Stitching together old and new, Margaret Kasper’s Bohemian-chic style piques the interest of an increasing customer base favoring sustainable fashion and a sense of individuality. It has garnered over 8,700 sales, placing her in the top 100 Etsy clothing sellers worldwide, according to Craftcount.com. Founded in Kasper’s bedroom in the fall of 2008, revenue has skyrocketed from around $13,000 in 2009 to $100,000 in 2014.
In order to accommodate the growing number of sales, Mountain Girl Clothing recently moved to an 1,800-square-foot studio in Nashua and Kasper now has one part-time employee.
“I worked it like it was my full-time job until it finally became one” says Kasper, 31, who, upon graduating from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design in 2008, relocated to her native NH, where she always saw herself as a “mountain girl” at heart. “The first years were very hard … starting a business with no prior experience was nerve-wracking.”
As a recent college grad with an eye for style but little extra money, Kasper turned to thrift stores to purchase supplies and fabrics to create new designs from old clothing. Virtually all of Mountain Girl Clothing’s pieces are one-of-a-kind and require individual photography, editing, description and advertisement, which on top of designing and sewing takes up a considerable portion of each work day.
“I want them to feel like their piece of clothing is as unique as they are … knowing that no one else will have what they have” says Kasper. New designs are introduced every several months, and old ones are then scaled back. Clothes cost from about $20 for smaller items to over $60 and include shirts made of two different materials sewn together and skirts made of a former sweater with an added frill.
Kasper has little interest in expanding in the near future, instead favoring the creation of sustainable fashion on a small, manageable scale. In addition to regulating her work load, Kasper’s focused size provides her the opportunity for direct customer relations and personal replies to any comments, questions or concerns. The majority of Kasper’s business is conducted online, however she attends the Pine Hill Waldorf Fair in Wilton each year to showcase her designs.
“They aren’t afraid of wearing something unique” Kasper says of her typical customers, women in their early 20s to 40s. In addition to being fashion-savvy and individualistic, Mountain Girl customers want to bypass what Kasper calls a “polluting industry of textiles and mass clothing production.”
“Mountain Girl was born out of a love for fashion, colors and textures … and (my) main inspiration still comes from roaming the racks of beautiful clothing at thrift stores just waiting to be given new life.”
To learn more, visit www.mountaingirlclothing.com.