On this special Canada Day episode, meet Edmonton-based entrepreneur and sustainable brand maven Karly Gramlich. Karly talks about her leap of faith to pursue a passion and develop sustainable luxury fashion and accessories for the modern professional with her brand and online retail store Upper District.
Welcome to The Voice of Retail. I'm your host Michael LeBlanc. This podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada.
On this special Canada Day episode, meet Edmonton-based entrepreneur and sustainable brand maven Karly Gramlich. Karly talks about her leap of faith to pursue a passion and develop sustainable luxury fashion and accessories for the modern professional with her brand and online retail store Upper District. Karly also shares with us how her personal journey has built the resilience and fortitude to take Upper District to the next level on the global stage
Thanks for tuning into this special episode of The Voice of Retail. If you haven’t already, be sure and click subscribe on your favourite podcast platform so new episodes will land automatically twice a week, and check out my other retail industry media properties; the Remarkable Retail podcast, the Conversations with CommerceNext podcast, and the Food Professor podcast. Last but not least, if you are into BBQ, check out my all new YouTube barbecue show, Last Request Barbeque, with new episodes each and every week!
I’m your host Michael LeBlanc, President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company & Maven Media, and if you’re looking for more content, or want to chat follow me on LinkedIn, or visit my website meleblanc.co! Have a safe week everyone!
About Karly
Karly Gramlich is the Founder and CEO at Upper District; a Canadian-based sustainable luxury fashion and accessories brand.
She describes herself as unapologetically unconventional. Despite growing up as a farmer's daughter and miles away from the luxury scene, her ambitious personality took hold and Upper District was born. She sought to outfit those who have worked relentlessly to achieve their goals, despite an unconventional background.
Company contact email: inquiries@upper-district.com
About Michael
Michael is the Founder & President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc and a Senior Advisor to Retail Council of Canada as part of his advisory and consulting practice. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience and has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. He has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions with C-level executives and participated on thought leadership panels worldwide. Michael was recently added to ReThink Retail’s prestigious Top 100 Global Retail Influencers for a second year in 2022.
Michael is also the producer and host of a network of leading podcasts, including Canada’s top retail industry podcast, The Voice of Retail, plus the Remarkable Retail with author Steve Dennis, Global E-Commerce Tech Talks and The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois. Most recently, Michael launched Conversations with CommerceNext, a podcast focussed on retail eCommerce, digital marketing and retail careers - all available on Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music and all major podcast platforms. Michael is also the producer and host of the “Last Request Barbeque” channel on YouTube where he cooks meals to die for and influencer riches.
Michael LeBlanc 00:05
Welcome to The Voice of Retail. I'm your host Michael LeBlanc. This podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada.
Michael LeBlanc 00:10
On this special Canada Day episode meet Edmonton-based entrepreneur and sustainable brand maven Karly Gramlich. Karly talks about her leap of faith to pursue a passion and develop sustainable luxury fashion and accessories for the modern professional, and her brand and online retail store Upper District. Karly also shares with us how her personal journey has built resilience and fortitude to take Upper District to the next level on the global stage.
Karly Gramlich 00:35
And, and again, the sustainability of sustainability is just constantly being authentic, and honest. And I mean, people can sniff out greenwashing from a mile away for the most part. So, it's ways that we can really, -
Michael LeBlanc 00:52
Companies, companies are getting pretty good at it.
Karly Gramlich 00:54
Yeah, yeah, exactly. But it is, you know, ways that we can emphasize those commitments. And that's where groups for example, like positive luxury come in and, -
Michael LeBlanc 01:03
Third party validation, right?
Karly Gramlich 01:04
Exactly. And with that biodiversity strategy, because ultimately, we're building it out right now. So, it's going to be a public document as well.
Michael LeBlanc 01:13
Let's listen in now. Karly, welcome to The Voice of Retail podcast. How are you doing this afternoon?
Karly Gramlich 01:19
I'm fantastic. Thank you for having me on.
Michael LeBlanc 01:21
Well, you and I met earlier in the spring and in Las Vegas at Shop Talk at a, a gathering. And, boy, we had a great conversation. It's so it's great to follow up with you. Where, where am I finding you, that was in Vegas? Where am I finding you today?
Karly Gramlich 01:35
I am just back home in Edmonton.
