A Pandemic Success Story
By Tara Kelly
Photos by Ryan Lavine
Cara Cara burst on the scene in the middle of the pandemic with fun, flirty cotton dresses that spoke to the moment—designed by and for career women who suddenly found their lives upended, working from home and vacationing in their backyard.
They were an instant hit.
Since then, the demand has grown: The line has expanded to embrace all seasons, including resort wear. The fabrics include knitwear, velvet, sequins, and feathers—still flirty, still speaking to women who want a heavy dose of style along with their fun.
This seeming overnight success is in fact grounded in the career bona fides of the three principal partners. Sasha Martin and Julia Brown, the founders of Cara Cara, met in 2018 at a children’s gym in Millerton. They both own homes in Dutchess County. Martin was on maternity leave from Barclay’s Capital, where she worked in corporate communications. Brown was creative director at G-III Apparel Group. Brown floated the idea of starting up a clothing line together. After 13 years designing for someone else’s label, she was ready to strike out on her own—but knew she needed a business partner.
Just a couple months later, Katie Hobbs joined as chief marketing officer, bringing expertise in digital media and e-commerce to the table from her time at Carolina Herrera and Harper’s Bazaar. She mostly works remotely from home.
As with most success stories, there have been some bumps along the way—notably, the pandemic.
“It was so scary. We’d invested all our life savings. We’re entirely independently owned and operated by the three of us,” Martin says.
Lots of handwringing and uncertainty ensued. Until, Brown says, “we decided the fabric is too beautiful to just sit there, and we would go ahead and make the dresses.”
“With most everyone working from home, no one needed business wear. People were ready for happy clothes—and suddenly the sundresses were really in demand,” Brown says.
Cara Cara continues to dress for success. It’s a women-owned and -operated company designing clothes for women who work hard, play hard, and dedicate themselves to their families. “We’re always asking, ‘what would our friends want to wear?’”
Their country lifestyle is reflected in the clothes as well. The current line includes lots of florals on dark backgrounds, and jackets, sweaters, and loungewear equally at home in the city or out and about in the country.
But they’re not designing just for their friends; they want to appeal to a wide cross-section of women. “The breadth of the collection keeps getting bigger,” Brown says. “And the business is experiencing exponential growth,” adds Martin. “The beauty of being independent is that we get to decide what the timeline for expansion is.” They’ve seen too many businesses crash and burn on take-off, so they’re going to take it slow, and enjoy the ride.
And the beauty of owning your own company is that you get to set the rules. These are women who really do believe that you can have it all, and look good doing it.—caracaranyc.com