Young designer fashions and sells fleece hats

At 13 years of age, Zavgren is a successful entrepreneur, making whimsical fleece hats that she markets over the Internet. She is also an accomplished thespian, she’s on the ski racing team at Crotched Mountain, she’s an avid soccer player, she has played Suzuki violin since seven-years-old, she sings in the Peterborough Children’s Choir and she is in the process of writing a gourmet cookbook for kids.

Sounds exhausting but not for young Sadie Rose.

In December 2004, she started her company, doyoulikemyhats.com, after making the quirky fleece hats as presents for her family.

“It started out because I needed Christmas presents,” said Sadie Rose. “I decided that I wanted to make a hat and I started cutting and cutting and I didn’t stop. The hats ended up being really long and you could wrap them around you like a scarf.”

Sadie Rose recruited her sewing teacher, Ellen Morgan from Lincoln, Mass., to help clarify her design ideas and during the next two years, she made approximately 300 hats, from start-to-finish.

The hats, made out of multicolored layers of high-quality, 200-weight fleece, are approximately four feet in length. For added warmth and softness, the inside head panel, covering the ears, is made of 100-weight micro-fleece. Sadie Rose tops off her stocking caps with a large, multicolored pom-pom, made out leftover scraps of material.

“I chose fleece because it’s really warm and it comes in brilliant colors,” she said. “It’s also easy to sew.”

Formalizing her business was a family affair. Home-schooled since the age of 10, Sadie Rose worked with her mother, Bridgette Mooney, who did the artwork for her business cards. She also worked with her dad, John Zavgren, and her mother to design her website, www.doyoulikemyhats.com.

“People really love them,” said Sadie Rose, “and I’ve raised about $6,000 that I put into my bank account for college.”

As her business has grown, she has had to incorporate new strategies to ensure continued success.

“I had to have help because it got so big,” said Sadie Rose, “and I had so much work.”

Last September, she hired someone to assist in cutting the material and the hats are now produced in Massachusetts.

“I used to let people customize their hats but it got to be too much,” said Sadie Rose. “About two months ago, I changed the website and I have my whole inventory on my website.”

She markets her traditional hat at a cost of $30, and now also offers a new design that costs $36 because it includes a little pocket on the outside brim of the hat for carrying iPods, gum or keys.

“Last winter was really great,” said Sadie Rose. “I sold about 50 hats in two months. This winter has been a little slow because of the weather.”

Making fanciful winter hats are just one passion of this multifaceted young woman.

“I’m an actor and I love it,” she said.

“I really got into theater because I like Andy’s so much,” said Sadie Rose, referring to Andy’s Summer Playhouse in Wilton.”

Her first performance with Andy’s Summer Playhouse was a musical rendition of “Fahrenheit 451” and it launched her acting career, which has since included two separate Broadway shows on 42nd street in New York City. Through High Fidelity Theatre, an affiliate of Andy’s Summer Playhouse, Sadie Rose has appeared in productions of “Pandora’s Box” and “Tabula Rasa.”

“I was 11 when I was in ‘Pandora’s Box,’” said Sadie Rose. “It was fun because I had a musical solo.”

She said that she wants to continue acting in the theatre. But it won’t stop her pursuit of other interests, especially her love of fashion and design.

“I love doing the hats,” said Sadie Rose, “but I eventually want to get out of fleece. I want to start a new clothing line with my best friend because I love things that look modern and chic.”

All indications are that she will achieve all of her dreams.

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

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