Stay ConnectedFashion & Founders is a media platform exploring how fashion is actually built. Hosted by Victoria Smith, the show sits at the intersection of fashion, technology, and capital spotlighting the founders, investors, and operators shaping the industry’s next era.
Through long-form conversations, we go beyond trends to unpack fundraising, manufacturing, resale, AI, sustainability, career, and the evolving business of fashion. This is where fashion’s builders speak, share, and connect.
Copyright: © 2024 Interwoven Stories
In this episode you will hear behind the scenes from the panelists at EDGE NYFW. I hosted a pop up podcast studio for Fashion & Founders at EDGE and interviewed the panelists to recap the panels they were on and share some behind the scenes!
Thank you to the hosts Manya co-founder of Threads of Tech, Mary Korlin-Downs founder of All Things Fashion Tech, and Colette Johnson founder of In Haus.
Guests include:
Breaking into Fashion Tech:
Innovating with Brands:
Extending Lifecycles:
Personalized Shopping:
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Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Locker Links: Locker
Follow Threads of Tech:
IG: @threadsoftech
Substack: Threads of Tech
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Substack: ATFT
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LinkedIn: Colette Johnson
Thank you for listening!
Hello and welcome back to Fashion and Founders The Podcast, this week I'm joined with Gab Waller, founder of Gab Waller Dot Com and Sourced By.
Gab is a fashion sourcer, her team finds sold out pieces for clients and makes the impossible happen. She is now building a fashion tech business, SourcedBy, an AI powered search tool with StockX founding engineer, Scott Davis, as CTO.
She has so much insight to share from founding a business, working in fashion, moving to the U. S., getting investment, finding engineers for her fashion tech business, life advice and so much more.
You can also find out more about what Gab is doing through her monthly Vogue column, The Hot List, where she shares top trending pieces that she is sourcing.
I am so excited to dive deep into the fashion tech company she is building and what she thinks the future of fashion holds.
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Podcast Website: fashionandfounders.com
Victoria TikTok: @vfsmith11
Podcast LinkedIn: Fashion and Founders
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Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Locker Links: Locker
Follow Gab Waller:
IG:gabwaller
IG: gabwallerdotcom
IG: @sourcedby
Follow Celestial Vintage:
IG: @celestialvvintage
Website: https://www.celestial-vintage.com/
Thank you for listening!
Hello and welcome back to Fashion and Founders the podcast. My name is Victoria Smith and this week I'm joined with Ellie and Brigitte, the founders of Zero.
I think of Zero as the Revolve for sustainable fashion where you can discover some of the coolest brands that you'll actually want to wear that you haven't already seen played out everywhere and also a way to explore your own personal style.
I think what they are building is insanely cool and they have great advice to share from their experiences about building a business in fashion and sustainability with a mission. We talk about how they built out an advisory board, lessons from fundraising, and leaning on a network of other founders, all while still being friends. They met at USC and took what they learned and applied to a business that could create an impact.
I learned a lot in this episode, and we also laughed a lot - do not miss the ending when they talk about their hot takes. Let get into the episode!
Follow Fashion & Founders:
Podcast IG: @fashionandfounders
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Podcast Website: fashionandfounders.com
Victoria TikTok: @vfsmith11
Podcast YouTube: Fashion and Founders
Podcast LinkedIn: Fashion and Founders
Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Locker Links: Locker
Follow Zero:
IG: @shopzerofficial
TikTok: @shopzerofficial
Website: https://shopzero.co/
Follow Olivia Latinovich:
IG: @olivialatinovich
Website: https://olivialatinovich.com/
Thank you for listening!
Hello and welcome back to Fashion & Founders The Podcast. My name is Victoria Smith and this week I was joined with Anne Warren, the founder of Next Season. Next Season turns old, damaged, unwanted sweaters into one-of-a-kind knitwear, reducing textile waste.
Anne used to work in tech as a product manager with a background in mechanical engineering and always had an interest in fashion so during covid began experiment and asked herself, is it possible to create a completely circular fashion brand.
Follow her journey on substack and learn about all things knitwear. One of my personal goals is to learn a new hobby in 2025 and I’m getting a lot of inspo from Anne.
