BoldJourney Feature

The Los Angeles based magazine, BoldJourney, reached out for an interview highlighting some of my intentional aspects of small business ownership & being a creative for a living. We talked about nykampers: my ideal clients & the three impactful characteristics of this journey.

GRIT, PASSION & A SENSE OF HUMOR

“I am willing to learn, try, fail, pivot, succeed & take chances again.”

How did you overcome imposter syndrome?

Imposter syndrome is best confronted head-on. I often remind myself, "My work isn't the best there is, but it's definitely not the worst. Currently, it's your best & tomorrow you'll be better." While delusion is also a favorite tactic of mine, I am a realist by nature. I fake it until I make it alongside knowing how far I have yet to go in my craft. I acknowledge my faults & mistakes so I can either live into them or learn from them. When I complete a coat & am in love with it, I allow the excitement to squash the internal voice critiquing myself. It's okay to love a finished product, just as it is. Overcoming imposter syndrome is walking the tightrope between humility & loving what you create.

Customers do not have to love all of my work. They are slow fashion, one-of-a-kind investment pieces cohesive in style but vastly different in pattern & color. At any given moment, there are around 1OO options of coats, tops & totes in my space for them to love. In the expansive, oversaturated world of fashion, I am simply one local maker providing one option for people invested in unique, sustainable clothing. That is enough. 

Tell us a little about your brand. 

My shop is called, "nykamping – a tent for your body," due to my last name being Nykamp & my outerwear designs being oversized & tent-like in nature. The majority of textiles I work with are secondhand remnants, scraps, quilts & blankets that I source locally in Leelanau County, Michigan. I focus on simple, slouchy styles with clean finishes. Typically, the textiles decide the width & sizing, so each piece is labeled, "one size fits most."

I believe our clothes communicate for us, whether we want them to or not. They tell the people around us if we are headed to the gym or the club; the movie theatre or a dinner party. Some of the most intentional outfits showcase a level of ambiguity that begs, "where are they headed?" My versatile outerwear pieces offer the dramatic element perfect for New York streetwear, lounging at home, cocktail hour & grocery shopping. To any passerby, they are most obviously unique, handmade & a quiet form of luxury without a big label. 

An integrated part of my mission is body positivity & social messaging in fashion. One gorgeous lady came through my shop & exclaimed, "Yes! See, you get it. Big girls have money & they wanna spend it." My goal was to cater to all people & throw out sizing altogether. My coats cover the full spectrum of widths & lengths, both on the main panels but also on the sleeves. I encourage all customers to think beyond their preferred shirt size; I am not limited to tops in size large just because the majority of my t-shirts are larges. My pieces connect well to people who think like professional stylists: sleeves can be rolled, belts can be added, but oversized drape & shape work on all bodies. 

I frequently hear, "I look like I'm wearing a tent!" or, "I'm swimming in this!" We talk about perspective because I take those comments as compliments & others with similar height & body shape fall in love with the same fit. How we wear clothes is a reflection of how we see ourselves. I see immense luxury, power, confidence & comfort in the drama of my pieces. Ultimately, there are no absolutes in fashion, so I offer options that encourage & push people into a little more creative everyday wear.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey?

Grit, passion & humor. 

Running a small business of any capacity is not for the flippant, weary, or unsure. It takes an exorbitant amount of time to create anything of quality. This is not for anyone trying to make a quick buck. It's the 2am, 4am & actual sleepless nights that sometimes get me to a personal deadline. Hustle culture applauds grit. Anti-hustle culture will call it perseverance. Both require regimented, scheduled creativity & time invested to make visions unfold.

Pushing through creative fatigue requires newfound passion on a regular basis. The necessary input of a small business is not sustainable without a maintained level of intrinsic motivation. Artists, musicians & clothing designers work not for money but from an innate love & inspiration towards their craft. Computing the hourly pay is never a good move, yet the twinkle of passion in an artist's eye tells the world, "it's worth it." 

I'm quick to laugh at myself. Accepting mistakes & moving past them quickly pushes me to better myself proactively, instead of lingering or dwelling on my many mishaps. New business owners make countless mistakes; it's easy to get bogged down, but few situations are the difference between life or death, or result in anything other than a significant loss of time. Maintaining a sense of humor keeps me from taking myself too seriously. I don't have a business degree & I don't know everything about garment construction. I am willing to learn, try, fail, pivot, succeed & take chances again. 

Who is your ideal client?

Ideal clients (nykampers) of mine typically fall into two different camps of consumers. I value both types incredibly. 

The first exudes confidence & sashays into the shop immediately gushing over the space & the coats, eager to learn about my vision & experiences. Many in this group pinpoint one specific piece, try it on, love it & buy it on the spot. Others put on a personal fashion show of sorts, apologize for "tearing this place apart" while they try on half of my inventory before deciding on one that really sparked joy. 

The people in the other camp fall in love with a piece either online or in the shop & know themselves well – it has to be a conscious, thought-through purchase after calculating every factor towards its wearability, styling options & price per wear. They never buy on impulses & express their annoyance with themselves for it. I encourage these folks to continue shopping through the town & return if their chosen piece continues circling back into their thoughts. Sometimes a little distance does make the heart grow fonder; maybe, the distance helps us realize what we really adore. More times than not, they come back a few hours later with a cheeky grin. 

There are similarities between the people in these two groups of ideal clients. No matter their height, weight, age, body shape, or gender, these people exude confidence. Surely, sometimes its origin is forced or faked, but we know how the saying goes. They float while trying on their beloved piece, knowing its construction & pattern was simply meant for them. My ideal clients do not look at themselves in the mirror with my coats on & exclaim how they wish they were taller, thinner & younger. They love how the piece of clothing compliments & communicates exactly who they are, in that moment. 

My ideal clients love supporting small business owners, local makers & sustainable clothing companies. They invest in many mediums of art, including wearable art. The intention & process of a piece is even more important to them as the finished product. Being able to connect with me as the designer, artist & sewist adds to the whole experience.