Business

Black Business Spotlight: Angie’s Hats

MINNESOTA SPOKESMAN-RECORDER — In the heart of Saint Paul’s art district sits a distinctive shop where milliner Angie Hall Sandifer makes hats.

Published

5 years ago

March 13, 2019

Oakland Post

By Chris Juhn

In the heart of Saint Paul’s art district sits a distinctive shop where milliner Angie Hall Sandifer makes hats. Founded in 2006, her namesake brand Angie’s Hats has grown from a class project after getting laid off to an international business, supplying custom-fitted creations to hat lovers all over the world.

Her hats are flashy, extravagant, and one-of-a-kind. They speak to the rich traditions of Black women and their coveted church hats as well as women all over the world clamoring for crowning looks at the Kentucky Derby.

We caught up with Sandifer in her sixth-floor Lowertown studio filled with hats and millinery equipment to talk inspiration, the creation process, and her vision for the future.

MSR: How did you learn how to make hats?

Angie Hall Sandifer: There was nobody [locally] to teach me, so someone recommended that I work at the Guthrie in the costume department. [Then] I ended up finding a master milliner in North Carolina. I had private lessons with her, [but] when I came back, I was [still] clueless. I kept practicing and one day some real hats started showing up!

MSR: How did a class project inspire your business?

AHS: I grew up in the South and I was a Baptist. My mother wore hats, my grandmother wore hats, my father wore caps. He liked seeing us in hats, so that whole church hat thing was an inspiration for me. I love hats, I never thought I would be making them, but it worked out and I found my passion.

MSR: What kind of hats do you make?

AHS: I started out with just basic hats — mostly church hat styles. But, as the years went by, I’ve gotten a little bit more creative. Now I do Kentucky Derby hats, as well.

MSR: The Kentucky Derby is in May. How long does it take to make a hat?

AHS: Probably a week, at most.

MSR: That’s pretty intense. What’s the process like?

AHS: There are different ways to make hats. Sometimes I use fabric, sometimes it’s straw, etc… I make them the old-fashioned way — wood blocks, steam, wire, those sorts of things. A lot of people think that you just buy a mold and add things, but that’s not how I do it.

Angie’s Hats celebrate Black style history (Submitted photo)

You come in for a fitting [and] you find different embellishments, such as ribbon or feathers, and I make the hat. Then you come in for a second fitting to find out if I need to make any adjustments. It’s custom-made to fit your head.

MSR: Do you make men’s hats?

AHS: I make fedora-style hats.

MSR: Where do you draw your inspiration?

AHS: Old movies. I just love that era when people got dressed up. They were elegant, they were classy, so that’s kind of my inspiration.

MSR: What’s your vision for Angie’s Hats?

AHS: I want to do more shows. I want to get more involved in conferences that come to the Twin Cities and become a vendor. My goal is to have [my hats] in boutiques and not sell them online.

MSR: Why not online?

AHS: A lot of times we find hats online that are pretty and we order them. [We get them and] they don’t look good on us or they don’t fit [well] because a lot of people don’t know what their head size is. So they send them back. I don’t want to get into shipping orders. I just want to make hats and sell them locally or in boutiques across the country.

MSR: Who is your clientele?

AHS: I sell church hats to a lot of women going to weddings in Europe because hats are customary there. But my busy season is the Kentucky Derby.

MSR: How do you interact with the art community around you in Lowertown and the Twin Cities?

AHS: I’ve been a part of the art crawl, and I usually open my studio for it. People are a little bit surprised to see hats, and people are really receptive.

MSR: What has been the most rewarding part of owning your business?

AHS: I used to work with kids through Big Brothers, Big Sisters, and I always used to tell the kids, “The only career advice you need is to find your passion and follow it.” But I never thought I’d find my passion — and I did.

Angie’s Hats is located at 308 Prince Street, Studio 610 in St. Paul. The shop is open by appointment only. For more info, call 651-208-4442 or visit angieshats.com.

This article originally appeared in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

2 days ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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State Controller Malia Cohen Keynote Speaker at S.F. Wealth Conference

California State Controller Malia Cohen delivered the keynote speech to over 50 business women at the Black Wealth Brunch held on March 28 at the War Memorial and Performing Arts Center at 301 Van Ness Ave. in San Francisco. The Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association (ABWA) hosted the Green Room event to launch its platform designed to close the racial wealth gap in Black and Brown communities.

Published

1 week ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

American Business Women’s Association Vice President Velma Landers, left, with California State Controller Malia Cohen (center), and ABWA President LaRonda Smith at the Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the ABWA at the Black Wealth Brunch.

By Carla Thomas

The Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association (ABWA) hosted the Green Room event to launch its platform designed to close the racial wealth gap in Black and Brown communities.

“Our goal is to educate Black and Brown families in the masses about financial wellness, wealth building, and how to protect and preserve wealth,” said ABWA San Francisco Chapter President LaRonda Smith.

ABWA’s mission is to bring together businesswomen of diverse occupations and provide opportunities for them to help themselves and others grow personally and professionally through leadership, education, networking support, and national recognition.

“This day is about recognizing influential women, hearing from an accomplished woman as our keynote speaker and allowing women to come together as powerful people,” said ABWA SF Chapter Vice President Velma Landers.