Michael LeBlanc 01:37
Fantastic and how are things in Edmonton?
Karly Gramlich 01:40
Oh, they're, good summers around the corner. And I'm actually going to be taking like a little bit of time off. So, I am looking forward to it.
Michael LeBlanc 01:47
Fantastic. Well, that's great. Well, as I mentioned, you and I got to know each other a little bit and we've chatted, but the folks listening don't really know who you are. So, let's start there. Tell us about who you are and, and what you do and what's your personal professional journey. And, and then we'll get all about what you're doing with interesting brands and retail and all that stuff.
Karly Gramlich 02:06
Sure. Well, I founded Upper District in 2017. My personal background is a little bit unconventional. So, I actually consider myself to be unapologetically unconventional, it's how I best state it.
Karly Gramlich 02:19
Um, so I come from a pretty humble background, I actually grew up as a farmer's daughter in just rural Alberta. And we, we didn't grow up with much. I was raised by a single dad, my mom left when I was about two. And so, it was it was an interesting upbringing, but honestly, I wouldn't change it for the world.
Karly Gramlich 02:37
A few years later, we actually had a nanny come from Philippines, and she came to help out, ultimately ended up being my stepmom and but yeah, our, our upbringing was challenging in the sense that we didn't have a lot of money. But, you know, we grew up to be very independent, resourceful, and tough to say the least. So, that's kind of where the personal background comes from.
Karly Gramlich 03:01
Professionally, I went to a small well, there was about 500 people in our, our village will say, small class graduated high school there. Again, a world away from what I do now, the world of luxury obviously wasn't on my radar at that time, it was always something I was so intrigued by, but just was never a potential reality, especially when you're an 18-year-old, kind of looking down the tunnel of life and deciding what, what you might want to do.
Karly Gramlich 03:30
So, when I was younger, I, you know, went to University, started doing my new column prerequisites for dental school actually, completed those I was doing a specialized science degree, wrote my DAT, which is the, the Canadian version of the Dental Aptitude Test, and my marks weren't high enough. So, I ultimately didn't get into dental school.
Karly Gramlich 03:49
So, from there, it was kind of, you know, dream crushing at that age. And I ultimately pursued dental hygiene, so, I worked as a dental hygienist or graduated as a dental hygienist in 2014. And then did that until there was kind of one of those moments in life where you really sit back and think about what truly makes you happy. And, in, in my case, that kind of came in the form of a late term pregnancy loss and you know, having to undergo surgery on, you know, a Friday and having to be back to work on Monday. So, I decided to pursue a passion and just kind of go all in and that's when Upper District was born.
Michael LeBlanc 04:29
Well, it's, it's, it's not unusual for me to hear from folks, entrepreneurs, this intersection of the personal and the professional. So, what's your kind of articulating?
Like question for you know, Malcolm Gladwell, in one of his books talked about adversity, and its benefits, basically, in other words, you know, growing up with no adversity isn't so great. Growing up with too much adversity is hard to overcome. It, it sounds like you had I don't know if it's the right way to say but, you know, you, it's forged you in terms of fortitude. And, and because you got to have a lot of fortitude to do what you do today to do what you did before too, but to do what you do today, and we'll get into that you've, you've got a, you have got a lot of hills to climb and bumps to overcome, right?
Karly Gramlich 05:14
Yeah, it was ultimately starting from scratch. Like, there was no financial backing, there was no wealth, there was no network connections, absolutely nothing. So, when I built it, it was literally right from scratch. So, it's been a slower process, but a very organic process, a very sustainable growth. And I think there's so much value in that. Because it, we move quickly, and I make decisions quickly. But I think I just bring a totally different perspective in how I make decisions. And you know, that's, it's been crucial to the business, (crossover talk), -
Michael LeBlanc 05:18
And probably, and probably how you take on the day-to-day bumps in the road, right?
Karly Gramlich 05:52
Absolutely.
