Adaptation

I am so sad to say that we are closing the Bishop St. location and moving the hat shop into an at home studio for the time being. We packed up all the hats over the 4th of July weekend and had a chance to reflect on how stunning that space has been! The pride I feel when looking at Haylee Ryan’s beautiful mural in the courtyard, the way Stash Designs interior elevated the hats in a way they had deserved for years, and the sunlight pouring in from the sky light on the desk in the round is so hard to walk away from. I had so many hopes for this next incarnation of the HOM and the memories I wanted to make with our clients and friends there. It felt like I had just gotten everything up on the walls in mid February and then quarantine arrived in March.

I have a small business that really depends on the big horse racing events and weddings in the spring/summer to stay afloat. Having those canceled has been devastating to the financials and the addition of 3 young kids at home for the foreseeable future has put a huge limitation on my time. I know that so many other women around the world are feeling that pinch right now too. The good news is that I am still in business. The on line sales have been growing and I have been meeting a sweet group of clients in the sweltering heat (but safety) of our front yard. I love my clients so much and have desperately missed meeting with you guys face to face. I feed off the energy of collaborating with you all for your special occasions and that is part of the magic of making custom hats.

The social responsibility I have to be safe and not spread this virus more has weighed heavily on me. My space is TINY at Bishop and the science has been consistent that enclosed air in tight quarters is not a good idea. I don’t think we needed to be in such a bad spot four months in and I am pretty angry at people in positions of influence who turned mask wearing into a political act and not a public safety one. I am watching my counterparts in other parts of the world return to some sort of normalcy and Texas seems to be moving in the opposite direction. For the sake of our health and the economy, please wear a damn mask! I want my kids to go back to school and my business to come back to life again.

If you haven’t checked out our Shopify site yet, please do! It’s a great way to see what hats are available and the new styles that are out. If you are a derby hat person, I am putting this entire current season at 30-50% off. Tell a friend! I’ve NEVER done a discount like that and it is a great chance to pick up something fabulous while we are regrouping for a new year. I will be posting new pictures for the rest of this month of inventory hats that are available. I am still taking custom hat orders, making new summer hats, and working on the “hat home” studio. Life demanded a pivot and I think making this move now is going to keep the HOM stronger and help me be more creative with the hats in the years to come.

If you live in the neighborhood and want to do a porch pick up, remember to enter PORCHPICKUP as a discount code in Shopify to remove the shipping. I am available anytime to answer questions and give recommendations. If you would like to try somethings on in person, we can make an appointment for a picnic table fitting! Thank you all for your support during this crazy time, every sale is appreciated and you are helping to keep me in business. Stay safe and stay in touch! As you can see, we are still making people smile…even from home.

https://the-house-of-macgregor.myshopify.com