We were lucky to catch up with Irina Pyleva recently and have shared our conversation below.
Irina, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
As the wise often say, life is a journey. This has certainly been my experience. I grew up with a strong interest in math and science. It came naturally to me. The certainty of solving say an equation was so comforting and rewarding. 1 + 1 = 2. Always. I succeeded in my career in law and business. At least succeeded by traditional indices. Promotions. Money, Status…. I should have been happy. But there was an emptiness. I tried to push through. Work harder. It didn’t work. Instead of finding happiness, I got sick. Very sick. And pushing through just made things worse. It was a cross roads and a time to reassess my life’s direction. So with the help of some dear friends and specialists, I did. Though I still value the importance of structure and math, I learned that what my heart and soul really sought was inspiration and creativity. I left my “successful” VP job and took a leap of faith. Today, years later, my soul is still nourished by the process of taking an inspired idea and birthing it into life. This is my purpose.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
It seemed like yesterday when Irina asked me “Do you want to start a corset shop?”. Without thinking I replied “Sure, why now”. Afterwards, I thought “What is a corset and what have I gotten myself into? No worries, probably nothing will come out of this anyways.” Within two weeks, Irina had created a name, a logo, sourced manufacturers and completed the website. And Corsettery was this born.
Irina is the inspiration. Her ability to create new fashion designs, put together photo shoots, model and promote the brand is exceptional. I provide the structure which allows her talents to shine. We have created a beautiful brand made with genuine love and passion. Each design is carefully crafted. Each customer is dear to us. We aim to make each customer just a little but happier with themselves as they wear one of our corsets as is accentuates their beautiful form. It is not just a brand but a reflection of our heart and soul.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
This is a great question. It all starts with inspiration. Sustained excellence and happiness always starts from connection to the heart and soul. So my first bit of advice is to find what makes your soul sing. What truly makes you happy. Build a brand around this happiness. Every design at Corsettery starts first with a spark of inspiration.
Second, is foundation. Even the greatest ideas can not become reality without a sufficient business and process structure. The phrase you are only as strong as your foundation is so true in our experience. We spend a lot of time on our policies and practices. It’s critically important that our brand use materials of the highest quality, uses incredible attention to details on each product and does so efficiently so that our customer can receive their product in a reasonable amount of time.
Third is the ability to listen and observe. There is so much that can be learned by simply being calm and still and receptive. In our business, its critically important to listen to the feedback we get from our customers. Additionally, we watch the fashion market carefully for trends and make conscious decisions whether to follow the market or lead it. Wise discernment is not possible though without being present to what is going on both within and outside of you.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
We believe in the process of collaboration and the magic that happens when individuals with a common purpose come together. We are always looking for new strategic partners to both expand our brand and to create new products and opportunities. We are currently looking to expand our brand beyond corsets into other fashion items that share our inspiration. So if there is anyone reading who is interesting in expansion, creativity and a whole lot of fun, certainly reach out to us. We would love to have a conversation and explore what is possible,
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.corsettery.com
- Instagram: Corsettery
- Facebook: Corsettery
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