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Podcast Website: fashionandfounders.com
Victoria TikTok: @vfsmith11
Podcast LinkedIn: Fashion and Founders
Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Podcast Substack: Fashion and Founders
Locker Links: Locker
Follow Next Season:
IG: @nextseason.nyc
Substack: Anne’s Circular Knitting Journey
Website: https://nextseason.nyc/
Follow Raphaella Santana:
Brand IG: @raphaella.santana
Founder IG: @raphybaby
Website: https://www.raphaellasantana.com/
Thank you for listening!
Hello and welcome back to Fashion & Founders The Podcast. My name is Victoria Smith, and this week I’m joined with Cleo Escarez the founder of Redyoos.
She has created a way for pre-loved jewelry to be recycled into clean energy solutions. You just order a free mail in kit, fill it up with your preloved jewelry, and Redyoos takes care of the rest. Jewelry that can be melted down can be recycled in solar panels and fashion jewelry that can’t be melted will be donated to their partner at Dress for Success. Think of Trashie or ThredUp but for your jewelry.
Cleo shared some really interesting facts and data points about jewelry in this episode that I found super fascinating. As well as her journey to being an entrepreneur and how she started out as “entrepreneur curious.”
Follow Fashion & Founders:
Podcast IG: @fashionandfounders
Podcast Website: fashionandfounders.com
Victoria TikTok: @vfsmith11
Podcast LinkedIn: Fashion and Founders
Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Podcast Substack: Fashion and Founders
Locker Links: Locker
Follow Redyoos:
IG: @redyoos
LinkedIn: Redyoos
Website: https://www.redyoos.com/
Follow Melez:
IG: @melez.collection
Website: https://www.melez.co/
Thank you for listening!
Hello and welcome back to Fashion and Founders The podcast. My name is Victoria Smith and this week I'm joined with Claire Illmer, the Co-Founder and CEO of Future Reference.
Claire's experience before founding Future Reference includes working at Google for five years, at YouTube in search and discovery, and at ThredUp in search and discovery as well. She is now building a fashion tech company revolutionizing how we sell our clothes.
Future Reference is a digital wardrobe and a cross listing platform. Their software allows you to digitize your wardrobe by just connecting your email as they pull your online receipts.
Not only that, but they make the resale listings for you. So you just click on the product in your closet that you decide to sell and they cross list it to their partners like Depop, eBay, Poshmark, etc. They are solving a problem I think so many people have faced when trying to sell their clothes.
Also right now, while you're looking at your wardrobe on Future Reference, you can go check out your wardrobe wrapped. So basically Spotify wrapped, but for the items in your closet. They have so many data points on your wardrobe from resale value, amount spent per item, color palette, and so much more.
I am loving using future reference. I think it's just at the beginning of all the potential that they have and it is so exciting. I can't wait to see all of their success. I'll let Claire share more. So let's get into the episode.
Follow Fashion & Founders:
Podcast IG: @fashionandfounders
Podcast Website: fashionandfounders.com
Victoria TikTok: @vfsmith11
Podcast LinkedIn: Fashion and Founders
Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Podcast Substack: Fashion and Founders
Locker Links: Locker
Follow Future Reference:
IG: @futurereference.xyz
TikTok: @futurereferencej.xyz
LinkedIn: Future Reference
Website: https://www.futurereference.xyz/
Follow Birdy Bandanas:
IG: @birdybandanas
Website: https://birdybandanas.com/
Thank you for listening!
A big thank you to all the guests who came onto the podcast this year. I learned so much from each conversation and feel so grateful for the opportunity to connect so many amazing people and share their stories.
I put together a bonus episode with snippets of advice that founders shared from their experience. This ranges from fundraising, building a team, finding a co-founder the struggles of entrepreneurship. Mental health as a founder. What not to do tips on getting started, books and resources, finding your motivation. How to stay motivated and so much more.
This includes 13 different episodes. And even if you've listened to all of these, trust me, I think I have listened to each at least 20 times through and I found this still such a great and powerful reminder. I love these different snippets, so let's get into it and let's hear from them.
In this episode:
Follow Fashion & Founders:
Podcast IG: @fashionandfounders
Podcast Website: fashionandfounders.com
Victoria TikTok: @vfsmith11
Podcast LinkedIn: Fashion and Founders
Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Podcast Substack: Fashion and Founders
Thank you for listening!
