It all started as a semester project in college for her advanced marketing class. Closet Fetish owner and creator, Sommer Meyer never dreamed that by the end of her 12-week term, the class assignment which she merely hoped she’d earn an A would become a full-fledged business, landing her press in the pages of In Style, Domino, and even Oprah’s “O” list. Haute Living sat down with Meyer to get the scoop on her hot idea, Closet Fetish.
BA: What is Closet Fetish?
SM: Closet Fetish is the ultimate couture closet organizing system with a key focus on stilettos and haute heels. I had so many shoes I had to take pictures of them and paste them to the cardboard boxes they came in. It was never was durable way to organize. I decided to create couture shoe boxes featuring a four-by-six frame on the outside allowing fellow footwear fiends to take pictures of pumps and display them on the box. The boxes come in a variety of colors; lavender, lipstick red, baby blue, powder pink, chocolate brown, and beige.
BA: How did a simple school project turn into a full-fledged business?
SM: The business plan section of my project turned everything around, specifically the press release part. I was a marketing major and also worked in marketing for Bacardi at the time so I knew a thing or two about how to promote. I made a press kit, picked up tons of fashion magazines, e-mailed editors, and within a week had press requests from In Style, Domino, and Oprah’s “O” List. I was ecstatic, but also only had three boxes to my name at the time. I acted fast and within another week was on a plane to Hong Kong with my mother and sister to source large run manufacturing options.
BA: Do you have a fashion or footwear background or are you just a self- proclaimed high-heel fanatic?
SM: I like to call myself a shoe curator. I have such a passion for shoes. Before Closet Fetish I probably had 350-plus pairs! If I put on a great pair of pumps, it changes everything. Shoes never let you down. It doesn’t matter if you lose weight, gain weight-they’re always a loyal friend. You can wear a $1,000 suit, but the wrong pair of shoes can wreck the whole thing. Also, there’s a lot more memory stored in your sensory from a fabulous shoe purchase versus just another dress. I always remember buying that wonderful black leather pair in Milan or satin blue stiletto during that girl’s trip to New York.
BA: You have quite a celebrity fan base. Who are some of your star clientele?
SM: Denise Richards is by far my biggest endorser. She was the first to purchase the custom shoe boxes in baby blue. Kim Kardashian tweeted about them before Twitter went so viral. Michelle Obama owns the chocolate brown. Rachel Zoe prefers the beige; in fact Zoe featured the couture boxes on both her show Rachel Zoe Project and in her daily blog, The Zoe Report. The day the blog came out the Closet Fetish site crashed from the amount of traffic it tossed our way. Zoe also hooked us up with the Home Shopping Network and we had show there for a year.
BA: You’re also the regional sales manager for Bacardi. Is there a synergy between the popular vodka brand and Closet Fetish?
SM: There’s a lot of premium synergy. For Closet Fetish events we do signature Bacardi cocktails. A few years ago Closet Fetish shoe boxes were a featured gift for Grammy swag and we ended up doing a cross promotion with Bacardi putting the perfect cocktail recipe together with mini Grey Goose vodkas in the bags. It was very Sex and the City.
BA: So what’s next for Closet Fetish?
SM: We’re definitely expanding. We’ve always had wooden hangers and baby hangers. We’re going to add different box sizes for boots and possibly do hat boxes. We’re also scheduled to be on Oprah’s “O” list again as well as In Style in November.
Shoe lovers! Snag your very own custom couture shoeboxes at www.closetfetish.com.
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