Chloe: So how long has this shop been open?
L: Only about a year ad three months
C: Ok. Sorry, I should have started off by asking you your name.
L: Lin Paik
C: So how long have you been in the millinery business?
L: Just actually since the shop opened
C: Oh ok. What type of training is necessary for this type of specialized skill?
L: Yeah a lot um I took night classes at FIT and a lot is just kind of self taught or you learn either from other like there are hat classes all over the world or you do need to supplement but FIT is a lot of actual New York milliners trained at FIT because it’s one of the few places
C: Because it’s so specialized?
L: Yeah and it’s really a start but it’s a decent start
C: If you don’t mind me asking, what did you do before…?
L: I still do it, but I have a practice doing I specialize in I guess corporate interiors. That’s the easiest way to describe it
Noah: What would you say are the type of customers that come in here to buy hats?
L: It really varies actualy I get a really wide demographic. All different ages, yeah surprisingly very very varied so that’s been good.
N: Do you get any college students?
L: I do get the college students, although they can’t always buy .
N: Yeah
L” But they’re enthusiastic and they’re very supportive. They do buy sometimes but I don’t expect, you know?
N: Yeah, broke college kids.
L: Yeah, they’re handmade prices, so… But they always have a good time trying on the hats
N: Yeah I’ve never really been in a handmade hat shop
L: Haha yeah they’re not, they’re not so common I guess
N: Do you have difficulty maintaining a customer base for something with handmade prices and handmade tastes? Because not everyone…
L: Yeah my biggest challenge is building a customer base because I’m so new. There are other existing businesses in the city that have existed for some time and I think they do ok so it’s more of a question of you know trying to build a reputation as well as getting my name out there and getting to, well the start up costs of starting a new business, which are substantial, so you know…
N: Do you run this business by yourself?
L: Mhmm
C: Why did you choose this location in particular?
L: Umm the East Village is good because a) if you’re a well the East Village is good if you’re a business just starting because at that point you really can’t afford the West Village or Soho, you know what I mean? It’s just out of your price range if you’re a new business. But the East Village still has it brings a crowd in from the restaurants and the shops especially you know, with 9th St and all that are big boutique streets so that’s why what’s it called so rent is reasonable but you still get some foot traffic as opposed to the Lower East Side where there are pockets that are good but some places are sort of dicey I mean dicey in terms of foot traffic you know what I’m saying so it’s not as consistent as the East Village I felt so it’s great rent, great landlords, like a huge like an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.
N: So you work well with your landlord?
L: Oh I have the best landlord! It’s a coop board they’re not greedy
C: Yeah, a good landlord is hard to find in the city
L: Yeah exactly so I feel very fortunate they’ve just been very supportive of trying to help me start a business
C: What could either the city or customers/consumers and residents of the neighborhood do to support small businesses like yours?
L: Um I guess just..
N: Just come in?
L: Yeah I guess just come in here and shop here. Yeah I mean yeah I mean I guess that would be the best thing but yeah the whole neighborhood vibe is important and I also like it when people come in and say hello like although I don’t want them to spend hours here because I only have so much time in the day with making all these hats but I do think that neighborhood vibe is important like if people are complaining about small businesses closing then support them, you know what I mean?
C: So how does the city government deal with small businesses?
L: I don’t think, I mean I’m still very new to it but I think taxes are a little tough but I do think if you reach out I just don’t know a lot of it so I’m not going to especially if I’m being critical I don’t want to misspeak but I do think that if you reach out, there are organizations that are designed to help you, like the SBC the Small Business whatever you know what I mean? I do think there are resources there but you have to actually go seek them out but I actually had someone from the SBC stop by and was actually very helpful and was helping me figure out garbage which is like a big thing in the city of New York just a logistical thing
N: Do you have any employees or is it just you in total for the shop?
L: I have interns but they’re unpaid. I teach them.
N: That’s good business.
L: There are a lot of things that people don’t learn at FIT just because it’s a short program and at night school you can’t learn everything
C: So it’s sort of like an apprenticeship?
L: Yeah because it’s a lost art form to a certain degree
C: What plans or visions do you have for the future of this store?
L: Honestly I’m still trying to figure it out um retail is pretty new to me as is hatmaking I still have to balance it with my design business because I’m not quite looking to walk away from that I just also wanted to do this as well I don’t know honestly I figure the product line will evolve not only in headwear but maybe in other interior design related categories but it’s still kind of a work in progress.
N: So you think if it comes down to it, you want to expand the business?
L: Maybe I think my major, I think I need to expand in order to create stability no matter what because right now I’m too small but I only want to expand as much as I need to to create stability because mynature, my personal nature is not to want to run a large company. I don’t want to deal with all of those employees and that headache but I but need to affect true stability and you need scale to do that. So yeah as far as I need to do that, I know I need to build.
C: Where do you get your design inspiration from for all these pieces of headwear?
L: Everywhere I guess. New York is great because people are so cool you know, great ideas. Also I do watch old movies–although I do not consider myself a historical milliner but there are a lot of cool techniques from old times but I think a lot of what I like about millinery as opposed to design is just the materials. You play with it enough with your hands and something happens and you’re not always thinking and that’s refreshing.
C: What tools do you use? I see a sewing machine back there but you’re currently sewing by hand… Like these woven hats; are they done by hand?
L: I buy the woven bodies and then I block them on the wooden blocks you see all over the floor of the store. Those are actually molds that are used to make the hats. But then like the fascinators use all different types of techniques, there’s leather, there’s crinoline, there’s wire. That’s why I like millinery, the fact that you use so many different types of techniques like it’s really not just about hats. It’s what you want to do with it. I like to mix it up.
C: Do you have a favorite style or type of hat?
L: No, not really because I like to do so many different things so it’s hard to say there’s one particular thing for me and that’s also the joy of the store because I get to experiment because it’s so new to me so I’m figuring myself out.
C: Ok, well thank you so so much for being willing to talk to us!
N: Yeah thank you!
L: Oh yeah no problem!
Pull Quotes:
“If people are complaining about small businesses closing, then support them!”
“You play with it enough with your hands and something happens and you’re not always thinking and that’s refreshing”
