Sew LA
Shaerie Mead, Owner
Los Angeles, CA


Shaerie Mead is a corset maker and sewing instructor who moved to LA from Boston in 2004 to expand her business. She started making corsets unofficially in 1996, vending at semi-annual trade shows and selling wholesale to a few local businesses. Shaerie saw the potential for her business and knew that she needed to move to an area that would support her specialized industry. After making corsets part time for ten years, she officially founded Lovely Creature Corsetry in 2006 and in 2007 moved into a small studio space in the Edna Hart storefront in Silver Lake. After a year of creating corsets, Shaerie realized that her dream of a retail corset shop would require her to make many changes in her current business model. Instead of being immersed in the custom work she loved, she would need to out source production and develop a more cohesive line in order to sell wholesale and create the revenue necessary to support her and her husband.

While developing her business, Shaerie was also teaching sewing classes and providing private lessons at the Sewing Arts Center. She discovered that she had a passion for teaching and loved being around creative people. With the reality that her corset boutique would be challenging to start and her rediscovered teaching passion, Shaerie altered her vision for the business expansion.

Inspired by Stitch Lounge of San Francisco, Shaerie refocused her efforts on creating a sewing community in connection with her corset studio. She planned to offer classes and private lessons on her own, and develop a space where individuals could rent sewing machines by the hour. She drafted a business plan, met with a WBC consultant for comments and revisions to her plan and submitted a loan request to the VEDC Microloan program within two weeks. Shaerie was approved for $7500, which allowed her to secure an additional rental space adjacent to her corset studio, purchase additional sewing machines, equipment, and fixtures, set-up a merchant account, complete minimal leasehold improvements, and advertise for the new expansion of services.

Shaerie is currently offering 4 to 7 classes per week, providing sewing instruction to between 8 and 15 students. She also has approximately 4 to 8 private lessons per week. The Sew Lab, a space where individuals can rent machines, is booked 4 to 10 hours per week, with bookings increasing as people discover that these services are offered.

The future of Sew LA will move towards hiring and training more teachers and eventually finding a larger space. Shaerie will carry fabric in addition to the sewing supplies that she already sells, making Sew LA a one-stop shop for all things crafty and creative. She would like to focus on organic and easily renewable fibers such as bamboo and Seacell, which are not currently available in many shops. There are also plans to have an outreach program that would encourage kids and teenagers to learn how to sew and to use their hands to create – something that is currently gaining popularity again in the Los Angeles school system but with a decided lack of teachers to fill the need.



Blanca’s Fashions
Blanca Vargas, Owner
Pacoima, CA


click pic to enlargeOne business helped by the Pacoima Microloan Fund is Blanca’s Fashions. Owner Blanca Vargas opened her clothing store in January of last year and business was going well. Then, Blanca was faced with a terrible loss; loosing not one but both of her parents within six months of each other. Having to pay for her parents funerals and for them to be sent back to their native El Salvador, cost Blanca money; money that she needed for her business. Determined to keep her store open, Blanca applied for a Pacoima Microloan and was approved. Blanca will use her $5,000 loan to restock her inventory and grow her business. She says of the program, "This program is perfect for small businesses that are just starting out and don’t have a lot of capital. It helps the businesses who truly need the help."


Martial Arts Fitness Studio
Elizabeth Bouciegues, Owner
Santa Clarita, CA


click pic to enlargeElizabeth opened her business in 2002; by 2003 her business was growing and needed to expand. After being turned down by the banks, Elizabeth came to VEDC and was approved for a $15,000 Microloan which she used to renovate adjacent space next to studio so that she could begin to teach both adult and child martial arts classes simultaneously, creating a family fitness center. The business has created five jobs in the area and is the only fitness operation certified to teach inside the Santa Clarita Valley school system. Elizabeth says this about the program, "Since getting the Microloan our business has doubled. That is something that we never could have done without VEDC and the SBA Microloan Program."


Jungle Bug Day Care
Nancy Durazo, Owner
Pacoima, CA


click pic to enlargeVEDC not only helped owner Nancy Durazo receive two microloans, an SBA Microloan for $5,000 and $15,0000 from the Pacoima Microloan fund, but will also offer employees of the Jungle Bug post employment support through their Pacoima Family Development Initiative. Nancy says of the assistance she received, "I am extremely grateful for the help I received from VEDC in getting my business started. I had a dream and they helped me realize that dream."