We welcome Jessie Somekh and Hannah Graves, two dynamic entrepreneurs who share their journey from the East Coast to LA. Listen in as we discuss their unique backgrounds, the challenges of starting a business in a new city, and the inspiration behind their innovative fashion rental platform, Rotate Your Closet.
Jessie begins by sharing her story of moving west from New York, attending Vanderbilt in Nashville, and working at Microsoft in Seattle. She talks about navigating a male-dominated tech environment and her eventual transition to Nordstrom and Amazon. Hannah, from Boston, discusses her academic background in psychology at Bates College, her passion for digital advertising and marketing, and her experience at Dartmouth's accelerated business program.
We then dive into their decisions to move to LA. Jessie explains how the city's creative and tech communities, along with the sunny weather, influenced her lifestyle and career. Hannah shares her unique experience of commuting between Boston and LA, enjoying the best of both worlds while reconnecting with her sister and Jessie.
Next, we explore the inspiration behind Rotate Your Closet. Jessie and Hannah describe how their shared love for fashion and the desire to create a sustainable business model sparked the idea for their peer-to-peer fashion rental platform. They discuss the challenges and successes of starting a community-based business during the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing the importance of confidence and faking it till you make it in the business world.
Jessie and Hannah share valuable insights from their entrepreneurial journey, highlighting the significance of understanding and believing in your product. They recount anecdotes of navigating investor meetings and the crucial role of community and collaboration in their success.
The conversation takes a fun turn as we all share personal stories about our unique pieces of clothing and fashion quirks. Jessie’s tale of her brown suede harness and walkie-talkie adventures and Hannah’s love for rose brooches and her vintage Ninja Turtle jacket add a personal touch to the discussion.
As we near the end of the episode, Jessie and Hannah explain how Rotate Your Closet works, covering rental pricing, dry cleaning fees, and community-based quality control. They also discuss their plans for expanding into accessories and other fashion items, and their vision for building a sustainable, peer-to-peer fashion community.
We thank Jessie and Hannah for sharing their inspiring journey and insights. We wrap up the episode with a call to action, encouraging listeners to follow the podcast and guests on social media and to check out Rotate Your Closet for unique fashion rentals.
Links:
https://www.rotateyourcloset.co/
What is Just Fake It: Coming to LA?
Welcome to Just Fake It: Coming to LA podcast. I am Nora from Kazakhstan, and I'm Maryna from Ukraine. We're just two girls who are trying to make our mark in this crazy, beautiful city of Los Angeles. It's about our journey, the highs, the lows and everything in between.
It's for anyone who's ever had a dream that seemed a little bit out of reach. So why should you listen? Well, because we're living this right now and we're figuring it out as we go, and we're not afraid to share the real deal, our mess ups, the breakthroughs real stories about navigating life in LA, the trends that catch our eyes, and the adventures that come with trying to stand out in the capital of entertainment and glamour. We're here to share our experiences, the good ones, the bad ones, the hilarious, and maybe inspire you to chase your own dreams, no matter where you are.
So come hang out with us on Just Fake It: Coming to LA. It's not about just making or breaking it. It's about living it one day at a time, and we're so excited to take you on a journey with us and build the community of dreamers just like ourselves.