their vision come to life. What sets Hinge apart from the other small shops is the fabrics I use when creating outfits. Our fabric makes us stand out. Hinge also has over 20 different options per fabric. I can pretty much make anything from bows to skirts, to hoodies. You want it, I can make it. Another big thing that sets Hinge apart from other small shops is that I offer boys clothes as well. Boys, in my opinion, don’t get as much love as girls do in the small shop world. I come up with new styles for my boy moms just as much as my girl’s mom.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Hinge in the next 5-10 years will still be handmade. I don’t plan on going back to wholesale clothing. Hinge will constantly be changing fabrics and outfits designs because trends come and go. Clothes become in style and out of style and it’s my job to keep with the world as it changes. I hope that in the next 5-10 years, I will no longer have to work out of my dining room and have an office for Hinge where I can do my sewing in peace and have an abundance of fabrics surrounding me.
Pricing:
- Bummies are $20
- Hoodies are $43
- Bows are $5
- Leggings/Joggers are $28
- Bell Bottoms are $32
- Outfits $35-40
- Peplum Tops $28-30
Contact Info:
- Website: www.hingeclothingco.com
- Email: info.hingeclothingco@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hinge_clothes/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HingeClothingCo/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel&eid=ARBOB-b8u4QAEtYc94KRRmPLGAEbZ9egUvVcJvGzj0puqy6AfXI0iWs2szg6-eUp6OxPPeu_-zqaHjFA
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