Alumni

FIDM Grads and Skatie Founders Featured in California Apparel News

Venice, California-based Skatie founders Skatie Noyes Hutchison (pictured at left) and Mandi Glynn first met in 2009 as students at FIDM. Skatie, who was born in Chicago, was studying Fashion Design, while Upstate New York-raised Mandi majored in Visual Communications. After working separately in the fashion industry, the 2011 graduates teamed up to start the Skatie brand of swimwear in 2016, with activewear following in 2018. Launched via Instagram – where they currently have 186,000 followers – the sustainable direct-to-consumer collection was recently featured in California Apparel News.

“We founded Skatie based off of wanting to be sustainable and use what was readily available in the market,” Noyes Hutchinson told the publication. “We started out by buying dead-stock fabrics from other designers. I approached brands like Beach Riot, Mara Hoffman, Bettinis and other L.A.-based people who did production here and would buy what they had left over from old collections.” Glynn added: “Working in the industry beforehand, we both saw firsthand the waste that is involved in the fashion industry. We wanted to make sure we avoided that with our brand.”

In addition to responsibly sourced textiles, the duo is committed to running an ethical company, especially as their production house continues to grow. “Beyond [materials], it’s how is your team sustainable? How are you making the lives better of every single person that is affiliated with your brand? We really believe in highlighting and lifting up others with us,” Noyes Hutchinson told Apparel News. “The woman who started [our production] has been able to grow her business alongside us and in a really ethical, good way.”

While some industry professionals thought their decision to launch on social media with a direct-to-consumer model without retail was foolish, the decision has proven to be hugely successful, particularly during the pandemic. “We were completely set up, and our business was able to thrive 100 percent during the pandemic when most retailers weren’t.” Noyes Hutchinson explained. “We were able to grow our business in the last year because we were already set up for this kind of climate.”