I can build a sales team, close a deal, buy a company, sell a company, lead a team, and even dominate in a boardroom.
But I didn’t know how to produce a golf dress. So what did I do? I figured it out.
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When I started to build Collett many months ago, it started with an AI-generated image of a dress — the dress I knew I needed to make me feel confident on the course, and elevated enough to take me through the rest of my day.
Guys do it all the time. They walk off the course in a nice polo and pants and head straight into a meeting without giving it a second thought. I wanted that. For us.
If I could only have the collar from this dress, the belt from these shorts, the fit of this blouse, and the fabric of this designer — it would be the perfect dress.
So I asked Claude to work its magic. The image came up on the screen and I was literally in awe of what I saw. At that moment, I knew I would build this dress.
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Here’s what happened next.
I contacted a colleague from my former company. He connected me with his fiancée, who works in fashion. She suggested starting with freelancers on Upwork. I did that — but because I didn’t actually speak fashion, it was difficult. They asked me about size grading, materials, manufacturing… and I knew I was in over my head.
One of the freelancers suggested I find a local seamstress who could make a custom dress from the image, and then we could use that to create a tech pack.
What is a tech pack???
I purchased an online course on how to start a fashion brand just to learn the terminology. Then I went to meet a seamstress. She told me about a few local agencies who did exactly what I actually needed — help launching a brand.
I met with those firms. I found my team. And since then, they have been helping me bring the vision for Collett to life.
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One of my mentors spent a lot of time teaching me to outsource the components of a job where I wasn’t the best person for it — so I could stay focused on where I was. I had a habit of spending time on things I wasn’t actually good at, simply because I thought I should be able to figure it out myself.
Building Collett has continued to teach me the difference between “I can do this” and “I should do this.” Those are not the same question.
So I stopped trying to become a fashion designer overnight. I found the people who already were one, and I let them do what they do best — so I could do what I do best: build the business around it.
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Collett is not something I am building alone. It’s something I am building by finally admitting I couldn’t.
With love, Beth
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