Welcome back to Fashion and founders the Podcast my name is Victoria Smith and this week I spoke with Trinity the founder of Third.
Third is an AI-powered search, compare and discover platform for preloved luxury handbags, featuring the largest range of rare and hard-to-find pieces available at present.
This episode is not just for the luxury handbags and vintage lovers, this is one of the first episodes in which a founder really talked about the mental health component of being an entrepreneur. She discusses obstacles, how she still priorities her mental health, building confidence, and more.
Trinity shares about her journey building a fashion tech business, her experience in London, and more so let’s get into the episode
Follow Fashion & Founders:
Podcast IG: @fashionandfounders
Podcast Website: fashionandfounders.com
Victoria TikTok: @vfsmith11
Podcast LinkedIn: Fashion and Founders
Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Podcast Substack: Fashion and Founders
Follow Third:
IG: @thirdfind
TikTok: @jadebeguelin
LinkedIn:
Website: https://thirdfind.com/
Follow Valore:
IG: @shop.valore
TikTok: @shopvalore
Website: https://www.shopvalore.com/shop
Thank you for listening!
Welcome back to Fashion and Founders the Podcast. My name is Victoria Smith and this week I am joined by Claire Stepanek, the founder and CEO of Ergo.
Have you ever wondered how brands decide on the price of an item. Or why it seems like brands always have a 10% off sale? Maybe you would buy something if it was $25 instead of $28?
Claire is building Ergo, a shopify tool that allows potential customers to make an offer of their best price when shopping. Providing brands with real time pricing analytics and empowering customers to have a voice in the shopping transaction.
If youre used to sending an offer on second hand platforms like ebay or depop Ergo is bringing a version of this to everyday online shopping by allowing customers to tell brands their desired price.
Claire went to MIT and worked at Goldman Sachs, Apple, and Doordash before starting Ergo in 2023. She has so much knowledge to share on fashion tech, fundraising, and more.
Follow Fashion & Founders:
Podcast IG: @fashionandfounders
Podcast Website: fashionandfounders.com
Victoria TikTok: @vfsmith11
Podcast LinkedIn: Fashion and Founders
Podcast Substack: Fashion and Founders
Locker Links: VictoriaS
Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Follow Ergo:
IG: @ergo.offers
LinkedIn: Ergo
Website
Wishlist Giveaway
Follow Larson:
IG: @larsonthebrand
IG: @camrynlarsonn
Website
Thank you for listening!
Welcome back to Fashion and Founders The Podcast. My name is Victoria Smith, and this week I’m joined with Jade Beguelin the co-founder of 4AM SKIN. You may have seen Jade from one of her TikToks about what hot girls in New York City are gatekeeping or wearing her viral under eye masks for her brand 4AM SKIN. She is how I found out about Pickle and the big silly trivia game, and she shares her best tips for growing on TikTok and some rumblings of what the hot girls are currently doing.
4am is not your regular skincare brand. Their launch party was at a club, they’ve partnered with 818, and their inspiration comes from the downtown girls that are up all night but still look great in the morning. Focusing on minimalism, they’ve created skincare that’s easy enough to do at 4AM and actually works. You can find them on REVOLVE and urban outfitters and they just became part of Sephora’s 2025 accelerate class. Jade and her cofounder Sabrina were also named Forbes 30 under 30 class of 2025.
Jade and her co-founder met at Georgetown and as a fellow alum it was very fun to connect with someone else in the beauty fashion space. She shares some really great knowledge on starting a business in your 20s and more so let’s get into it.
Follow Fashion & Founders:
Podcast IG: @fashionandfounders
Podcast Website: fashionandfounders.com
Victoria TikTok: @vfsmith11
Podcast LinkedIn: Fashion and Founders
Victoria Pickle Closet: @victorias
Podcast Substack: Fashion and Founders
Follow Jade:
IG: @jadebeguelin
TikTok: @jadebeguelin
LinkedIn: Jade Beguelin
Follow 4AM:
IG: @4amskin
Website: https://4amskin.com/
LinkedIn: 4AM SKIN
Follow Philippa Made:
IG: philippa__made
Website
Thank you for listening!
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