Michael LeBlanc 05:53
You know, like, I you know, we're talking off mic, I was trying to get something done (inaudible) just endless little bumps in the road. And you're like, you know, (inaudible) fine, you just push through, right? I mean, -
Karly Gramlich 06:03
You just roll with them. I think I, I never stress too, too much about things that are out of my control. If it's, (crossover talk), something you can't control, then you know, just kind of go with the flow and deal with it. But, -
Michael LeBlanc 06:16
Yeah, yeah, that's a good, good life lesson for everybody, for sure. Now, talk about so I get the, the dental school and the kind of the left turn. But why the left turn in? Well, let's take let's before we get ahead of ourselves, tell us about Upper District before we ask you why you got into it. Tell us all about Upper District and what it is and all about it?
Karly Gramlich 06:35
Yeah, so we're a Canadian based sustainable luxury fashion and accessories brand. So, we've currently launched her eyewear and we're actually building out our digitally powered circular model, apparel expansion. So, this is with the ability for resale, guaranteeing authenticity and tracking impact. So, our expansion involves a strong tech element to it as well. But ultimately, we are brand first and we've got strong Canadian roots.
Michael LeBlanc 07:00
Your concept is an interesting intersection of a bunch of things like the (crossover talk), right, which, which I'm sure is fun, because it makes it a little hard to define sometimes. But also interesting, right? Because you got to be different. So, you've, you've got this intersection of, you know, as you say, circular economy, sustainability, but luxury at the same time. And then you're building things out. And then there's, there's technology. So, just unpack it a little bit more for us. So, if I go to your site today, I see eyewear, for example, right? Tell me, tell me about the product and tell me why you started there.? And let's start there, -
Karly Gramlich 07:30
So, we started with eyewear ultimately, because first off, it was something that I could help co-design, I had sketches I had sent them back and forth to our manufacturer and that's kind of where we went with that. But also, it all kind of relates back to my story, again, in the sense that, you know, you put on eyewear, and it can really evoke a sense of confidence and almost protection. It's, it's almost a piece that you wear that enables you to really take on a new challenge, and feel that sense of protection. And that really resonated with me.
Michael LeBlanc 08:03
You know, I hadn't thought of eyewear that way. I remember I got a, a fancier pair of glasses and, and it really was a distinctive change, right? Versus the kind of generic, like people I don't know, wouldn't say look at you differently. I mean, literally, they wow, look at those glasses, they're different, they're interesting, but it also is a should I call it a statement piece, but it, it works both ways. Yeah, -
Karly Gramlich 08:23
Yeah, yeah, you can be very versatile with it. And I think it's that versatility and style too that, again, just allows for, you know, freedom of self expression for one. But, I mean, you, you can wear a different piece every day if you really want and it's just it's so versatile.
Michael LeBlanc 08:41
And tell me tell me about the and how would you describe for those since we're an audio media How would you describe the, the glasses like what, what aesthetic? Where did you borrow from? And you said you did the designs, where did you, (crossover talk), where did it come from?
Karly Gramlich 08:56
We kind of relate best to like I like to say the modern professional, so very strong styles. Kind of those cool styles that again, just they, they evoke a sense of strength and yeah, -
Michael LeBlanc 09:13
They're very, they're very and, and of course I'll put a link in the show notes but they're very distinctive, right? You can't miss like they're not I wouldn't call them subtle.
Karly Gramlich 09:21
No, they're very edgy.
Michael LeBlanc 09:22
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Karly Gramlich 09:23
Just kind of like hyper cool designs.
Michael LeBlanc 09:26
Yeah. Now who did you have in mind when you when you had that in your in your designers eye mind so to speak, who do, who was wearing those did you think like Is it is it for everyone, every age and just tell me a little bit about the personality you think would be interested in your product. Then I want to talk about the sustainability element which is really cool, but (crossover talk), I am just kind of hovering on the product first.
Karly Gramlich 09:45
Again, those modern professionals so kind of, you know, 25 to 35 who are really stepping out and you know, kind of building up the or climbing the ladder whether it be you know, through their own entrepreneurial goals or the core corporate ladder or just, you know, really taking hold of, of what they want to create or where they want to be. That's the that's the best way I can, you know, describe our consumers or who are wearing our products.
Michael LeBlanc 10:16
Yeah, who you're who you're thinking of when you're designing them. And, -
Karly Gramlich 10:18
Exactly, -
Michael LeBlanc 10:19
Making them now let's talk about the sustainability piece. So, how did you, how did you come to that? It's an interesting, another interesting intersection, because I do find that folks who grow up rural and on the farm are closer to the earth. I mean, they have a very, I would say, greater appreciation. Does that resonate with you? Is that how you got there?
