Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in a clothing line but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Bianca Daniela Nachtman, founder and designer of GORM, located in Toronto, ON, Canada.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

GORM is a gender-fluid clothing brand that uses recycled, thrifted fabric and items to create one-of-a-kind, avant-garde looks. GORM is a safe space for anyone and everyone to express themselves and feel amazing while doing it. Our customer base consists of performers, creatives, and the queer community - anyone who gets it!

Tell us about yourself

Clothing has always been something that excited me. I was taught from a young age how to sew from my Babi (grandmother), who was a seamstress, and funny enough when I went to University, I specifically picked a fashion program that didn't involve sewing. Who knows why, at the time, I was determined not to sew for a career. It was only until my final year I started hand sewing clothing (not having a machine at the time) and even bringing in my creations into my final year thesis. Once I came back from University, there was that inevitable 'what am I going to do with my life crisis. While going through that, what was consistent was that I kept on creating items. After many suggestions of starting a brand, I realized that I might have something here. The decision didn't come easy, though! I know how hard the fashion industry is, especially from the designer perspective, but once I finally did it, I never looked back.

Overall I think my ideas are what motivates me each day. They get me really excited to keep going so I can see them come to fruition.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

I think my biggest accomplishment as a business owner is seeing people in my items and seeing them feel amazing in them. That's all I ever wanted for my business, was for people - from customers to my clients or models - to really feel themselves in my clothing. There has been no greater joy or sense of accomplishment in my business than this!

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

The hardest thing that comes with being a business owner (and I think a lot of people will agree with me here) is the stress! That has really been my biggest battle from day one. From the stress of posting to customer orders, then there's collection debut's, runway shows, social media. Working for yourself too, there's the stress of 'am I doing enough?'. Stress, stress, stress around every corner. The plus side is that you get better at managing it over time!

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Three tips I would suggest to someone wanting to start is making sure it's something you're really passionate about. It makes everything worthwhile! Another is don't let your main component be about profit (this is something that some may disagree with me on). It's hard enough trying to profit off something you enjoy, so what you don't want to do is make it all about money because then you'll be constantly disappointed at the beginning. It's about the journey and the joy of doing something you love! For my last one, I think this tip helped me out the most, and it's not to compare yourself to others. With social media now, it's very easy to look at what someone else is doing and wonder why it's not you. But you need to ignore that, or it'll ruin you. This is your journey in the end, so why would it be like someone else's? Keep to you, stick your head down, and just keep going, and it'll benefit you in the end!

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Soon I’ll be running another business alongside GORM that has been in the works for a while, which I’m really excited for! Since I source all my fabric from second-hand stores, I’ve managed to accumulate a large collection of vintage clothing while doing so.

So I’ve decided to start an affordable vintage rental service for my creatives and stylists client base. I know at first hand how hard it is to afford shoots that you’re doing for the sake of art. So with this business, I want to give them great vintage clothing to play with without breaking the bank. Creatives have to stick together!

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://gormofficial.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gorm.garms/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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