Meet Rachel Antone | Fashion Designer & Small Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rachel Antone and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rachel, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Risk taking has played a huge role in my life ever since I was young! I strongly believe that in order to find who you are, achieve your goals, or figure out what you are meant to do in life you must take risks! No matter how big or small the risk, I think it helps to shape who you are and gives you a chance to step outside of the box, even when you may feel unsure of yourself.

Risk taking hasn’t only played a significant role in my life, but very much my career. In college my dream was to work in film/tv for costume design. I knew in order to pursue this dream I had to make the move to southern California, although I was living in northern California at the time. My first risk was moving to Los Angeles just three days after I graduated college in San Francisco. I took a huge risk and moved to a place where I didn’t have a job, knew very little people, or any real plan for my future. This was one of the biggest first risks I’ve ever taken in life! And even though it was incredibly stressful and overwhelming I’m really glad I did it because it brought me one step closer to where I am today and has given me opportunities I never could have imagined.

My risk in moving to Los Angeles brought me the opportunity to start my own clothing line, something that I had only thought about doing, but never actually considered as a possibility for my future. After 5 years of working in film/tv I came to the conclusion that it wasn’t the dream that I always wanted. I was stuck in a place of not knowing what to do; all while Covid was still going on. I was incredibly fearful of what I was meant to do next in my life. It took me awhile to realize that in order to fully do something that I had only considered doing in the past, I had to take a very big risk, to try and find what I was meant to do. So I quit my full time job, which was incredibly nerve racking, and started working on my clothing line. Hours and hours went into learning all the ins and outs of creating a business and developing a clothing line.

Almost a year later I can officially say it was the greatest risk I’ve ever taken in life! It has brought me so much joy and given me something to work hard towards! I’ve learned so much about myself! Although it wasn’t easy taking the risk, and hasn’t been a walk in the park since, it has shaped who I am today and I am incredibly proud of myself for taking that risk to get where I am today!

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am currently the owner, designer and creator of GIMMICK by Rachel Antone which is a small slow fashion brand, all made and designed in Los Angeles! There are a couple of things that set my brand apart from others and make it very unique! Not only is everything made in Los Angeles, but our garments are also made from deadstock fabric, which means we use leftover yardage from larger productions, and instead of it going to a landfill or to waste we recycle it and turn it into the beautiful dresses that you see on our website! Not only this, but, we produce all our garments in small batches, which means we never over produce creating more potential waste. We are careful with our production size so we can focus on the quality of each garment, making each dress a limited edition!

My brand is directly inspired by 1960’s fashion and the designers of that time period. All our women’s dresses are retro inspired, vibrant in many colors and such a fun addition to anyone’s wardrobe! If you are a vintage lover, supporter of small local businesses or just looking to add some flare to your closet you have to check out my brand!

What I’m most excited about is the great growth I’ve achieved in less than a year and what the future holds for my brand! I love seeing how happy our customers get from my clothing! It still doesn’t feel real yet getting to see others wearing my designs!

However, it was certainly not easy and I’ve definitely had to learn a lot when it comes to my small business! And what I really want others to take away from my story is that they too can start their own business or achieve their dreams through hard work and perseverance! It hasn’t been an easy journey for me and I’ve had to overcome many challenges, but I promise you it is more than worth it in the end!

One of the biggest challenges I’ve been facing recently is having to work a full time job on top of running my small business in order to support myself.
Not only this, but throughout the last year I’ve been learning how to overcome the fear of rejection and fear of not succeeding, which can really weigh heavy on anyone!
Although, from these challenges I’ve been able to embrace the journey and the joy of sharing what created with others!

I’m really proud of all the knowledge I’ve gained and what I’ve been able to overcome all by myself! I knew that I had an entrepreneurial side to myself, but didn’t believe that I could really run a small business. Now almost a year later I’m so proud of the risk I took to create my own clothing line! I wouldn’t be the person I am today if I had not taken that risk and continued to move forward no matter what obstacles I encountered along the way!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
One of my favorite places in Los Angeles is Griffith Park and hiking to the Griffith Observatory to look at the amazing view of Los Angeles! I would say that this is the first place I would take a friend! I would then take them to my neighborhood which is Silverlake and give them a little tour down Sunset to window shop and stop at Alfred’s for some amazing coffee! Followed by a walk to the dog park and around the lake to the Silverlake Meadow to have a fun little picnic. That’s another one of my favorite spots to relax and enjoy the sun! And then at night I would take them to Echo Park and go on the swan paddle boats! At night they light up and it is such a fun thing to do with friends. Lastly for dinner I would take them to my favorite thai place, Night and Market Song, where they have my favorite wings and pad thai!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d like to dedicate my shoutout to all my friends and family who encouraged me and cheered me on throughout my entire journey! My friends in particular, you know who you are, who constantly reminded me who I was and praised me for being so strong and courageous! Also my family who stood by me when I decided to take on this new adventure in life and gave me hope in knowing that I was capable of accomplishing anything!

Someone else who deserves credit and recognition is one of my mentors Carole Field, who helped push me towards believing in myself and becoming the entrepreneur that I was always meant to be! With her continual guidance and words of affirmation, she gave me confidence in achieving something so worthwhile! She always encouraged me to think outside the box and be creative!

Website: www.shopgimmickclothing.com

Instagram: @gimmick.clothing

Facebook: www.facebook.com/Gimmick.clothingbyrachel

Image Credits
Dave Tada