Karly Gramlich 10:38
At all came from yeah, like I said, it was we were just small grain farmers. So, ultimately, it was that agricultural process that kept food on our table. And even today, you know, it's my favorite place in the world to go and my, my parents still live there. And it's such a, it's just a place you can go for one to find solitude. So, I think there was always that strong connection. And I always say, like, when I founded the brand in 2017, we were really, "the new kids on the block", in terms of sustainability, you know, as even in the past couple years, there's been this monumental shift toward more focus. But ultimately, at that time, it was still so new. So, it's always been, you know, kind of a key value that's been incorporated into our brand right from the beginning.
Michael LeBlanc 11:21
Right through DNA. I mean, it's right in your DNA, isn't it, right?
Karly Gramlich 11:24
Exactly, you know, mine personally, and the brand itself. So, we've always been very authentic about it, too. Right from the beginning, you know, especially now we're noticing with the rise in greenwashing, how do we emphasize that and communicate that to our, our consumers?
Karly Gramlich 11:40
So, you know, I, I wrote a piece for a publication, oh, gosh, this was prior to COVID. This was a while back that really highlighted, you know, it's a sustainability challenge faced by small emerging brands, and which highlighted things that brands with small budgets can do to communicate and emphasize their sustainability commitments, in ways that do have a big impact.
Karly Gramlich 12:00
Because that's the next challenge, you know, small brands, small budget, but it's, it's a big undertaking, ultimately. So, you know, for us, our first, you know, way of, or of emphasizing that was that we developed our corporate biodiversity strategy. So, it kind of highlights our commitment, ways that we stand biodiversity loss, highlights are driving motivators, we set our scope, our guiding framework, really recognize our impacts and dependencies, kind of ways that we implement our actions and, you know, in terms of what we're going to do, and then our monitoring strategy.
Karly Gramlich 12:39
So, one thing with our biodiversity strategy is it's actually we call it a living document, because as we grow as a brand, and as a business, so does the document, we can kind of look back on it as a whole and make changes. So, different ways of you know, implementing our actions, for example, is, you know, things that we can avoid or minimize or restore and things that we can't, how do we offset those. So, that was kind of our first step in our sustainability journey, I guess you'd say.
Karly Gramlich 13:11
And then from there, actually, I'd say fairly recently, we're selected by positive luxury, which is an ESG plus certifying group as part of their inaugural accelerator program. So, we're working with them towards the Butterfly Mark certification. And just to give you a sense, they only certify luxury brands. So, for example, Dior is certified by Positive Luxury. So, we're ver-, very fortunate to be taken up by them as well,
Michael LeBlanc 13:37
That's a good neighborhood to be in, That's a good neighbor to have, (crossover talk), for sure,
Karly Gramlich 13:40
To, to build that into our, our brand as well. And that's something that we can easily communicate with our consumers through all of our retail platforms and partners. As a mark, you can use it on your packaging, for your marketing efforts, pretty well everywhere. So, that's, -
Michael LeBlanc 13:58
So, so it's, it's interesting. So, when you, you just touched on it, how do you go to market? I see, you know, on your site, you're selling direct-to-consumer, is there a wholesale component or direct in-,or just a direct-to-consumer component? How does that work?
Karly Gramlich 14:11
So, yeah, exactly. So, we're primarily actually through physical high end retailers, and then we do a small portion through our D-to-C channel. And for the, the reason for that is because as a luxury brand, and this was what really resonated with me as I was entering the world of luxury is seeing that customer experience, like what makes luxury, you know, appealing to me as someone coming in from the outside and ultimately, it was that experience. So, that's always been key, key, key within our process. And we thought that the best way to do that was to partner with these physical retailers where we can actually incorporate a really defined and you know, impressive customer experience, which is pretty challenging to do through a D-to-C channel, especially again, as a newer brand with limiting, but limited budgeting, to try and build that through the digital journey can be challenging and, you know, the, the cost to develop the tech for that type of thing. And you know, the different experience, -
Michael LeBlanc 15:18
Platforms aren't giving you any big discounts, (crossover talk), either, right?
