Inside The Square - Meet Our #SQries Winner Lauren Tanaka
WE RECENTLY HELD OUR DEBUT #SQRIES EVENT HERE AT THE BRAND ASSEMBLY SQUARE. DURING THE PANEL WE OFFERED OUR ATTENDEES THE CHANCE TO WIN A MONTH-LONG SQUARE MEMBERSHIP. TODAY WE'RE EXCITED TO INTRODUCE YOU TO OUR WINNER!
Meet Lauren Tanaka of Global Garbs, a seasoned fashion professional who has brought an inspiring and entrepreneurial spirit to the Square. We were excited to catch up with Lauren to learn more about her career, and how she's adjusted to life as a Square tenant so far. Check out our chat with her below to find out what she's assembling daily.
PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF!
I'm a new entrepreneur originally from California, but living in NYC for the past eleven years, so I guess you can say I'm officially a New Yorker now? I never thought I would officially take the plunge into my business, but so far it's been an amazing new challenge. For the first time in a long time I feel excited about my future career path and what's to come. I also have a lot of life changes going on right now between my new career and also I'm getting married in September!
TALK TO US ABOUT YOUR CAREER IN FASHION. WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON WHILE HERE IN THE SQUARE?
I've worked in the fashion industry for almost fifteen years, mainly within fashion merchandising, and I'm finally doing my own thing. I started a fashion blog about a year ago called Global Garbs as a side project which is about fashion from a global perspective, in which I feature trends, designers and bloggers from around the world. I'm still growing my audience and community, but so far it's seen some steady growth. I'm also working on launching another business called The Sales Concept in which my business partner and I will be teaching online training courses all about how to grow your wholesale fashion sales and understand the merchandising process. Since we've both worked on the wholesale side of the industry for so many years we thought we could use our expertise to build a business and help independent brands and designers who are looking for ways to grow their sales and profits.
DURING YOUR DAY-TO-DAY WHERE CAN WE FIND YOU THROUGHOUT THE SQUARE AND HAVE YOU DEVELOPED A GO-TO FASHION OFFICE UNIFORM?
I like to sit by the window at the high top table because I can also stand up and work intermittently (I'm short!). Plus the table I sit at is near the bathroom and kitchen. I drink a lot water haha! Ever since I started working at the Square I get excited to actually wear something other than yoga pants which is my uniform at home. Since it's summer I'm currently wearing a lot of dresses and skirts. I like to keep my outfits pretty simple and comfort is key for me.
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE EMERGING AND CONTEMPORARY FASHION DESIGN COMMUNITY AND HAVE YOU COME ACROSS ANY DESIGNERS HERE IN THE SQUARE THAT HAVE CAUGHT YOUR ATTENTION?
I think the contemporary design community is such an inspiring group - especially emerging designers. It takes a ton of hard work, creativity, and passion to start a brand, and I have great respect for anyone who does so. My fiancé is actually in a start up men's contemporary brand so I sort of feel like I have an inside look of what it takes to build a company from scratch. There's a TON of amazing brands in this space. I haven't had a chance to really look at each brand yet, but there are SO many that have caught my eye. It's funny because the shoe brand Trickers is my fiancé’s favorite shoe brand and he wants to wear them for our wedding.
YOU RECENTLY VISITED THE SQUARE DURING OUR KICK OFF #SQRIES EVENT. WHAT WERE YOUR INITIAL THOUGHTS ON THE SPACE?
I was absolutely amazed by the space. I had no idea this kind of community/co-working space existed in NYC. I've been to many co-working spaces before but this one felt so intimate and had such great interior design. I love the open layout and that everything is light and tranquil, yet sleek. It was a very impressive first impression.
WHAT ARE A FEW THINGS YOU WOULD RECOMMEND FOR THOSE SEEKING OUT A CO-WORKING OR COLLABORATIVE SPACE, AND BASED ON YOUR EXPERIENCE HOW DO YOU THINK BRAND ASSEMBLY SERVICES THOSE NEEDS?
I would recommend finding a community of like-minded businesses to work with. The great thing about the Square is that all of the people work in the fashion industry so you already have something in common. You can also network and help each other out. Some co-working spaces seem lonely and hard to navigate, but the Square almost seems like it's own company with smaller companies within if that makes sense.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE BRAND ASSEMBLY COMMUNITY?
So far everyone has been awesome. It's nice to see that there are communities that actually try to help each other out. I think Brand Assembly is such a unique concept in which they really want to help you thrive in what you're doing. On my first day I met everyone who worked in the office, everyone was super friendly and welcoming.
WHAT DO YOU ASSEMBLE DAILY?
My daily and weekly goals! I have this giant day planner (I'm old school), and I like to schedule my daily tasks and weekly goals. It makes me feel productive when I can cross something off my giant to-do list in green highlighter pen!
CATCH UP WITH OUR SQUARE TENANTS IN REAL-TIME BY FOLLOWING US ON SOCIAL MEDIA @BRANDASSEMBLY!