An Interview with Marissa Heyl, Founder of the Ethical Clothing Line Symbology   

I first met Marissa Heyl in college at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where we shared a number of interests: fashion, international travel, human rights, feminism. Together we took advantage of the University’s robust study abroad program; danced in the campus multicultural organization’s annual performances; and wrote for a human rights magazine she founded. We got the most out of four years of life in a liberal enclave dedicated to ideas, exchange and expansion. For most college students, that’s where the idealist chapter ends.

Not for Marissa. Fast-forward ten years to the present day, and we find her a successful fashion designer who has found a way to combine all of our mutual interests into a career as the founder and Creative-in-Chief of Symbology, an ethical fashion brand that fuses artisan traditions with contemporary fashion trends that empowers female artists around the world. It is part of a growing movement called “ethical fashion,” which aims to make a once niche industry mainstream.

We recently sat down over coffee so she could share her story, her inspiration, and what’s next for the global movement of conscious fashionistas. 

Tell me about how you came to conceive of and found Symbology.
Since I was a little girl I have wanted to be a fashion designer; I remember sketching out fantastical runway designs while being glued to the TV to watch a rare runway show. But then as I got older and started learning more about social injustices globally I started to learn more about fashion’s exploitation of garment workers. I also didn’t love how superficial and disempowering fashion can be when we’re talking about women and the way that we perceive ourselves. I became less interested in working in fashion and more interested in how to highlight human rights issues globally.

During college I went to India, where I interviewed about 50 craftswomen from different cooperative groups in rural villages and the largest slum of Mumbai. While soaking up India’s diverse and beautiful handcrafted arts, I saw them as mini- collections, dresses and tops, bags and jackets that were unlike those I had seen back home. I wanted to make a commercially viable, fashionable product for Americans using those skills. And what I really loved about this craft was not only its beauty, but that it was imbued with history and meaning. 

How has failure helped you move your career forward?
When I got back to the U.S., I ended up in DC working with a refugee agency, but I lost my job in 2009 during the recession. I tried to continue to find work and wasn’t able to, so like a lot of my friends who also lost jobs and found ourselves in a humbling position, I lived with my parents again, back in North Carolina. That was a soul-searching time and helped me focus again on that internal pull and compulsion, that passion to start a fair trade fashion line.

So I made that leap of faith, took my savings and put it all into another trip to India, where I worked with a fair trade fashion company, Upasana. I got to see firsthand how groups work with artisans in a more of a fashion context and I loved it. I then attended New Delhi’s Fashion Week, where I met designers who were huge inspirations for me. I changed my plans and ended up living there for several months. I apprenticed with a designer working with small artisan cooperatives to create high fashion garments, which lifted the veil of obscurity off an intimidating and cutthroat industry. For the first time, I was able to see myself in that role.

When I came back to the US, I knew it was time. I started Symbology in January of 2012, crowdfunded my first collection, and launched it in September 2012.

What inspires your design?
I fell in love with the artistry and the cultural fabric that has been part of these communities for hundreds of years. In one community in India, Kutch, they have really beautiful mirror work and embroidery, but they don’t have a written language. They use embroidery and crafts as a way to record their history and mark their cultural identity. As an anthropology student I found that fascinating. It made me really engage with — and appreciate — not just the aesthetic beauty and the art of the pieces, but also think about the rich heritage and symbolism behind the motifs used in the art from. That’s why I named the brand Symbology. The commonality of symbols across cultures speaks to our shared humanity.

Why artisans?
I just love art, and artisans are the keepers of history and art in their culture. By partnering with artisans, we have an immediate opportunity to provide employment and operate within the cultural context– it doesn’t take a lot of outside infrastructure or investment to make it work.  We can leverage skills that these women already possess, such as embroidery and weaving and printing techniques handed down from grandmother to mother to daughter. By making them commercial, we bring folk arts to the formal economy, which not only provides paid work but gives legitimacy and substance to a woman’s identity outside of the domestic space.

What’s the future of the ethical fashion movement?
To make ethical fashion no longer an alternative movement but the norm in the industry. The fact that most apparel is made using exploitive practices is abhorrent. Customers need to shop according to their values, look for quality pieces that are investments in their wardrobe — not disposable garments. Ethical fashion is not just artisan, it’s much bigger than that; it’s also made in the USA brands, independent makers, and environmentally friendly lines.

Do you have any advice for women looking to start their own businesses? 

• In the words of Tim Gunn, “Make it Work.” Any entrepreneur, regardless of industry or product, must be resourceful. When in doubt, ask for advice (or Google). And don’t be afraid to reach out to that ultra-successful CEO. People love to give advice!
• Build a Tribe. Conduct marketing surveys among your target market to create products with guaranteed demand. Find your ‘tribe’ of followers and incentivize them to be part of the business and its success.
• Find the Yin to your Yang. If possible, try to find a co-founder whose skill set complements yours (it’s not all that different from finding a soulmate).
• Don’t doubt yourself. You’ve got this. The most empowering thing I’ve ever done is start my own business. I had little idea of what I was getting into, but with some grit, problem solving and support from friends and customers, we were able to launch a brand
• Negotiate, negotiate, negotiate. If a potential client doesn’t respond to your offer, or even says no to your pitch, it’s not a closed door. Try to entice those harder-to-reach clients with something less risky for them, or a special offer exclusive to them. It’s got to move you, down to your bones; passion is sometimes the only thing that will get you through the ups and downs of having a startup business. You have to love what you are doing 24/7, and when you find that thing, you’ll do anything to make it happen.