We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Madison Moore a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Madison, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
A big part of my “why” behind starting MadHouse was to help women feel more confident. As shallow as it sounds, clothing can be a big reason someone feels happy and confident. When I was younger my grandma had a dress up room in her house for the granddaughters and filled it with vintage clothing pieces, long gloves, and jewelry. We even had a vanity with make up to play with. I loved getting creative and building outfits out of different pieces. Once we created our look, she would have us walk the runway and she would pretend to be the paparazzi. I am the middle of 3 girls, so clothes and fashion have always been a big interest in our house. When I was younger I started to realize that my parents valued my creativity just as much as my intelligence. They always kept my artwork, hung it up, and celebrated it. My dad is the ultimate girl dad and always wanted to see what we came home with after shopping. He would compliment our shoe choice when we came downstairs dressed for the day. As I got older I realized that had less to do with his knowledge of shoe style and more about him instilling confidence in us and celebrating our interests. My mom would always tell me I’m a natural born leader rather than bossy and taught my sisters and I to be proud of who we are. We were taught that what we say matters as opposed to some girls being taught that being polite and quiet was their role. She encouraged us to take fashion risks and wear what we love which played a part in making us confident women. That being said, I developed confidence from those around me building me up. I feel really lucky that this was my experience. It wasn’t until I got to college that I realized not everyone felt this way. I joined a sorority that’s core value was building confidence in young girls which really resonated with me. As I continued to develop as an adult, I realized that I wanted to make others feel the way my grandma and parents had. That’s when I realized a clothing store could be about more than selling clothes. Oftentimes, women come in and immediately say “I’d get this if I was younger, smaller, etc”. My favorite moments are when I tell them they actually CAN wear it and they try it on and end up buying it. Women coming out of the dressing room and being encouraged by their friends/partners/family is what motivates me. I still can’t believe that the little girl inside me gets to create outfits and play dress up still, all while making people feel accepted, encouraged, celebrated, and ultimately – more confident.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
As the owner of MadHouse Clothing, I wear many hats. I always had an entrepreneurial spirit, and because of the support of those around me I was confident enough to take that leap and start my business in 2020. I graduated college in December of 2019 with hopes to move to a bigger city with more opportunities in the fashion industry. During Undergrad at Kansas State I obtained an internship in Milan working for a showroom. I was accepted and a month or so later, I was alone in a new country absorbing as much information as I could. The following Summer, I was lucky enough to get an internship in New York City. In college I took every opportunity I could to build my resume and was really motivated to “make it big”. During COVID I had time to slow down and catch my breath. It was then that I really thought about what I wanted for my future. I always had the idea to start a boutique in the back of my mind, but I thought I would do it much later when I was ready to settle down. I took a random office job during the pandemic where I was the only one in the office essentially, sorting mail and doing administrative tasks. It was sitting in that cubicle that I listened to podcasts on entrepreneurship, watched YouTube videos on how to start boutiques, listened to audiobooks and started to get serious about the idea of launching a boutique. I realized that I didn’t want to move away from my family and friends and thought to be part of the fashion industry in Kansas City, I’d have to create my own opportunity. As I was collecting information from anyone and everyone, I realized starting young would be the best thing I could do. I hoped to launch and perfect as I go. So by September 2020, MadHouse Clothing was born. I felt an overwhelming amount of support by friends, family, and community. I was launching collections and selling out that night. I started doing pop ups in January and opened a store in Iron District in June. Our store is in a repurposed shipping container which is unique but poses it’s challenges. We are able to have a large enough collection to include a variety in pieces but small enough where we can cycle through it quicker which brings an exclusivity to the experience. With my first name being Madison and my life being chaotic as I try to keep up with everything going on in my life, the name MadHouse fits perfectly. We hope to grow into a larger brick and mortar and continue to connect with our community in person. My favorite part of my role behind the scenes is going on buying trips and photoshoots. Selecting the clothes and taking photos of new arrivals is the fun part, while things like accounting and SEO are dreadful tasks. I’ve grown so much personally and professionally through this journey and I wouldn’t be where I am today without the support of my family and friends. Come visit us in the pink container at Iron District or shop online at www.shopmadhouse.com!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
My advice for anyone wanting to start a business or boutique specifically, would be to just go for it. It doesn’t have to be perfect at the beginning you can work on it as you go. After launching I think it’s important to stay consistent and stick it out through the ups and downs. There are going to be extreme highs (like selling out a launch) and extreme lows (like not selling anything on launch day). I think it’s important to have resilience and know that the bad won’t last. I’ve always been a futuristic thinker which I think has helped me a lot in business. I’ve never expected to get rich quick from this. I think being comfortable in the idea that it’s going to take time, it’s going to be hard, and it’s going to be worth it in the end is very important mindset to have in order to be successful. It’s also okay to take breaks. In the beginning I was working on MadHouse constantly. Staying up late in bed on my laptop, doing pop ups and photoshoots on the weekends, packing orders after my corporate job. Staying in that hustle is important because it helps you grow, but allowing yourself breaks is so important for your mental health and to avoid burnout. Taking a walk or even a vacation with your phone on “Do Not Disturb” has improved my creativity and I come back more motivated.
Okay, so before we go, is there anyone you’d like to shoutout for the role they’ve played in helping you develop the essential skills or overcome challenges along the way?
I think more than anything, it’s who you have in your corner that makes or breaks peoples success. It would be impossible to build MadHouse on my own. Since day one my parents have helped me fulfill orders, spread the word, set up for pop ups, carry boxes, take photos. My younger sister goes to market with me and helps me stay in budget and make decisions. My fiancé is typically the one who sees me struggle and has worked in the store when my employees can’t come in, has been my personal delivery driver, helps with the finances of MadHouse, and does small things like take up more household duties when I need to focus on work. My friends show up to all of my events, buy my products, share my brand, and even model in photoshoots when I need them to. In the beginning I struggled a lot with asking for help and feeling overwhelmed but I feel so grateful for my support system for helping me get here.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.shopmadhouse.com
- Instagram: @shopmadhouse
- Facebook: @shopmadhousemarket
- Other: store: 1599 Iron St Unit M North Kansas City, MO
