ATLANTA — Thinking of a grandfather doesn’t typically conjure up visions of contemporary design, but when Emily Siegel needed inspiration, that’s exactly whom she turned to.
After a four-year stint as a designer for Project E, a company here known for its distressed T-shirts, Siegel and partner Claudia Tillman, also formerly of Project E, decided to pursue their own endeavor, naming the line after Siegel’s moniker for her grandfather, “Poppysam.”
Not only does the name have sentimental value, Siegel said it literally reflects the dichotomous nature of the line — half girly, half not. And as the contemporary category continues in a trend to dresses, Poppysam is countering the ultrafeminine movement with daytime dresses and tops that address a duel niche — women who get dolled up and women who want special but more casual looks.
“The [contemporary] market is missing something that can please both girls — the one who wants to wear a dress with sandals and the tomboy who would rather wear it over leggings,” said Siegel, who is the designer.
Siegel and Tillman introduced their 11-piece summer collection at Trafik in Miami last month, showing poplin and oxford tanks, vests and dresses that double as tops and wholesale from $38 to $58. Siegel said buyers were responding strongly to a light blue, strapless oxford dress with red buttons down the front that wholesales for $54.
Siegel has cautious expectations for her inaugural line, saying she wants to avoid making the mistake of overexposing it at launch time and risk fizzling out.
“We have modest goals,” she said. “We’re not trying to be the biggest line out there. We just want to make a lot of people happy without being generic.”
The new collection faces all the challenges of a crowded contemporary market — chief among them, the ability to churn out fashion-forward designs while still appealing to a widening customer base. In an effort to keep the business small, Siegel is maintaining a firm grip on distribution strategies — targeting specialty stores and boutiques, aiming for 40 to 50 orders for each of the three summer deliveries through June and ruling out online retail.
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Siegel has already received orders from two Atlanta-area retailers — Cherry Pie and Pashmere — and is looking for reps in the Atlanta, Chicago and New York markets.
For fall, Siegel plans to introduce sweaters and jackets in a 17-unit collection in three or four colors, but has no plans to add bottoms to the product mix. Wholesale sales are expected to double in 2007, to $75,000, said Siegel.