A Day at the Contractor

When I first started with Brynn, I had only worked with contractors within the company.  We work with an independent contractor; so working with them has been a whole new experience.  It has been very exciting setting up meetings with them, planning our production runs, making sure we have the materials inventory updated and ready for production, and then checking in on how the run is going.  When Brynn and I went to check up on the Fall 2012 line, they were in the process of working on sewing the Lauren Bags and cutting out the Sophie.  

To the left are the pre cut piles of Sophie bags ready to be sewn.  You can see some of the new fall colors, shown are Spill the Wine (oxblood), Imagine (blue/grey), Mary Jane (olive green), and Foxy Moma (burnt orange).  

We also went to make some changes to our overall order and some adjustments on a few bags. For example, we added a back pocket to the Sophie and changed the strap attachment on the Mini-Lauren.  Last minute changes are possible partly because we produce in Chicago!

To the right is the pile of half sewn Mini- Lauren’s waiting to be finished!  This photo shows the Spill the Wine, Mary Jane, Imagine, and To the Max (black).  There are also a few other leather and fabric colors not featured in these photos.  The contractor is hurrying to get everything done for our Liberation Collection debut next week!  Also, soon to come, sneak peek on Holiday 2012 colors!!

Love,

Your design intern Rebecca  :)

The Transition

It all comes to an end, and we are never prepared for it.  I am rounding out my last week at Brynn Capella Inc. along with apartment hunting and getting ready for a summer history course – can you say YUCK???

Taking my place is the beautiful Sasha, but when I first met her, I of course had to be protective of Brynn.  I mean, this is MY territory, right?  Wrong.  Sasha was amazing right when I met her.  She’s smart, hardworking, fast learning, and is going to make a great impact at the company after I’m gone.  I have no worries about leaving her to take over.

Allison (PR) and myself (Merch) enjoying pizza during set-up

 The things I am going to miss are the random conversations Brynn and I have in her car and our multiple stops to Taco Bell when we need our fake Mexican cuisine cravings satisfied. Why do they never get my order right by the way?  When I say I want a chicken Gordita Crunch, that doesn’t mean BEEF people! 

All jokes aside though, the most I am going to miss are the people that I have met during this internship.  I had great discussions with the ladies from Veronica Riley Martens, Juliet Jewelry, Red Belly, Squasht by Les, Stylish Girl, and Evon Cassier bags.  I hope to keep building relationships with them in the future.

Mercedes, me, Allison and Brynn (Blue in the front)

My number 1 group of girls, however, has to be the fine young ladies that I spend time with in the office.  We have had to get up close and personal in Brynn’s slightly tiny office, and I have become good friends with all of them.  We are definitely a dominating group of girls.  Look out future - here we come! 

Anna Hovet - Chicago Designer

I wanted to introduce you to another Chicago designer that is making a splash into the Chicago fashion scene, Anna Hovet. 

She has a very contemporary edge and her style includes abstract designs and patterns, she's very urban and innovative, not to mention highly creative. I met Anna at the Florodora Boutique last week, when both her and Brynn were having trunk shows.  I had the pleasure with talking with her, about her travels over Europe and a little bit about her line. Anna is super adventurous and a risk taker! She is a witty, small blonde and was wearing one of her very own designs! It was a cute red flowy shirt that within a split second she snapped in the back and made it a tight fit. Anna Hovet's styles are very unique and the most original designs I've ever seen. You can wear her clothes many different ways, upside down, inside out, the creativeness goes on and on! I've never met a designer like Anna Hovet, so be sure to check her out!

Plan.Shop.Post.Click!

Our Marketing lady, Blue, may have gone into some details on our fabulous photo shoot from Sunday, but I am going to reveal the truth.  The dirty details. What really goes on in planning a photo shoot before we hit the set.

I’ve done a couple photo shoots in the past for creative assignments, but I have never been a part of a Brynn Capella shoot…it was definitely an entertaining but crazy ride.

First, I collaborated with the amazing Allison (our PR intern) to research trends of the 70’s as well as determining what approach we should take to suggest that era without duplicating it in a cheesy way.  After we formed our concept board, we set off to the best part- SHOPPING. 

Brynn put a lovely dent in her credit card limit at Nordstrom and Anthropologie, but we got some great pieces for our models including high-waisted pants, loose tops, and other menswear-inspired outfits.  Paired with the array of Brynn’s fall bags, and we were looking forward to some “shagalicious” photos.

Oh, but the ride was not over for me yet.  Because Brynn and I are type-A people on caffeine, we decided to make sheets of all of the outfits, with all of the bags, with all of the pose suggestions in neat little packets…and yes, that did take me FOREVER to complete because my boss always likes to make last minute adjustments to ensure perfection.  Love you Brynn ; )

On the day of the shoot, all of this hard work definitely paid off.  It was definitely the smoothest running shoot for Brynn so far, and I couldn’t help but smile at the final product that I helped create.

Shades of Berry!!!

According to Shopbop.com (a site in which I have a love/hate relationship with, I mean I love it, love the things they sell, most of the time, but can't afford the prices!), anyway one of the big 8 trends for fall 2011 is "Shades of Berry"...like fine wines!

Which made me think of my fall Winchester leather.  It's a beutiful wine color and as it seems perfect for the upcoming season.  I found this scarf on the site and fell in Love... with the color and texture but not the price!

