“Know who you are and be that person”

Since this is my first blog post out to the weekly letter, I thought it was an appropriate start to write on who I am. Fortuitously, this has been very helpful for thinking through how I want to grow my business at this stage. As my wise friend and business mentor, Taylor of Gamine Workwear advised me, “Know who you are and be that person.” In other words, she builds her business so that all aspects of who she is shines into the world.

So who am I? I am intensely compassionate with people and my natural world. I love bugs and trees. I challenge myself and don’t give up: at 11 years old I was the only woman and young person to successfully climb Half Dome in the large group of family friends I was with (and in Converse Sneakers!). I am creative. I love fashion design. I love the environment. I love bicycles. I am a feminist. I see the potential for transforming our way of life and I am willing to risk deep uncertainty to work towards it. I love people who let their light shine in this word.
 
REID MILLER Apparel is my creation based on exactly who I am.
 
Why are these qualities important? 1) Because I am creating something that does not exist, where I am blazing the trail. There are an unlimited number of challenges in my path. For example, I am producing ready to wear fashion that has the functionality and quality of performance wear. This requires pushing factories to do something that clients don’t normally ask them to do – to think differently about what they are producing so that it performs and holds up over time. All the while, I am their smallest client. With my passion and commitment I get them to care even though my purchasing power does not demand it.   
 
2) I am building for a vision of community that we are just now beginning to construct. I have to make decisions based on what currently exists – fragmented community environments, with sparse bike infrastructure – and what will come into being – beautiful creative community spaces where we are free to walk, bicycle and interact with each other each day. Here my imagination, bottomless optimism and determination will keep me on track.
 
Write back and tell me who you are! I’d love to hear from you even if it is a short note: reidmillerapparel@gmail.com