Designing Woman
Youth is anything but wasted on this twentysomething fashion maven.
Building a successful business poses a formidable challenge at
any age. But for entrepreneurs in their early twenties, it may seem
all but impossible. Those in need of inspiration need look no
further than 22-year-old Toronto-born clothing designer Elle Hamm.
Vying for position in the frenzied world of fashion, Hamm, perhaps
the personification of today's new age of "girl
power," has strategized her way into a niche that's as
comfortable as her funky dress styles.
"I haven't seen anything else out there like
this," says Hamm of her clothing line. Her Rudwear Inc.
designs combine form-fitting femininity with an athletic edge and
can be worn as either daywear or eveningwear. Commanding her
growing business from a corporate suite in Beverly Hills,
California, Hamm's Rudwear Collection boasted 1998 sales of
$100,000.
Just how did Hamm gain entree into the exclusive arena of
fashion design at such a tender age? Very carefully. "A lot of
times I don't tell people my age because I don't think
they'll take me seriously," she reveals. When it's
time for power lunches with the big players, Hamm trades her
everyday braids for a more sophisticated "do" and
transforms herself into a fellow suit.
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But her outer transformation is just the beginning. In dealing
with corporate types, "I may not look equal," she says,
"but I feel equal."
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