Karly Gramlich 15:22
Exactly, and everyone's vying for the same thing, too. So, that's why we're primarily physical retail. So, we always offer our retail partners kind of first dibs that our collection drops. And then we'll put out little teasers or little, little, you know, limited release collections who are D-to-C channels, but primarily right now we go to market through physical high end retailers. So, -
Michael LeBlanc 15:42
A little bit of one plus one equals three, right, and a little bit of direct, and then and then working carefully with the wholesale partners. All right, so, let's talk about sustainability a little bit, you know, I, I was writing the questions. And, you know, sustainability is obviously a very important talk about the sustainability of sustainability. I've been thinking about this a lot.
Michael LeBlanc 15:59
I interviewed Seth Godin, he's got a new book out called, ’The Carbon Almanac’. And, you know, it's really hammering home, the need to do all the things that you're describing. And, and you know, it's always to me, there's always, and this is not new, there's always been a contradiction between what people say and what they do. That gap, I think, is narrowing a bit, but then other things show me that it's not so how are you? How are you? Like, when you talk to your wholesale partners, and when you talk to consumers? You know, do you think this this is finally we've hit some kind of tipping point back to Malcolm Gladwell that we're that sustainability is going to matter, and more and more purchase decisi-, decision, -
Karly Gramlich 16:34
I, I think so like, for example, the research that we've done has shown that, you know, two and a half times the consumers who, who actually plan to shift their span to sustainable brands, and then also 138% increase in sustainable fashion, consumer buying intentions over the next five years. So, it really is on the forefront of, you know, people's minds. And in our case, we feel that, you know, especially with our expansion that's coming out, consumers are actually looking more so at our pieces as an investment. Um, so with, -
Michael LeBlanc 17:09
Which is sustainable, in and of itself, right, instead, I'm not going to buy five of these, I'm gonna buy, you know, for a dollar I’m going to pay one, not for a dollar but easy math, because I'm not good at math. But I'm going to buy one for 5 dollars.
Karly Gramlich 17:21
Yeah, right. Exactly. So, and, and again, the sustainability of sustainability is just constantly being authentic, and honest. And I mean, people can sniff out greenwashing from a mile away for the most part. So, it's ways that we can really, (crossover talk), -
Michael LeBlanc 17:41
Companies are getting pretty good at it.
Karly Gramlich 17:43
Yeah, yeah, exactly. But it is, you know, ways that we can emphasize those commitments. And that's where groups for example, like Positive Luxury come in. And, -
Michael LeBlanc 17:52
Third-party, third-party validation, right?
Karly Gramlich 17:54
Exactly and with that biodiversity strategy, because ultimately, we're building it out right now. So, it's going to be a public document as well. So, it'll be a link on you know, our site, it'll be available where consumers can actually go through, they can read through, they can look at our conservation hierarchy, they can look through our, you know, the dependencies, our dependency pathways, and really make an informed decision ultimately, -
Michael LeBlanc 18:20
And hold you accountable too, right?
Karly Gramlich 18:22
Exactly, yeah, yeah.
Michael LeBlanc 18:24
So, as I said, the begi-, off the top of the podcast, you and I met in a networking event in Shop Talk in Las Vegas. So, I wanted to ser-, your my Canada Day released podcast, July 1st, Canada Day. So, it's great to have a Canadian Entrepreneur on almost like I planned it. But, -
Karly Gramlich 18:41
Yeah, it's -
Michael LeBlanc 18:43
Almost, almost. Let's, let's talk about the, you know, the, let's call it the fundraising or the, the opportunity in Canada versus the US versus International, because you were sharing your you do a lot of work in the US from that perspective, and, and even internationally. So, talk about that for a bit.
Karly Gramlich 18:59
Yeah, so, the environment for Canadian brands, it's honestly challenging. So, we're not typically perceived kind of at the forefront of fashion. But at the same time, I believe there's a lot of untapped potential and talent. So, this though, for that reason, that's kind of why we hit the ground running immediately, internationally as well. So, we've kind of built out in Canada and the US, for example, pretty well in tandem. So, in terms of funding, also, I mean, you talk to any entrepreneur, it's incredibly challenging, you know, the time the mental toll that it takes, the constant rejection, it's, it's, -
Michael LeBlanc 19:37
It’s part of the gig, right? It's, it's, -
Karly Gramlich 19:39
Yeah, exactly.
