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full-time career?
Hobby or by Judith Mishler
Taking the next step part 1
You have been making hats and they are selling well. Family and friends are encouraging you to take the next step. Is it time to make the jump from millinery as a hobby into a full-time career? Questions loom large. Would it mean leaving a paid job with regular hours and security for something ‘iffy’. Longer hours, no benefits, and less money. Should you try? What happens if you fail?
When is the right time to make the
Judith began her millinery career making hand-dyed and braided raffia hats and taught the craft at wearable art shows around the US. Her millinery supplier business Judith M Millinery Supply House came to life in 1994, passing to new owners at the beginning of 2021. Judith continues to support conferences and contests, believing it furthers all millinery business when the tradition is affirmed through these events.
switch? Beyond the obvious task of creating a business plan, you will need some honest self-assessment. Do you have the persistence to do the work required to make the change? Take a look, truthfully, at your work habits and ‘stick-to-it-iveness’. Do you have the perseverance needed to work toward turning your dreams into a reality, every single day?
Marketing is a key component of starting a business and keeping it going. Are you willing to sell yourself, presenting a confident face to the world at large? Will you be able to make enough income to pay the bills for the business and your personal expenses? Do you have major changes happening in your personal life, including repayment of student loans or other debt? Could you continue doing what you love part-time, perhaps negotiating with your employer to create a bit more space and time to work on your dream hat business? Do you have a good support network? Do friends and family believe in your dream strongly enough to stand by you? In order to gain some insight into these and other questions, I spoke to several individuals who made the transition into a full-time millinery career. Here’s what they had to say.
52 | the hat magazine #99
Felicity Northeast described the beginning of her millinery journey: “On a break from work as a paediatric dietician, I chose to build up my hobby and it turned into a business that I now do full-time.” Not overnight, of course. Felicity kept her original job while working to build a hat clientele. For the past ten years she has solely worked as a milliner.
Evetta Petty held a degree in textiles and fashion marketing from the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), and was working in the corporate fashion world. The fun little hats Evetta made for herself garnered lots of attention. On a whim, she made a few to sell and did a pop-up shop in
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