Behind the Scenes: Boutique Research

Hey everyone! This is Elizabeth, Brynn's new Merchandising Assistant. I'm originally from Flint, MI but I'm spending the summer in Chicago for the internship and loving every minute of it.  I've only been working with Brynn for about a month, and I have already learned so much.

One of the many jobs that I have as a Merchandising Assistant is finding new boutiques throughout the US that Brynn's product would fit well in. Although we love shipping all over the country via our relationship with eBags.com, we are excited about getting into the thousands of boutiques across the country. So I look very carefully for the ones that would be best. 

We value our products highly, and we want to make sure that they are in the right place. When researching boutiques, I use a variety of different resources such as Yelp, MetroMix and our very own Chicago Fashion Resource.

Sometimes I look for specific types of boutiques such as gift, accessory, or shoes or I'll just do a general search for women's boutiques. The type of store that works well for our company is the gift boutique, because women are in the store buying items for their children or gifts for friends, and then they come across a great bag for themselves.

We are in a gift boutique here in Chicago called Fixture, and we sell very well there. Patti, the owner, has become a great friend and we love doing trunk shows there. Spare Parts in Lakeview started carrying the line last Fall and simply loves it! Vanessa couldn't believe she hasn't been carrying the line longer.

Cerato on Southport is a great location and garners lots of publicity for us, which of course we greatly appreciate!  It's an apparel boutique that carries several other Chicago Designers, such as Lara Miller, Kate Boggiano and Kristin Hassan.

We were excited to add Arm Candy in Santa Monica, CA to our list last year and Boutique 610 in Arizona (boutique pic shown above) has been with us since 2009.

Finding boutiques online can take hours because there are just so many of them, but it is a crucial process. Once I have a list of stores, I call them to obtain their buyer information and to tell them a little bit about the company. I then email the buyer with the line sheets and a more detailed description of Brynn Capella, Inc.

Once we get some interest and if it's possible, we visit the buyer in person with some of our products. We pack everything up in our trusty big red suitcase and roll it all around the city. It's always so much fun to see the buyer's reactions to the bags and their process for choosing it for their store. They are always very impressed with the design, the functionality, and of course the leather.

For the future of our company, we are looking to get our products into more cities across the country.

We are currently looking at where most of our sales are coming from because we would love to offer a boutique location to where our customers are. For our Fall Lexington Collection, we feel that Brooklyn, NY and San Francisco, CA would be perfect, but we definitely aren't limited to those locations. We just recently got back into Hazel in Chicago. Our products used to be in the store in 2008, and now they just ordered some of the new summer "Hey Sailor" collection! We're so glad to have another boutique to add to our list. Want to help us find our next favorite store?

We love to hear from our customers...
SO...
Where do you think our bags would fit best? Are there any amazing boutiques near you that we should know about? Post a comment with the boutiques you have in mind and we'll be sure to check them out ASAP.

So excited to hear your ideas! Until next time...
Elizabeth

Update!

It has been very busy for us here at Brynn Capella Inc. These past couple weeks consisted of adding new handbags to the inventory, photo shoot preparations, charity events and trunk shows and we still have a lot more to come! This week Brynn and two interns attended the One of a Kind Show and Sale informational session. While there we met cool artists and learned the ends & outs of the show. This year's show begins December 2nd and runs through the 5th. More details will be in the next blog.

This week on the blog we want to try something new, posting a video!
The video is a short clip of the interns walking around the One of a Kind venue. Posting a video is kind of a big deal for us...hopefully it works out ;)

Fall Cityscape Collection Trunk Show

If you are in Chicago, come by and see us. There are some great deals to take advantage of!

10% off a purchase of $100
20% off a purchase of $200
30% off a purchase of $300

Our entire Cityscape Collection will be available...don't miss it!

Fall Handbags Arriving Very Soon!

As you know Fall will be here before we know it! The good news is our Collection will look good ALL year long, AND the beautiful bold colors will definitely get you through the doldrums of winter, especially here in Chicago, the inspiration behind our Fall Collection. (Shown above is our Edie Carry-all Tote in Aerial View - looks like the tops of buildings - view from the Hancock)

According to several online fashion sites, the 6 Fall color trends are:
1) Neutrals/Camels (Our answer: Windsor Rose)
2) Rich Purples/Plums (Our Answer: Blackberry)
3) Modern Metallics (Our answer: Pewter)
4) Charcoal (Our answer: Street Sign)
5) Blues (Our answer: Riviera Sapphire)
6) Bright Reds (Our answer: Red Lipstick for Holiday 2010)

Anyway, we are all excited here...hope you are too!

Brynn Capella Cityscape Collection

Would love to get your feedback...please post a comment ;) Thx!

Handbags, Jewelry and Clothing...Oh My!

Everybody likes to find a good sale, unique item, and free shipping! The Indie Designer Market brings handbag, jewelry, and clothing designers together for one special weekend. Come stop by the Indie Designer Market on the 1300 Block of W. Randolph St. here in Chicago. It is a Saturday and Sunday event. So come early, shop late, and save big.

We will have great prices on some of our most popular Brynn Capella bags... we have bags at 75% off! Stop by our booth and say hello. We would love to see you!

Time: Sat July 24th 10am - 5pm
Sun July 25 10am - 4pm