Launching a Luxury Swimwear Brand During a Global Pandemic with Jamie Banks of Change of Scenery

Jamie Banks is the Co-Founder and Creative Director of Change of Scenery, a women’s luxury swim and resort wear startup launching in March 2022. Change of Scenery is an accessible luxury women’s apparel brand focused on classic, sophisticated, and effortless styles for the modern 30-55 year old woman. Jamie holds a Bachelor’s degree in Apparel Design from Cornell University and a Master’s of Fine Arts from the Academy of Art University. Jamie is also the co-founder of Fashion for a Cause - Port Washington, an initiative created out of the desire to give back to the Port Washington community during the world’s most unprecedented times – the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to co-developing Change of Scenery, Jamie served as the Design Director of multiple brands, including Kate Spade New York, Milly, and Shoshanna.

Jamie joins us today to share her experience of being laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic and what inspired her to take a leap of faith to launch a luxury women’s apparel brand. We discuss the steps she took to bring her business idea to fruition and the lessons she learned along the way. She highlights the benefits of writing a business plan and researching your target market. We discuss the challenges she faced when creating a company name and why it’s crucial to check the trademark database before launching your startup. We also discuss the value of taking time to gather your thoughts before responding to PR questions and practicing your response to the most frequently asked questions you receive.

“The biggest thing I’ve learned this year is that I have these amazing, amazing women in my life that are so much smarter and so much more successful than I ever knew they were.” - Jamie Banks

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This week on Startups in Stilettos:

The inspiration behind the Change of Scenery brandHow Jamie identified her target audience and the problem she wanted her company to solveLearning how to write a business planHow Jamie found a business partnerThe steps Jamie took to breathe life into her product ideaThe challenges associated with trademarking your companyWhat a business naming contest is and how Jamie finally decided on a business nameThe benefits of hiring a Go-To Market SpecialistJamie’s biggest win since starting her companyThe value of taking time to gather your thoughts before responding to PR questionsWhat’s next for Change of Scenery

Resources Mentioned:

Book: Building a Story Brand: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen by Donald MillerCreative Market -- Business Plan Templates

Our Favorite Quotes:

“The business plan really helped me to understand all of the facets of the business. It helped me really put down, in words, the problem that I saw and how we were going to solve it.” - Jamie Banks“Tell anyone that will listen what you’re going through in your business because somebody might hear you and have a suggestion that you never would have asked for help on.” - Jamie Banks“I just kept finding that everything that would come up, I had a woman in my life who was an expert in it and was willing to take their time to hold my hand and walk me through it.” - Jamie Banks

Connect with Jamie Banks:

Change of SceneryChange of Scenery on LinkedInChange of Scenery on InstagramJamie Banks on LinkedIn

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