Michael LeBlanc 19:40
Part of the gig, (crossover talk), it's that resilience.
Karly Gramlich 19:43
Yeah, exactly. But even in our case, despite having a strong tech element, many investors don't want to invest in a brand. You know, they're, they're tech first or fashion tech or lux tech. They don't so much want the brand but ultimately our focus is brand first.
Karly Gramlich 20:00
And then obviously we're seeing large investments and you know, kind of the, the buzzword tech market, I'll call it. But you know, sometimes it, it just takes the right investor to see the, the medium and long term. And needless to say, we've always sought out investors who we felt would be hands on and kind of experienced in our market and ultimately willing to step into the trenches with us. But with that being said, we haven't formally fundraised you know, we've, we've been in contact with few angel investors.
Karly Gramlich 20:29
But you know, it, one of the challenges of funding too, also goes back to the fact that upon starting the brand, I had absolutely no network. So, even gaining access, you know, to get in front of the right investor was, was challenging and time consuming. But as I shared with you at Shop Talk, I'm a member of the, The Dealmakers, which is more based in New York City, and we're all female founders, CEOs, investors, and it's been, you know, access to groups like that, who has facilitated those introductions and, ultimately, you know, starting to make that fundraising process a little bit more feasible and a little bit more of a reality.
Michael LeBlanc 21:16
(Crossover talk), I'll also plow the road a little bit for you so to speak, right -
Karly Gramlich 21:18
exactly, exactly, -
Michael LeBlanc 21:20
Both in people but also in process, right? Like, (crossover talk), we're not inherently born with understanding of how to do private equity raises, (crossover talk), like, right. It's not a textbook read on that stuff, really, right. So, -
Karly Gramlich 21:33
yeah, yeah. So, I mean, that's been huge for us, as a business and, and me personally, too. So, that's where a lot of you know, going back to the opportunities within the US market has come from as well. So, like I said, we've kind of grown in tandem in Canada and the US. And through The Dealmakers, they've actually been crucial in facilitating our growth in the US as well. So, for example, the ex-CEO of Neiman Marcus group is also in there and she had made the introduction for us at Neiman Marcus, the head of Tmall Luxury Pavilion, (crossover talk), -
Michael LeBlanc 22:04
Is that Karen Katz, is that Karen Katz, (crossover talk). Karen's got a new job, too. Did you see?
Karly Gramlich 22:09
Yes, I did see that. Yeah. So, she's, uh, oh, it, it's fantastic. honestly, women like that, who are, you know, willing to make that introduction for a younger female entrepreneur? It's life changing, -
Michael LeBlanc 22:21
(crossover talk), what did, what did Scott Galloway, how does he describe it, send the elevator back down, right?
Karly Gramlich 22:25
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And, honestly, that's one thing I keep in mind throughout this whole process, too. If there's any, any, any way that I can help or, you know, repay that favor or repay that debt, I'm willing to, by any means necessary. So, we're, we're starting to see, you know, kind of more opportunities grow that way. And that's, that's where some of our international opportunities have come from, as well. You know, we're a group that do have an international reach. And, you know, some of them are newer, like me and others have been in the industry for decades. So, yeah, it's, it's, -
Michael LeBlanc 23:00
It's interesting, because you feed off each other in that your you need and benefit from their experience, and they benefit from your enthusiasm and new ideas, right?
Karly Gramlich 23:09
Absolutely, yeah. Quite often they love speaking with, with young entrepreneurs, and really just passionate entrepreneurs really.
Michael LeBlanc 23:16
Yep. Yeah, excellent, excellent. All right, so, you've, you've hinted at it a couple of times, let's get into what's talking about what's next beyond eyewear, what's your roadmap look like? And what's what does the future hold for your business?
Karly Gramlich 23:29
Yeah, so we are building out our apparel expansion. So, that comes with the tech element, as I'd mentioned before, our pieces are actually developed with the ability for resale right from initial purchase point. So, it's kind of, (crossover talk), -
Michael LeBlanc 23:36
What how does that work? Tell me a little bit about that.