More than 60 attendees dined on the culinary delights of Chef Sharon Lee of The Spot catering, which included a full soul food brunch of skewered shrimp, chicken, blackened salmon, and mac and cheese.

Cohen discussed the many economic disparities women and people of color face. From pay equity to financial literacy, Cohen shared not only statistics, but was excited about a new solution in motion which entailed partnering with Californians for Financial Education.

“I want everyone to reach their full potential,” she said. “Just a few weeks ago in Sacramento, I partnered with an organization, Californians for Financial Education.

“We gathered 990 signatures and submitted it to the [California] Secretary of State to get an initiative on the ballot that guarantees personal finance courses for every public school kid in the state of California.

“Every California student deserves an equal opportunity to learn about filing taxes, interest rates, budgets, and understanding the impact of credit scores. The way we begin to do that is to teach it,” Cohen said.

By equipping students with information, Cohen hopes to close the financial wealth gap, and give everyone an opportunity to reach their full financial potential. “They have to first be equipped with the information and education is the key. Then all we need are opportunities to step into spaces and places of power.”

Cohen went on to share that in her own upbringing, she was not guided on financial principles that could jump start her finances. “Communities of color don’t have the same information and I don’t know about you, but I did not grow up listening to my parents discussing their assets, their investments, and diversifying their portfolio. This is the kind of nomenclature and language we are trying to introduce to our future generations so we can pivot from a life of poverty so we can pivot away and never return to poverty.”

Cohen urged audience members to pass the initiative on the November 2024 ballot.

“When we come together as women, uplift women, and support women, we all win. By networking and learning together, we can continue to build generational wealth,” said Landers. “Passing a powerful initiative will ensure the next generation of California students will be empowered to make more informed financial decisions, decisions that will last them a lifetime.”

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Business

Black Business Summit Focuses on Equity, Access and Data

The California African American Chamber of Commerce hosted its second annual “State of the California African American Economy Summit,” with the aim of bolstering Black economic influence through education and fellowship. Held Jan. 24 to Jan. 25 at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel, the convention brought together some of the most influential Black business leaders, policy makers and economic thinkers in the state. The discussions focused on a wide range of economic topics pertinent to California’s African American business community, including policy, government contracts, and equity, and more.

Published

1 week ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

Toks Omishakin, Secretary of the California State Transportation Agency (CALSTA), answers questions from concerned entrepreneurs frustrated with a lack of follow-up from the state. January 24, 2024 at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel, Lost Angeles, Calif. Photo by Solomon O. Smith

By Solomon O. Smith, California Black Media

The California African American Chamber of Commerce hosted its second annual “State of the California African American Economy Summit,” with the aim of bolstering Black economic influence through education and fellowship.

Held Jan. 24 to Jan. 25 at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel, the convention brought together some of the most influential Black business leaders, policy makers and economic thinkers in the state. The discussions focused on a wide range of economic topics pertinent to California’s African American business community, including policy, government contracts, and equity, and more.

Toks Omishakin, Secretary of the California State Transportation Agency (CALSTA) was a guest at the event. He told attendees about his department’s efforts to increase access for Black business owners.

“One thing I’m taking away from this for sure is we’re going to have to do a better job of connecting through your chambers of all these opportunities of billions of dollars that are coming down the pike. I’m honestly disappointed that people don’t know, so we’ll do better,” said Omishakin.

Lueathel Seawood, the president of the African American Chamber of Commerce of San Joaquin County, expressed frustration with obtaining federal contracts for small businesses, and completing the process. She observed that once a small business was certified as DBE, a Disadvantaged Business Enterprises, there was little help getting to the next step.

Omishakin admitted there is more work to be done to help them complete the process and include them in upcoming projects. However, the high-speed rail system expansion by the California High-Speed Rail Authority has set a goal of 30% participation from small businesses — only 10 percent is set aside for DBE.

The importance of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) in economics was reinforced during the “State of the California Economy” talk led by author and economist Julianne Malveaux, and Anthony Asadullah Samad, Executive Director of the Mervyn Dymally African American Political and Economic Institute (MDAAPEI) at California State University, Dominguez Hills.

Assaults on DEI disproportionately affect women of color and Black women, according to Malveaux. When asked what role the loss of DEI might serve in economics, she suggested a more sinister purpose.

“The genesis of all this is anti-blackness. So, your question about how this fits into the economy is economic exclusion, that essentially has been promoted as public policy,” said Malveaux.

The most anticipated speaker at the event was Janice Bryant Howroyd known affectionately to her peers as “JBH.” She is one of the first Black women to run and own a multi-billion-dollar company. Her company ActOne Group, is one of the largest, and most recognized, hiring, staffing and human resources firms in the world. She is the author of “Acting Up” and has a profile on Forbes.

Chairman of the board of directors of the California African American Chamber of Commerce, Timothy Alan Simon, a lawyer and the first Black Appointments Secretary in the Office of the Governor of California, moderated. They discussed the state of Black entrepreneurship in the country and Howroyd gave advice to other business owners.

“We look to inspire and educate,” said Howroyd. “Inspiration is great but when I’ve got people’s attention, I want to teach them something.”