Hi, I'm the owner of Siempre Golden, my name is Sophia Kim. The purpose of this blog is to be completely honest and transparent with you girls so that you can have insight on what it is like to own a business, and what this industry is like. I'm not going to sugar coat things or try to make things bigger than they seem. Hope you enjoy! You can follow me at @sophiasiempre on Instagram - message me any questions you have or email at support@siempregolden.com. xx

This is our first blog post, and I will try to write them regularly.

ATX Swim Week in July 2019, was a really special experience for us because it was our first runway show. We debuted our first lingerie piece and it was a smashing hit! We decided to attend ATX swim week because we were notified that Cambrie Schroder and Faith Schroder were going to walk in our show. We also thought it would be a good marketing move to be a part of Fit with Cambrie's event that same week. 

This was ATX Swim Week's first annual show, and there were definitely pros and cons to this. Siempre Golden was treated as top priority so the runway show and hotel were all compensated for. However, the cons were the events leading up to the show were completely disorganized. I was highly stressed, and frankly, there was a lot of miscommunication. 

First of all, I did not know what the line up of models would look like for our runway show. Before we got to Austin, I was told that there would be a day for casting models ONE DAY before the show. One day is not enough to prep the perfect look for a model, and then make sure the entire line up looks good and uniform especially with the girls walking in sequence. I was told that we would also be sharing models with the other swim brands that were partaking in the show. The person who was running ATX Swim Week told me to go to a Maxim party earlier that week and socialize with the models to see who I thought would be fitting for Siempre. So I went, socialized, and scouted for models. A lot of the models I did end up liking were the ones that were walking for Cambrie's new clothing line. I asked the girls that I liked if they'd be interested in walking for Siempre, they all said yes. I spoke with Cambrie as well, and she said she'd definitely walk for Siempre as well.

The next day, I made appointments with each model via Instagram DMs (this is what I mean by winging it). There were six girls that canceled saying that they could no longer walk due to prior engagements. These were all Cambrie's girls. When Cambrie and Faith did not show up to our fitting appointment either, we realized something was up. At this point I was very stressed out since we had 15 looks and we were missing eight models. What happened was, Cambrie was promised exclusivity with her models, by the person in charge of ATX Swim Week.. meanwhile that same person in charge told me that we would all be sharing models. All this miscommunication led Cambrie to believe that I was poaching her models! Cambrie and I had a conversation of what was promised to each brand.. and we worked it out. I was not disheartened by the models that were exclusive to Cambrie, I was more upset of the possibility of Cambrie and Faith not walking in our show. Fortunately, Cambrie is very rational and a person of her word, so we figured out what to do without the third party (person in charge of ATX Swim Week). 

Mind you, I can be a temperamental person especially if things do not go to plan. I was actually surprised and impressed with myself, because even though I was very stressed out, and in such shock, I did not get angry or say anything that I would later regret. VERY IMPORTANT LESSON LADIES, just stay cool even if things aren't going your way, because you never know if it may or may not work out. Stay professional no matter what. 

The next day was was for casting and seeking out new models. I was picky about which models we wanted to use and for which look. For example, sometimes you put a model in a blue suit, but then put her in a pink one, and she looks much more outstanding in the pink one. Every person has their color and style for their body type ;) Ultimately I had chosen 11 girls.

During rehearsal, we did not have our music mixed yet so we had to wing that as well from the five songs I provided the DJ with. He was a genius and mixed the songs well together. The songs were - "I Do" - Cardi B, "Tempo" - Lizzo, "WTP" - Teyana Taylor, and "On My Mind" - Jorja Smith. The reason I picked these songs, was because Siempre looks are very classy and sexy at the same time. However these songs are bad ass right? I wanted people to feel that vibe of a woman being able to look classy, but also be confident and sexy as hell.. to be empowered without any shame or apology.  

Rehearsals went smoothly, we had to be precise with timing on when the models should get up on stage and when they should transition off the stage. When it was our turn for the show, I felt nauseous from my anxiety, but we pulled through it since my adrenaline eventually kicked in. I really appreciate all the models that were so supportive and helpful throughout the entire process. There were models that walked multiple shows before, so they were teaching me tips and encouraging me that things would go well! Even though there was drama and miscommunication earlier that week, for actual show day, everyone was very supportive, excited, and had great energy.

TIP - I learned a huge lesson from this show: every model should have one look, otherwise you need to put at least eight girls in between each outfit change. We had 15 looks and nine of these girls had to go through outfit changes. I've never felt that much adrenaline before, we had three to four girls helping one model change looks behind the stage. The sequence of the line up changed as well, due to wardrobe malfunctions, whether it was a glove or heel missing or the wrong jewelry that was on. LOL I definitely miscalculated the timing, three minutes is not enough time for a model to change. Regardless, the entire experience was fun, challenging, and new. And guess what? The audience watching the show, had no idea of all the chaos that was going on behind that stage. In reality, the audience has no idea which jewelry or accessories are supposed to go with which looks.  We pulled through, and overall the show was a success. This was great marketing especially for an area which we do not put much focus, Austin, Texas. It was also my first time in Austin - let me tell you, the food is AMAZING.. maybe more so than Los Angeles.

The brands that were a part of ATX Swim Week Line Up were - Aviator Nation, Aponi, Fit with Cambrie, Lybethras, Viva La Silk, Reform, VDM the Label, and Siempre Golden :)