four years strong

To think of how much I’ve changed in the four years I’ve worked at Matilda Jane is…incredible. I was going to say “insane” but I don’t want you guys to think I’m any crazier than you already do! And really, when I think of just how much Matilda Jane has grown, changed, taken a step backwards, taken 30 steps forwards, etc…I’m speechless. So lately I’ve been writing this blog in my head every time I notice something different, or remember something about the roots of MJC.

Four years ago my mom brought me to my interview in her loud, purple van. I was so nervous walking up to the tall brick building known as Fairfield Manor, while my mom waited in the parking lot (bless her heart, she was always my taxi). I heard about the job from Sara Spitler through (drum roll please) MYSPACE?! When was the last time you heard that?! I walked in and in moments Lynette said I was hired! Even before she gave me the tour of the few, small rooms that then made up Matilda Jane. Am I lucky or what?

Four years ago we had one single packing table. This is where I learned to stack your orders from cute to CUTEST just so the last piece of your order was always the most special, because you always save the best for last. This is also where I learned of Chris’s enormous heart, she truly is the mama bear of MJC. And where I learned that Becky and I have the same sense of humor, and if you give her the ipod she will ALWAYS choose to put on The Police or Ben Lee.

Four years ago I learned to cut and layer fabric because we were running out of orders to pack and Denise had to keep us girls busy! Do you know how blessed I am (and I FEEL) that she had me written down on a sheet to layer with Sara for the day? This is the first time I got to be apart of the CREATING of an MJC piece. Maybe I wasn’t designing it, but heck I was drinking it in, breathing in the fabric dust like it was the oxygen I’d been waiting my whole life for! (Sounds dramatic, but so true to me) Eventually I got to cut with the big boss, Denise. I remember it perfectly. I remember her looking at me and saying with an almost surprised look on her face “You know what, you’re smart.”

Four years ago Matilda Jane was just a budding seed. Our quantities were lower, our team was smaller, and our risks were less scary. We didn’t have facebook or the community of followers that we do now. We didn’t even have a shipping system! We had to type in every address over and over and over…

Now we have all of that and so much more. We have the fancy ordering system and the fabulous team of Trunk Keepers. We have the facebook and all of the beautiful photos and occasional drama that comes with it (Yep I said it because you all know we see it, read it, and feel it too). And we have an amazing team at 4031 that feels like it’s growing by the minute!

Four years ago Matilda Jane opened my eyes to a world of clothing and business that I didn’t think existed.  A company where the heart truly is the core. A company that showed me character isn’t that you don’t make mistakes, it’s that you learn and grow from the ones you do make. And all of the feelings I had when I started four years ago have only been amplified by you guys—seeing you at art fair, reading the comments on the blog/fb, reading your emails and packing your orders. I felt the love the moment I walked through the door of our old office at Fairfield Manor, but I SEE the love when I see you.

So what am I even talking about? Pretty much how crazy it feels to have come this far with a company this amazing (and unpredictable) and customers this powerful (and unique)!

Thanks for keeping us around. Thanks for keeping ME around.

LOVE,

SAM