Vintage garments retailer produced by UH senior will help shell out tuition

Amid the acceptance of entrepreneurship, a lot of UH college students have created little enterprises around their passions or a specialized niche they come across exciting. For company communications senior Olivia Haroutounian, her enthusiasm is the planet of classic fashion.

As the brains driving her company RealLifeAsLiv, Haroutounian collects and resells designer and classic garments.

From Chanel to smaller designer makes, she finds and collects them, most of which sells for hundreds of pounds. 

Along with remaining the proprietor, she is also the artistic director, usually modeling in the clothes she collected for pictures on her web-site, Depop and Instagram.

Although she is nevertheless in university, she maintains the duties of functioning her quickly rising business enterprise as she functions on it comprehensive time.

How she started is a testament to her mother, who sparked her curiosity as a little one. 

Like her, Haroutounian’s mother ran a company collecting and selling vintage garments. Expanding up, she viewed how her mother went to estate income and garden revenue to select out objects and eventually offer them for revenue.

“I like to say I have been carrying out this due to the fact birth essentially,” reported Haroutounian. “But I started off at a pretty youthful age for the reason that my mom has been promoting vintage apparel considering that I was born.”

This kind of publicity and appreciate for niched fashion history motivated her to choose in excess of the business adhering to her mother’s retirement.

Considering the fact that then, the business enterprise took off, aiding Haroutounian with shelling out her tuition fees from the product sales.

With 30,000 and counting followers on Depop, Haroutounian’s company is gaining extra traction than at any time. 

Her story is highlighted in Vogue and The Houston Chronicle, attracting the interest of a lot of style fans who actively get her apparel. 

“The Vogue article really modified my life. It gave me the platform I have these days and place me in get in touch with with persons I never ever considered attainable,” she claimed. “I’m so grateful for the experience, and I can’t describe how amazing it feels to find these a substantial local community fascinated in trend the very same way I am.”

As she proceeds to obtain far more followers, Haroutounian tends to make certain to use her small business as a platform in advocating second-hand purchasing and knowing fashion heritage. 

Buying next-hand assists with trying to keep outfits out of landfills and combating lousy performing ailments and wages. With fast trend bringing problems to the manner industry, it also constricts the pockets of huge companies.

In addition, comprehension trend background aids with cultivating unique fashion and self-expression, in accordance to Haroutounian. Describing manner as impressive, she makes use of clothing to convey how she feels and suggests many others do the very same.

“The greatest style suggestions I can give is to be your self. I use clothing as a way to radiate what I’m emotion from inside,” she claimed.

“So if I come to feel like I have to have to be comfy, I’ll have on a pair of sweats and a vintage t-shirt. But if I truly feel like I want to peacock, I’ll place on a pair of Manolo’s and a classic gown to go about my working day,” Haroutounian extra.

For those people looking to rating their next pair of Manolo’s, Haroutounian’s extensive expertise and expertise equip her in being aware of wherever to hunt for vintage apparel all-around Houston. 

Nonetheless, with far more people getting into the industry, looking for vintage clothing is getting tough she notes.

“The very best advice I can give is to go to loads of unique sites and do not give up simply when it comes to hunting for classic,” she explained.

“Frequenting thrift shops a few to four occasions a week, and going to places like Buffalo Exchange and smaller independently owned vintage outlets like The Trend Time Device is the most effective point to do.”

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Tags: vogue, UH Pupils