Little Pea, recently added to the Thread showroom roster
Saurette, among the many fashion favorites at Thread
Lucky Jade, a key collection for Thread
Showroom Spotlight: Thread Weaves its Way on to 34 West 33rd Street
From its apropos company name to its deft use of the web for connecting with retailers to its well-stitched collection of brands, the Thread Showroom tackles the kids' business like a seasoned sewer.
By Lynda M. Johnson
In business for just four years, Thread seems fearless in some respects; the New York-based showroom is not above ripping out the stitches and starting anew. When Terra Fazzio launched her business, she was repping women's and kids' lines. Two years ago she switched to repping kids exclusively. Fazzio started out in a location solely geared to the women's market. She then moved three more times to enhance her business, finally snagging a spot in the popular 34 West 33rd street building that's fast-becoming a key location for kids' companies. Fazzio says she finally feels like she's where she needs to be. "We are so happy with our new home, it's just a great place to work everyday! Our neighbors have been truly wonderful; we're so blessed to be here."
With her focus for the last two years "100 percent on kids," Fazzio has woven together a terrific blend of domestic and international collections offering everything from dresses to swimwear to accessories. At press time, the Thread roster included 18 brands offering classic styling alongside contemporary trendsetters. Her retailer-friendly website was among the first in the industry to move beyond a simple brand presence to a site facilitating the buying process. Fazzio also was an early adopter of retail eblasts, using them to stayin touch with retailers about upcoming trade shows, new additions to her showroom, special discounts/offers and end-of-season reminders to complete order-writing.
Baby Chai by Lucky Jade is among her latest additions. Using eco-friendly materials, the collection offers a cloth diapering system, bath wraps, bunting bags, blankets and beautifully packaged gift sets. Thread now also reps Elephantito, a collection of updated traditional styled clothing and shoes for boys and girls; Little Pea, a girls' line of bright and stylish clothing in retro prints with sweet girlish details; and Ses Petites Mains, a-made-in-America with a strong European style sensibility and fabulous fabrics that easily move from casual to special occasion. Also new at Thread is Young 1's very clever line of playful t-shirts in sophisticated colors and boasting bold graphics. These new lines join key brands Bobinette, Chaser Kids, Harper Felix, Juliette Sunshine, Kangol Kids Headwear, Kapital K, Lucky Jade, Monkey Bar Buddies, Misha Lulu, Peekaboo Beans, Pork Chop Kids, Saurette, Stella Cove and Tokidoki.
Fazzio is no stranger to the fashion industry having worked in specialty boutiques from the age of 16 and earning a degree in Fashion Design and Marketing. Fazzio also has worked alongside showroom owners and brand owners. She says it is this aspect of the business she finds the most appealing.
"I worked with Trafik Tradeshow as a show coordinator and was instantly drawn to the wholesale aspect of the business, and from there started road repping in my hometown of Atlanta before launching Thread Showroom in New York," explains Fazzio, who also has a showroom for Thread in her home city at the Atlanta Mart's Co-op.
"I love working as the liaison between buyer and brand, especially the product and image development side. Fazzio clearly has a knack for managing that relationship. She's created a showroom vibe that is laid-back and warm, almost like visiting someone at his or her home. "We are approachable and have fun with our buyers which makes them comfortable with us and so are our brands," she explains.
www.threadshowroom.com/
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