Business

Inspirational Trunk Show To Come To Wellesley’s Sloane & Ivy

By Jennifer Zarate
Wicked Local Metro, Needham, Mass.

WWR Article Summary (tl;dr) The Sloan & Ivy trunk show is also known as a “THRIVE Event” where leaders focus on helping female entrepreneurs build their brands.

Wicked Local Metro, Needham, Mass.

This December, Sloane & Ivy is hosting a trunk show for young female entrepreneurs.

Just over a year ago, Kate Phelan, 29, of Weston opened her first women’s clothing boutique in Wellesley’s Church Square.

“I wanted to be near a charming, walkable town center,” said Phelan. “Obviously, there are a few towns in mind, but I wanted to be where moms and daughters could shop together. Me and my mom would always make our first stop in Wellesley.”

She went on to say how nostalgic and comforting it is “coming back to where my first memories of shopping are,” and to open a store here in Wellesley.

Located at 22 Church St., Sloane & Ivy offers contemporary clothing for the everyday woman, Phelan said. Whether you’re a working mom, or a stay at home mom, “it’s functional clothing with the everyday woman in mind.”

The trunk show is meant to support young female entrepreneurs, said Phelan, a young entrepreneur herself.

“It takes a lot to own and run a business for people wanting to do this at my age,” Phelan said. “You just have to really love what you do because the hard days will just be too hard.”

Speaking at the event is Janet Kraus, a three-time chief executive officer (CEO) and current co-founder and CEO of Peach — contemporary women’s fashion for gym, work, and play, also known as “athleisure” wear.

Kraus has successfully built and sold two companies, and was most recently on the faculty at the Harvard Business School where she taught entrepreneurship.

In 2014, Kraus co-founded Peach, which is sold through a national network of trained Peach stylists who put together in-home and virtual trunk shows, private appointments and e-commerce.

What’s unique is that it offers women (Peach stylists) the opportunity to launch their own fashion business, along with the tools and training they need to be successful.

“We love supporting other female entrepreneurs,” said Trish Carey, senior Peach partner and founding stylist. “What we do each season is we find under-discovered female entrepreneurs and provide exposure.”

Products are matched with Peach seasonal collections, Carey said, “so our clients get to know the brands [of these young female entrepreneurs].”

Carey said the Dec. 7 event will be the third trunk show they’ve done with Phelan’s Sloane & Ivy.

“We’re an online company, so we do a lot of business-to-business collaboration… working with yoga studios, fitness centers, or women’s boutiques,” said Carey.

In collaboration with Peach, the Sloan & Ivy trunk show is also known as a “THRIVE Event” where “we not only build brand development, but we also [aim] to inspire and encourage women as female entrepreneurs,” she said.

“It’s amazing that we’re local (headquartered in Waltham) and are able to deliver this at Sloan & Ivy,” added Carey.

Hannah Fastov, 27, originally from Scarsdale, New York is the founder and CEO of Dash Dash Dot Dash Dash Dash, otherwise known as Go Dash Dot.

Fastov will be offering her collection of functional yet fashionable bags at the Dec. 7 trunk show.

After living and working in Manhattan for two years, Fastov said, “I found I was going from the gym to work to dinner with friends or co-workers carrying multiple bags, feeling like a bag lady.”

At the time, she said she tried a number of different types of bags to hold her belongings, but nothing kept it organized or looked stylish.

“After countless gym locker room conversations and a study of over 100 active women, I found that I was not alone in this conundrum and realized this idea for a functional yet fashionable carryall tote had real potential,” said Fastov.

Once the prototype was finalized and ready to bring to market, in early June of this year, “We received a large order from Free People and then a few months later from Nordstrom,” Fastov said.

Go Dash Dot is an online company that works with boutiques and fitness studios across the country, she said. “My bags are different because every aspect of the bag has purpose. The problem I have with other bags in the market is that most are large sacks, which ultimately become a black hole of stuff.”

In an effort to avoid this “black hole,” Go Dash Dot offers signature features, which include a shoe/yoga mat compartment, padded laptop section, machine washable laundry pouch, bottle holder, snap-in snap-out pouch, zip pockets, slip pockets, and an additional, adjustable strap.

“We also have a social mission to empower women and provide them with the tools necessary to confront life’s challenges from a place of strength; with confidence, dignity, and integrity,” said Fastov. “With this ideal in mind, we have partnered with women cooperatives all over the world whose mission is to support independence and empowerment by providing women with skills and work opportunities.”

Fastov said she connected with Phelan through a family friend who lives in Wellesley and thought her brand would be a great fit for Phelan’s store.

And like the development program offered by Peach and Go Dash Dot’s social mission, Sloane & Ivy offers a an internship program for aspiring young female entrepreneurs.

“I want to give girls that want to be in fashion and work in small businesses a hands-on experience of what it’s like,” said Phelan.

The trunk show will be held at Sloane & Ivy located at 22 Church St. on Dec. 7 from 7-9 p.m.

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