Ever since she was a young girl, Julie Harris has been designing clothes. Since 2000, her enterprise Julie Harris Designs has created bridal veils, wedding capes and hair accessories for weddings, catering to both brides and grooms; all of which she showcases in a boutique studio at her Studio City home.
What inspired you to start your business?
I always wanted to be a designer. I was making doll clothes for as long as I could remember for my Barbie. My mom sewed so she had all these pieces of fabric and I would make evening gowns for my dolls when I was 5 or 6. So she taught me to sew. I made my first dress when I was 10. If I was really good and kept my room clean, I could go to the fabric store and get some fabric and make another dress.
How did you become a designer?
I made all of my own clothes all through high school. I went to UCLA and got a good job as a teacher but I always wanted to design so I went to FIDM (Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandise) at night and learned a lot.
How did you launch your firm?
I started in 2000 as a part-time thing. I put an ad in bridal magazines. I started doing bridal shows. It was all word of mouth. I got a call from the (Nicole Miller) West Hollywood boutique that they had a new line of bridal gowns. The manager of the boutique asked if I would like to put some of my veils as samples in the dressing room. I was like, “Sure!” I gave them three styles and a big stack of business cards. And it took off from there.
What’s the best aspect of running your own business?
Freedom. It’s a huge responsibility and it can be very tiring, but it’s yours and you’re working for yourself and you can make whatever you want out of it, which is a huge motivator.
And the worst?
Exhaustion. You’re juggling so many things and it can be a lot.
What’s the biggest challenge your business has faced? And how did you deal with it?
About 2010 was when everything changed. Everything moved overseas and was made in a factory super-cheap. That had a negative impact. But it was the same year I got married and I sold my house, my husband sold his house, we bought a new house. So I took an 18-month hiatus and then I started selling them online on Etsy. Part of our home remodel was creating my studio. The house we bought has an apartment over a garage. This was the perfect studio space.
What’s your favorite story about running your business?
This guy called me up and he wanted a cape. We had a chat on the phone. He had been turned down because it was a same-sex wedding. I said, “You’ve got to be kidding, this is L.A.” I was like, “Of course I’ll make you a cape.” He came with his sister and we discussed ideas and I was like, “Oh, no, we could make it more fabulous.” When he came back, he cried. I was so happy that he was happy. It made me so happy to make his dream come true.
How has the pandemic affected you and your business?Â
(During the pandemic), nobody in California could get a marriage license. It devastated the wedding industry in California. Fortunately, I’m online and I sold to states that didn’t shut down: Florida, Georgia, Texas. So that kept things going but I lost a lot of income. I was down 60 percent. But I bounced back in 2021; I was busier than ever. As soon as venues started opening up, (business returned). In 2021, I got so many last-minute clients it was ridiculous.
What advice would you give someone who wanted to start their own business?
Do your research. I understood the customer experience, I understood customers. I’m a big shopper. You need to know the difference (between high-end stores and discount stores) because when you start off and your business will grow, you don’t know everything. You need to educate yourself all the time on all of the particular details for your business. You need to understand not only the aesthetics of your product but time management and finance. I started really small because it was what I could manage and then I grew. You have to really believe in yourself and you have to have good customer service because word of mouth is priceless.
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