Know Your Customer or Lose Your Brand | Emily Blumenthal & Alex Greifeld
episode
Handbag Designer 101: The Stories Behind Handbag Designers, Brands, and Industry Icons
40 min
2 speakers
4 chapters
transcribed 1 month ago
Transcript
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Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Why is defining your ideal customer the first step for fashion brand growth?
So I think that's the first step is no matter what your your end goal is, you need to know who your customer is. You need to define who that is, why whatever you're producing is a good fit for her. You need to think about the other brands that she'll be shopping because She's gonna compare you to those things. That's going to like benchmark the category for her. And you need to be able to to give an elevator pitch of like what is it you're selling and why is it unique.
Hi and welcome to Handbag Designer 101 the podcast with your host, Emily Blumenthal, Handbag Industry Expert and the Handbag Perry Godmother. Each week we uncover the stories behind the handbags we love, from the iconic brands and top designers to the creativity, craftsmanship, and culture that define the handbag world. Whether you're a designer, collector, or simply passionate about handbags, this is your front row seat to it all.
Welcome, Alex Greyfeld, growth marketing consultant, specifically with a specialization in fashion. Welcome to Handbag Designer 101. Thank you for joining us today. Thank you for having me.
It's great to be here.
Yeah, I spotted you on Instagram. And then I think we continued our friendship on LinkedIn as most people do these days. I love, love, love your content. And then when I took a personal deep dive, and you know, as I tell my students, the old people hang out on LinkedIn. That's where the flexes go. And I looked at your background and not only did you go to FIT, but you've worked at tapestry, you had a plum internship at Gap. All these things are pretty hard jobs to get. And I said, Oh, this is a girl in the know if she's able to score all of that. So welcome. Thank you for being here.
Yeah, thank you. Yeah, I've been working in the fashion industry, I guess, more than Well, I get fifteen years at this point, which is kind of crazy to say.
Well, you look great, not a day over twenty two. Thank you. So you went to FIT. Was that your intention? I know they have and they have a a major that they've rebranded about 30 different times. Now they call it FBM Fashion Business Marketing. Is that what you were focused on? Because You know, I taught my students you are one of the chosen few who go and get into the school because so many people apply. Like people don't seem to realize how difficult it is to get into that kind of school. So was that your dream school?
Yes, I mean honestly, I wanted to get into FIT since I was in like sixth or seventh grade. Oh. And I applied and got into the design program initially. And that was what was your portfolio? It was a lot of garments that I'd made. Like I got really into sewing in high school and took lessons and so it was a lot of things I'd made and then some sketches. And what I really liked about FIT were two things. First was that they were so focused on like the technical aspect of learning how to actually make clothing. And then the second was that it's it's a state school. So the tuition's a lot lower than Like a lot of like Parsons or or Pratt. So yes, that that was like absolutely my dream. I wanted to be a fashion designer.
I actually did get a job in fashion design. My first summer internship was at Jones, New York. And then they offered me a full-time job halfway through school. Offered me. So I switched to what was then called fashion merchandising. Yep. Betwe like between year two and three of my degrees so that I could complete some degree, like essentially nights and weekends, because you you couldn't do that. Like you couldn't complete the fashion program like that. So now. Yeah, that was kind of like my my intro to the industry. That's crazy.
It's such a I I mean, I teach entrepreneurship. I have to have you come in as a guest speaker for sure. It that's one of a I love bringing people back, especially people who've gone. But it is a labor intensive program. And I think a lot of people tend to poo-poo people in design and don't seem to realize how much work goes into finishing that and then getting to the point. And the fact that the school is broken down technically into two different chunks.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
Why is defining your ideal customer the first step for fashion brand growth?
0:00–8:37
2
How did Alex’s early experiences at FIT and Jones New York shape her growth‑marketing mindset?
8:37–19:22
3
What lessons did Alex learn from working in large corporate vs. small design‑focused brands?
19:22–30:44
4
How can founders use CAC, unit economics, and positioning to drive sustainable growth?
30:44–40:33
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from Handbag Designer 101: The Stories Behind Handbag Designers, Brands, and Industry Icons
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