Ep. 39: The Iconic Woman with Sage Aubrey

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Welcome to episode 39!  We are so insanely excited to talk with Sage, owner of Sage Aubrey and total woman crush!  Sage is such an inspiration for empowering other babes and a true example of staying true to values and authenticity.  For those of you who don’t already know. Sage is a leather bag designer that is known for her original and unique handbags as well as her personal Instagram stories.  We get the opportunity to dive into the life of a designer and what her process looks like while empowering others and building confidence along the way.

EARLY START

Sage started her love for the fashion industry in high school.  Her mom, sister, and she created a jewelry business that she quickly became obsessed with building.  Her love didn’t stem from the fashion aspect, it stemmed from the relationships she built with other women and working so closely with her sister and mom.  Sage opened her first boutique at the age of 22 which fed into her online shops after attending University studying boring business classes. By the age of 26 she rightfully was awarded the top 30 entrepreneurs under 30.

With the fall of the economy, Sage closed her business and went on a two-year hiatus while her husband had a business opportunity in Malaysia.  She spent those two years advocating for victims of sex trafficking. Because of the experience she came back into the industry with new strength from the stories from the women she met.  She came back to the states wanting to design and she knew she wanted to create a company that would be able to give back. Her first collection launched in 2015 and quickly was noticed by Bloomingdales.  Always going big, Sage didn’t just send samples, she traveled to them and presented her bag herself and they bought into Sage Aubrey for SS17. She thought this was what she wanted. All the right people were wearing her bag and they were in all the glossy stores, but everything was so impersonal.

“This is not what I thought it was going to be.”

She felt detached. Sage began going into all the store she was selling her bag in, and found that shopping for luxury bags was an intimidating process. Sage decided to rebuild her brand with full respect for women and building that community.  The moment she started connecting again, she felt like she was on the path she needed. 

“I don’t want a fashion brand that makes women feel like they’re excluded, they’re not respected, and that the brand is the icon when really, the woman is the icon.”

WORK LIFE

When she began designing, all she could think about was quality.  She wanted her design to stand out and truly be a signature. It took her years to develop and create a perfectly curated bag. Sage is working on her next step to build her studio which will allow her to create great content for her social media and website as well as become a place for clients to have an in-person experience.  She wants to stay ahead of fashion industry trend and knows that video content is so important. While she is Queen on the Instagram story and making followers feel like she is a friend, she wants to dive in even deeper into the brand messaging of what she does.

She loves being a working mom and raising two girls with a strong, working woman as a role model.  It is so important to not only give other confidence but to instill that in the lives of growing girls! By doing things for other women she is able to celebrate life.  Providing ways to build confidence in others helps her day to day appreciate all she has built! Above it all, she has immense gratitude for her family. She loves building her relationship with her husband and encouraging her girls to grow into whatever they want to be.

“It’s about being genuine in connection, authenticity, and trying not to be too psycho.”

We love women like her that truly value friendship and making time for others, plus she makes amazing bags.  We were so lucky so get time with Sage and let her speak and refuel our confidence, thank you Sage!

SOCIAL MEDIA

Instagram: @thesageaubrey

Website: www.sageaubrey.com