What better topic to start with than why I started my own sustainable swimwear line.
Okay... travel with me back in time to the 90s .. to the exciting town of BORING, Oregon. Seriously, google it. That's my hometown. Growing up, I know it sounds like a cliche, but when I was asked..."What do you want to be when you grow up...." I always had 1 answer:
Okay... travel with me back in time to the 90s .. to the exciting town of BORING, Oregon. Seriously, google it. That's my hometown. Growing up, I know it sounds like a cliche, but when I was asked..."What do you want to be when you grow up...." I always had 1 answer:
Fireman.
Just kidding.
It was Fashion Designer!
I'm not even sure if I knew what that entailed (and I'm now getting a crash course on it!). But I loved clothes..I loved fashion.. so why not be a fashion designer?
Let's flash forward to the year 2019... I'm not a fashion designer. Not even close.. I worked in tech sales for a market research company. I graduated college 15 years before, and didn't really have an idea what I wanted to do...maybe I should have taken those token "what do you want to be when you grow up" questions a little more seriously! I took a job at a radio station...then I took another job at a sustainable seafood company..and then I took another job etc etc etc. Suddenly I've a nice career going, but I sort of hate my job. To quote the great Tim Canterbury from the British Office..."Its better to be at the bottom of a ladder you want to climb, than halfway up one you don't." (Truthfully, my husband just yelled that quote from the other room..."Don't forget about Tim Canterbury's line...")
But it fits. I hated my job. I was glued to a computer or phone for something that truly didn't bring me joy. So the simple answer..why I started Sunset Vibes..it's because I wanted to do something that made me happy and to give back. That brought me joy. I wanted to share that joy with everyone. I wanted to do something that I loved and work with something I was passionate about.
In July of 2019, I went on a trip to Havana, Cuba with members of the Daybreaker organization (if you don't know em..check em out!). It truly was a life changing opportunity with a lot of self reflection. Hearing the founders of Daybreaker tell their story of how they built this amazing organization was truly motivating. On the trip we danced, we ate amazing food, met so many new friends, but I still had my market research job looming over me. The stress of it was certainly affecting me and those close to me. So I did it!
So I left the safety net of the corporate world..and began figuring out the fashion industry.. one day at a time! More soon.
XOXO
Denise!
Denise!