MARY LUSH loves vintage clothes. The larger than life 24-year-old from Droitwich has been dressing in them since she went to Worcester’s Sixth Form College.
And now she is realising her dreams by turning them into a career – with a bit of help from her mum, grandma, friends and the Princes Trust.
Mary has just set up a new online vintage boutique called FUNK TRUNK VINTAGE selling retro and vibrant vintage clothes and accessories for men and women sized from eight to 22 plus.
The business which also includes pop-up shops and selling at fairs is being officially launched at The Pheasant pub, New Street, Worcester on Saturday May 9.
“I have been dressing in vintage clothing since I went to Worcester Sixth Form College. My brand is about having fun with fashion no matter what size you are,” said Mary.
She explained that the clothes and accessories she sources and sells range from the late 1950s to the early 1990s and are often very colourful. “I love colourful things and I think people should be wearing colour.”
Her mantra is: “Dare to be different, wear whatever you want, whenever you want. Anyone can look amazing in vintage clothes, no matter what your size or age.”
After leaving school, Mary did a degree in fashion buying at Manchester Metropolitan University. During the final year she opted to set up and run a business as part of her course with two other students and that is when she discovered that being creative and her own boss was right for her.
“I loved the creative freedom and the idea of running my own business and I knew from the university project that I could do it,” Mary enthused.
However it wasn’t all plain sailing as, after leaving university, she had a string of jobs including cleaning and being a carer. She also worked as a merchandiser for a vintage clothing store in Birmingham.
“I realised the fashion career path I wanted to go down was vintage and I had been thinking about starting up my own business.
“My grandma always said I should go for setting up my own business and I found out about the Prince’s Trust, which helps people who want to do that,” explained Mary.
The local Prince’s Trust offices just so happened to be next door to where she worked in Birmingham, so she made an appointment and popped round during her lunch break.
Before she knew it, she had started its Enterprise Course and was attending its four-day course in Kiddderminster to learn about the practical side of starting a business including business planning, marketing, sales, raising capital, budgeting and tax.
With the help of a Prince’s Trust mentor, she then spent months writing a business plan which she had to present to a Prince’s Trust panel in September last year.
“I have never been so nervous in my life. After I gave my presentation they were firing questions at me about various aspects of my business and my future plans because I was asking for funding. I got through it.
“An hour later they told me that I got through and been granted the funding to launch my business. I have never been so happy. It was the happiest day of my life.
“I cannot thank the Prince’s Trust enough. They were amazing. I have a mentor who specialises in marketing and advertising. She has been very supportive and reports back to the trust about how I’m getting on. If I am stressed or in a muddle, I can go to her and she is really helpful.”
Since then she has been sourcing and buying stock, organising photoshoots to showcase items online, building a customer base and using social media to advertise her business. A band of willing friends have been models to show off the clothes on sale.
Mary explains that some of the clothes are brand new and never been out of the packaging while others might have a tear or missing button. Everything is washed, dried and steamed and repairs are done by Mary and her grandma Jean Brettel, who is a dab hand with a needle and thread. She has also loaned her a spare bedroom in her house as a stockroom.
“She is like my little partner. She is really supportive.” And mum Joanne Lush always goes to her fairs. “I have been really lucky to have such a supportive family.”
All the stock comes from the UK and many of the suppliers are based in the north of England where they have large warehouses.
The FUNK TRUNK VINTAGE website was launched in February and apart from the online sales, Mary also sets up stalls at vintage fairs all over the West Midlands including Stourbridge, Birmingham and Bridgnorth.
Her latest venture is pop-up shops. “I learned about pop-up shops at university. My mum and her sister own a shop in Droitwich High Street and it was empty for a few months while they waited for the next person to go in.
“I’ve done five pop-up shops there and I’m doing the next one at the Pheasant on Saturday with a fun business launch party in the evening.
“Since I started the business, I really like doing the fairs and pop-up shops because I love being with the customers. Although I am aiming for students and young professionals, I have had orders on the website from all different types of people and across the UK,” she said.
Although FUNK TRUNK VINTAGE has got off to a wonderful start and the Prince’s Trust is very pleased with her progress, Mary said she has a new dream.
“I want my own shop. I would love my own shop in Bristol or Brighton where the vintage scene is much bigger. That would be amazing,” said Mary bubbling with excitement.
Watch this space!
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