Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Steinwurtzel.
Hi Jennifer, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I opened up Jake and Jones at a time in my life when I was feeling a need to reconnect to the world, to business and to fashion. I am a mom of two amazing boys and I wanted to raise them seeing their mom work and contribute to the world. I was going through a divorce and was really wanting to create space for myself that was creative and meaningful. Having an eye for clothes and style, I opened up my little shop.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh man, it has not been a smooth road. I opened the shop just a few months before the devastating Thomas Fire and then a few months later the horrific mudslides. It was a terrible time here in Santa Barbara. Our community was completely rocked and it was a struggle. I also have wanted to make this journey my own, learning along the way and with that comes learning lessons – some financial, some emotional, but to me, they were all worth it. I also think some people love a “new kid on the block” and others are unwelcoming. In a small town, there is a lot of “who are you?” mentality, so I have been an advocate in our community for working together to lift all of us up.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a curator. I spend my time picking out items to sell in our shop – mostly clothes, some objects and homeware. I am constantly thinking about style as expression and I am curious and interested in designers who are pushing the edges of what already exists. I think I am most known for my colorful style – we live in a rather neutral town, with very casual ways of dressing and I have created a more colorful space, a modern space and a community space for people to feel welcome. We are forward and progressive in all of our ways from the clothing to our culture in the shop to the designers we support. I am most proud of that AND that my kids see me as a woman working and doing exactly what I love and answering only to myself.
How do you think about luck?
Luck is so much. I am part of the lucky sperm club and I grew up financially secure. I am also white and privileged and I don’t think for one second my life would look the same if I was not. No matter how hard one works, we all have to recognize the opportunities we have gotten because of the circumstances we were born into and I am very aware of that. So yes, luck has a lot to do with it!
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://jakeandjones.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shopjakeandjones/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shopjakeandjones/
