Solemates

When I was 18, I came home from Hawaii for Christmas. I was kind of lost because so much had changed since high school. My friends had moved on and I did not really know exactly what I wanted to do in life. I went downtown to see the Christmas lights and I met this guy, Madison. There was something about him that made my heart flutter. I went back to Hawaii, but he stayed on my mind. Once I finished school, I moved back home and for years we saw each other and hung out a time or two but it just never felt like the “right” time. Then, on my 27th birthday, the stars aligned. Maybe heaven was betting on us.

It seemed almost immediately that we started spending every day together and almost as quickly we fell in love. We went everywhere. We did everything. We got engaged. We had a daughter and even partnered in a shoe and apparel store, Solemates. Life was happening fast for us. In December 2019, our daughter was born and in January 2020 we signed our lease and hit the ground running. Two new babies. We worked tirelessly painting, finding furniture, scrubbing floors, fighting over shelves, but chasing forever with him made it worth it. In March 2020, the pandemic hit. Did it stop us? Absolutely not. We kept at it and the vision became more and more tangible every day. By May, we were putting the finishing touches on the store. I couldn’t believe it. We did it! We chose a date for our grand opening, picked a theme, and made a guest list. In reality, it seemed too good to be true … and it was.

On May 21, 2020, as Madison was meeting a friend with merchandise, and we talked on the phone about what we would be doing next, he was killed in a drive by shooting. Somehow, even more quickly than we had started, things had fallen apart. I dropped the phone and my heart sunk to my feet. For weeks I could not sleep wondering if anything I could have been done that would have changed the circumstances. I beat myself up a lot.

When the pain of the initial blow subsided, I was still terrified of being back at the store, so once the lease ended I let it go. It was hard to turn the lights off and lock up that last time, but it was harder to walk in and see all the memories playing on the walls like a drive in movie. I knew I had to keep going though. Giving up was never a part of the plan no matter how tough things had gotten. So as often as I could muster the strength, I got out and delivered shoes and shirts around the city. Often I ended up in places where we went together, crying at each one of them. Some days grief won, more often than I care to admit honestly and that was okay. With the support of our friends, it got easier. Things got better. It’s been a year now, and I am so proud of the progress.

Now, my goal is to take Solemates to the next level with a rebranding. I have spent countless nights researching marketing tips and pitches trying to construct an identity. I have invested in using sustainable and recyclable goods for our shipping and have gone back and forth creating a clothing line that inspires the creators because just as important as the innovation is the innovator and Solemates wants to dress the mind that will change the world.

A legacy.