69: Building and growing a size-inclusive slow fashion brand with Hanna Baror-Padilla of Sotela [Live!]

Medium Well

In today’s episode, I chat with my dear friend Hanna Baror-Padilla, founder of Sotela, an ethical and sustainable, size-inclusive fashion line. Hanna and I connected over ethical fashion five or six years ago, when she was an ethical fashion blogger, and I was just starting my ethical fashion journey. Since then we’ve become very close friends, and supported one another in growing our businesses. We chat about her journey starting Sotela and as an entrepreneur, her decision to pivot to made to order, how and why she doubled her sizing, and much more.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why Hanna decided to launch her own fashion brand after being a blogger

• Working full time while launching a business

• How has Sotela evolved since she started it

• How Hanna decided to pivot to made to order

• How getting her own studio contributed to her growth

• How Hanna decided on which risks are worth taking in her business

• Hanna’s mistakes with Sotela, and what she’s learned from them

• How Hanna decided to double her sizing and what it entailed

• The demand for her extended sizes

• Hanna’s thoughts on the evolution of ethical fashion

• How to justify the cost of ethical fashion

• How Hanna has approached financial decisions in her business, and her advice for seeking part-time jobs as an entrepreneur

Mentioned in this episode:

• Marielle Elizabeth

• Brands that inspire Hanna: Elizabeth Suzann, EILEEN FISHER

• How I Built This podcast

• Sotela’s blog post breaking down their pricing

All the deets:

• Check out Hanna’s clothing like Sotela.

• Sotela’s blog has lots of fashion inspiration, as well as behind-the-scenes look into how Hanna approaches many aspects of her business.

• Follow along with Hanna at @sotelaco on Instagram

• Tag me (@saraweinreb) and Hanna on Instagram with your favorite takeaways from the episode!

• Sign up for my newsletter, Sara… lately, for curated resources, sustainability and mindful living tips, and to keep up with my podcast and work.