Kiley Brokaw is a dressmaker in San Francisco who owns Spidora, a small business that specializes in creating custom sized vintage inspired women's wear with an emphasis on early to mid 20th century fashion. Using vintage machines and techniques, creating these special one of a kind pieces is a passion for her and one she is happy to share with the world.
Kiley pivoted to this career, 4 years ago, at the start of the pandemic and she has not looked back. She started when friends would ask her to make things for her and she did. Over the four years, she learned quite a bit, honing her skills and deciding on an area of expertise. Initially she needed an additional job to supplement her pay, but after four years, sewing is now her main source of income.
In our Interview, Kiley tells us a lot about being a custom dressmaker -
She's dialed in her niche
By focussing on Women's wear inspired by early 20th century Fashion, Kiley shows us that niching down really works. Being involved in the vintage community, she attends events, restaurants and venues where she can connect directly with customers. And, because she does great work, she gets lots of word-of-mouth business.
She's self taught
Kiley has spent a lot of time educating herself by reading vintage sewing and dressmaking manuals, especially those made for professionals. She was also quite an experienced stitcher, before she started her business. I love her sense of curiosity which keeps her honing her skills and learning new techniques.
She has a few simple offers
Vintage Mending
Custom Dressmaking
Custom sized pieces that she makes regularly
Keeping it simple is great for her business model as a solo-preneur. You can’t do all-the-things WELL, but focussing on the the things you can do well and also the area of most need is a great strategy for success.
Advice for stitchers just starting out:
Start Small
Find out if you have a passion for sewing for other people
Charge your worth
It's OK to say “no” to projects you don’t want to do.
If you are interested in working with Kiley please visit her website. And to see more of her work, you can visit her on instagram. Thanks Kiley, for taking the time to talk with me about the job of Dressmaker.
If you are interested in becoming a dressmaker or upleveling your sewing skills and you don’t want to learn all on your own, you might want to check out our Fashion Studies program, where we teach elevated sewing skills, design & pattern making.
Until next time,
xo Jennifer
