It has been a whole week since I have been away from blogging. But finally I am back that too with an Interview with a lovely lady from Bogota, Colombia. Her name is Jennifer Andrea Castillo Lopez and she is a purse/handbag designer.. Isn’t it wonderful? So Lets move on to the interview…
Me: Hey Jen I would directly jump on to my first question which is, When did you realize that you wanted to pursue a career in handbag and purse designing?
Jen: I always wanted to do something different since my childhood. During my time years, I started making bags as a hobby. I wanted to pursue a career in bags soon after that.
Me: That is great. Moving on to the second question. What college did you attend and what did you study?
Jen: Although I wanted to pursue my career in handbag designing, I wasn’t sure about that. So I decided to study publishing designer. Later on, I changed my path and came back to purse and handbag designing, so I didn’t study how to make purses and learnt it with time and practice.
Me: That sounds interesting so Jen when did you sell your first purse, how was the buyer’s reaction to your work?
Jen: As I told you earlier, I used to make purses when I was a teenager, I used to sell them to my friends. They encouraged me to make and sell purses and other handicrafts.
Me: We all know that this is a vast industry now.. So who have been your biggest mentors in this industry and what is the best lesson they have ever given you?
Jen: This may sound a little weird, but an ex-boyfriend was my best mentor. We loved travelling around the country and with him, I discovered a new way to win. With him, I had a friend that taught me to find cute materials. He always encouraged me to follow my dreams.
Me: What was your first job out of college?
Jen: My first job was about handicrafts after that I decided to study publishing designer.
Me: What was the biggest rookie mistake you made when just starting out?
Jen: When I started making purses, I had an urge to earn lots of money which made me make bad purses. They would break and wear out easily. I guess that was my first mistake and first lesson, I wasn’t satisfied with what I was doing. I had to improve myself.
Me: What is your favourite part about being a purse/handbag designer?
Jen: My favourite part is when someone love my job, my style, the color, the design, or simply when the client is happy with the work I did.
Me: If you could go back and tell yourself one thing before beginning your career what would it be?
Jen: If I could go back in time, I would tell myself to believe in what I love. When I had to decide a career path, I wasn’t confident enough about studying purse designing. I didn’t study anything about the topic I love but ended up choosing another career.
Me: This is going to be the very last question Jen. The fashion industry has changed so much in the past few years, what’s the best advice you would give for staying ahead of the curve?
Jen My advice would be look the women need. Look around, you will find enough ideas to work on. That’s how I learnt.
Me: Thank you Jennifer.
Well, that was an interesting interview.. I would love to know your views in the comments… See you soon..