Karly Gramlich 23:41
Yeah. So it's actually built on blockchain, through each piece kind of has a digital ID. And then through that digital ID, there's the ability for impact tracking. So, as it moves through, you know, say consumer 1, 2, 3, 4, you can actually see the entire impact and this again, relates back to the sustainability side of things, but you can see you know, the impact from the initial manufacturing, milling, transport to initial purchase point and then from consumer one to consumer two, you can see the impact CO2 emissions, water usage, different things like that for obviously, the transport, the cleaning, any relisting services, and then ultimately, you know, as it's moved through, we'll say it's reached the end of its lifecycle will actually take it back for textile recycling.
Karly Gramlich 24:35
So, say consumer 4, is looking back at the entire impact of the product and, you know, kind of deciding is this piece worth, you know, trying to move forward again, or does it just make more sense to, to send it back for textile recycling or recycling? Because we're also going to be hopefully implementing it into the eyewear as well. Then it, it kind of gives a again, informed decision, informed while ultimately an informed decision about where they want it to go next. And we'll offer small buyback credit too, to make sure that ends up back in our hands, just as an incentive so that it doesn't end up in the landfill.
Michael LeBlanc 25:10
Wow, that's interesting, super interesting, -
Karly Gramlich 25:12
So, that's where we're going in terms of the expansion, the apparel expansion, pardon, but also just further international expansion into new markets. So, we're also in talks with Chulu Group right now in the Middle East. So, we'll know a little bit more maybe in the next well, summer is coming up. So, I'd say probably September because everybody has already taken off on holidays. And then, yeah, we're also looking at expansion into China, probably in the next three to five years. But that's a whole new can of worms as well. So, just moving but, (crossover talk), Yeah, yeah, exactly. But still just taking it slow and that type of thing.
Karly Gramlich 25:51
And then we're also looking at beginning a formal fundraise. You know, we've got some traction under our belt now that investors can see. We've been around for, oh, gosh, we're coming up on five and a half years. So, yeah we're, we feel like now we're kind of in the sweet spot. Any, you know, feedback that I've gotten is kind of, we're, we're in the sweet spot for investors. You know, we're not too early stage, but we're not too late stage. This is kind of the, this is the time to act. So, that's what we're looking at in terms of fundraising. And then yeah, just keeping this ball rolling, get keeping the momentum going.
Michael LeBlanc 26:25
I was going to say it's the Goldilocks moment right? Not, you're not too old, not too young, you know, interesting, -
Karly Gramlich 26:33
It's the time to act. Yeah, absolutely.
Michael LeBlanc 26:35
Super interesting. All right, well, if folks want to get in touch with you or want to learn more about the business, I'll put in the links to the URL. Are you a LinkedIn person, are you connected via that way, that's the best way to get a hold of you, -
Karly Gramlich 26:46
Actually, I am really active on LinkedIn. So, honestly, the best way to get ahold of me directly is to reach out on LinkedIn. If you're looking for, or if they're looking for any, you know, business inquiries or questions, they can email inquiries at upperdashdistrict.com. But the best way to get in touch with me directly is definitely through LinkedIn.
Michael LeBlanc 27:05
All right, and I'll put that I'll put that in the show notes as well. So, we'll, we'll make sure everybody can connect. Well, listen, Karly, it's been a real treat talking to you. I mean, it's not our first time speaking, but we kind of got to dive into some interesting stuff about how you think about business and your business model. And listen, I wish you continued success. It's, it's a fascinating journey.
Karly Gramlich 27:24
Yes. Well, thank you. Thank you for having us. And honestly, just thank you for giving small brands a voice and a platform to share it.
Michael LeBlanc 27:32
Yeah, certainly my pleasure. And I wish you continued success. And thanks again for coming on the podcast.
Karly Gramlich 27:38
Great. Thank you.
Michael LeBlanc 27:40
Thanks for tuning into this special episode of The Voice of retail. If you haven't already, be sure and click and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform so new episodes will land automatically, twice a week. And check out my other retail industry media properties, the Remarkable Retail podcast, Conversations with CommerceNext podcast and The Food Professor podcast with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois. Last but not least, if you're into barbecue, check out my all new YouTube barbecue show Last Request Barbecue with new episodes each and every week.
Michael LeBlanc 28:08
I'm your host, Michael LeBlanc, president of M.E. LeBlanc and Company & Maven Media. And if you're looking for more content or want to chat, follow me on LinkedIn or visit my website at meleblanc.co.
Have a safe week everyone.
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