Your Name: Kristy & Stef Emery

Business Name: Orgotton, a fashion boutique

Type of Business: Clothing & Accessories

Business Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Website www.orgotton.com
Twitter www.twitter.com/orgotton
Facebook www.facebook.com/orgotton
Pinterest www.pinterest.com/orgotton/

Reason for starting
I had been laid off from my marketing job and decided it was time to start the business I had always dreamed of. My sister joined and we taught ourselves how to do everything from incorporating the business and buying clothing wholesale to screen printing. We set up in our parents basement and got to work! We have always been interested in holistic living and there was never a question that our business would be in the holistic, organic realm. We saw a need for organic cotton clothing at that time and wanted to fill that need and create change.

Biggest Success
Our biggest success is how far we’ve come! We are now in the process of creating our own 7 piece line of clothing. All fabric is Made in the USA and all the pieces are Made in Philadelphia. We went from buying other people’s clothing wholesale and screen printing our designs on them to designing our own pieces and being able to support local Philadelphia businesses.

What is your top challenge and how have you addressed it?
The biggest challenge has been holding full time jobs while trying to grow Orgotton. I am a Retail Account Manager for a cosmetic line as well as the City Editor for an online women’s magazine and Stef is a music teacher and in the process of recording her own album. We have been holding our jobs to continue to pay for Orgotton’s progression. Other challenges include making sure the companies we do business with share the same values as us and are dedicated to helping the environment as well as giving back to community and producing goods in the USA.

Who is your most important role model?
We take inspiration from and look up to other successful women entrepreneurs. Women who are innovative, pushing the limits, and playing by their own rules are our role models.