The Start
Gemics was established in August 2012 by husband and wife team, Lou & Martin. Our first studio space was our attic in our home.
Lou started designing and blinging her own dance costumes when she was very, very young (8). The bling got into her veins and has been a central part of her life ever since. Disco dance costumes, bridal, showgirl, ballroom ..... she really had done it all before setting off into the world of pageantry.
The Gemics Journey
Starting from scratch and being unknown in the world of pageantry, our first items were little cotton dresses. That quickly became themed OOC's. It took 2 or 3 years to showcase what was possible. We established ourselves as a serious and trusted creator of custom pageant wardrobes.
Every costume was sketched in detail. Every sketch was signed off on by the client. A signed, full color sketch was mailed with the outfit. The Gemics experience became a defining element.
On To Dresses
The first request for a dress didn't take very long and we went along for the ride of our lives! This truly changed Gemics. We decided to move closer to our customers. We arrived in TN, rented a house and leased a studio space. Within a month we had leased the suite next to ours and then we really got to work. We began not just focusing on custom dresses, but also making the base dress shells for other designers. We custom dyed fabrics and sourced the trims & bling for them. It got crazy! To this day we are amazed at how many businesses our products and hard work have helped spawn.
From Customs to Rentals
There is a lot of work, and time, that is invested in the creation of a dress. A shell can take between 4 and 6 hours. The designing and blinging takes as long as it takes. And some designs really fight you! As a ballpark, a dress is between 16 and 30 hours of bling work without any stoppages or distractions. And that is exactly why the schedules for custom dresses can get very difficult to manage. Building a rental business with our own creations is a lot of fun and is relatively stress free. Releasing the occasional RTS on our schedule is a wonderful change. Now we enjoy the best of both worlds. We get to create and we continue to work with outstanding clients.
Our Philosophy & The Road Ahead
We're excited. In so many ways, this venture is like building a brand new business from the ground up. We're looking to build a loyal and discerning customer group. A group that is interested in changing up their wardrobes between pageants. A group that values the care and attention we offer. A group that want nothing but the best we can create. We believe that we are capable of creating a very steady stream of outfits every month. There will always be "something new" to consider. We have just started and we're working to build out our inventory. Please bear with us while we work to bring you an unrivaled selection.
We know that we are never going to be all things to all people. There are many rental businesses to choose from. And that's great! Really! Just make sure it's a Gemics you're renting!
And this gallery is here because I love Phantom of the Opera so much that I made the costume. A nice example, nevertheless!
Discover more from Gemics
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.