clean up this transcript, host is Elaine @CurbVulture and the other person being interviewed is Casey @ShopPapayaDrive
hi welcome to episode seven of the curb vulture podcast where we’re going to talk about all things reselling the
behind the scenes of it all and I am curb vulture elae mingis your host you can find all of my available inventory
at Curb vulture.com I’m located in the Austin Texas area and you can f find me
at Kur vulture on Instagram and Elaine Mingus on Tik Tok today I am super
excited to invite Our Guest on here Casey Kidwell who is going to talk all about the Vintage uh clothing side of
things so I sell vintage furniture she sells these beautiful dresses and so welcome to the show Casey please state
your name your Instagram handle for the audience so we can know where to find you awesome thanks so much first of all
elain for having me I am so excited to chat with you today like you said all the behind the scenes of vintage well
really all things vintage but as Elaine mentioned my name is Casey Kidwell my business is papaya Drive on Instagram I
am shop papaya drive my personal Instagram is almost Fab me so you can find me at either of those places really
across Instagram as well as Tik Tok my website is casy kidw well.com as well so
if you ever forget you can always just look up my name and it should steer you in the right direction yeah and you so you also do
kind of like Austin Texas behind the scenes like where to go get the best ice cream and hamburgers right as well on
the almost fat me yes exactly that’s what almost F me is all about so it was
originally a Blog that I started after I graduated from college and that’s kind of just morphed into my personal
business so papaya Drive is my baby and my actual business but almost Fab me is
kind of the fun personal side too and so we met because you bought
something from me so I met you and your significant other and so tell me a little bit about because that’s a really
interesting story because you have done extensive traveling in a bus right yes
so my husband and I own a sprinter so I will say Elaine I think we kind of got
in on the Sprinter craze like right at the beginning if you remember during covid it was so popular and everyone and
their mother was either traveling in a sprinter or owned a sprinter so we were kind of inspired actually on a road trip
we saw one of those vans that says like drive across America or something when we were on a road trip I was like you
know that would actually be really fun we love road trips we ended up going online at as soon as we got home and
looked it up and it was so expensive just to rent these so we were like maybe we should just invest and buy our own
and it honestly it ended up being the best investment for us we ended up renting it out after we lived in it and
traveled in it for a few months on our own and then we wanted to be able to share it with other people and now I
mean everyone listening knows what a pain traveling is now especially in this post pandemic world like not only is an
expensive but it’s just kind of a pain in the butt so you know traveling in a sprinter and just being able to get up
and go and wherever and whenever we want has been such a blessing yeah yeah so you’ve bought a
couple pieces from me I believe right you maybe you can tell me I know that there’s two two bookcases that go on the
side of your TV right yes yes I think those I’m trying to remember if there was anything else those definitely for
sure and I look at them every day so they’re a good reminder kind of how we initially met as you
mentioned yeah so I think that’s so exciting because it is just such an A A
memorable thing especially as a business owner when you’re doing shop papaya you
are able to say look I have this beautiful thing where I’m able to do vintage and sustainability but then you
have this other like alt lifestyle that is so interesting and I think really does bring people even more so into your
page and humanizes you like I don’t just I’m not just a reseller I’m also a person that I I like Adventure and I
like travel so I love that about you so tell me a little bit about how you got
into the business and how you came across this name that you chose papaya Drive yes definitely so how I got into
the business is a bit of a long story but I will make it short and sweet for your audience I actually have a
background in sales as well as marketing so I worked for Nike for over seven years and and it’s funny Elaine because
honestly when I was 21 22 starting at the company I remember being in the
interview and thinking like this nine-to-five lifestyle is just not what I imagined myself doing to be totally
honest and I was saying that you know then in an interview when I still ended up getting the job somehow but you know
it’s funny to look back on that now and to know that I am pursuing this life now as a solopreneur it kind of all made
sense but regardless my background is in sales and marketing like I said working for Nike and it got to the point as it
did for many people elae I’m sure you’ve spoken to so many people who are like this who you know over the course of the
pandemic priorities shifted for sure um you know not to mention it was just a
time to kind of like reflect on your priorities and what you really wanted to do and for me it was a big shift in that
regard and I realized that it was the time you know it was the time for me to kind of take a leap of faith there were
of course a few other things along the way that kind of shoved me quite literally in that direction um and I
ultimately made the decision my husband and I moved from California to Austin
Texas where we’ve now been for the last couple years and like I said I kind of got shoved in the direction of starting
my business vintage has been a love of mine for as long as I can remember which
kind of ties in the name of my business as well so my business as I made mention
of at the beginning is papaya drive and that is actually the street that I grew up on so I was born and raised um in
that little house on papaya drive and I was raised by a single mom and that’s
kind of always been something that she and I have shared together is our love of thrifting and vintage and fashion and
HomeGoods and all of those kind of things that come along with this amazing industry that we’re in so when I was
thinking of a name for my business it felt like really what better name than you know the place that kind of birthed
that inspiration for me I love that it’s like a nod to The Nostalgia of the past a nod to your mom
a nod to everything that is good and wholesome and um I know that you have
some amazing stories about how you have acquired some of the things because it’s
it’s not vintage furniture it’s vintage clothing so what made you decide like
was it always clothing that you were going to do or did you you have chachkies and stuff like that that you do as well yes it’s definitely a little
bit of everything I will say because as I made mention of it is my lifestyle truly so it’s not just relegated to
clothing But to answer your question and again kind of a bit of a long story but
the universe really truly shoved me in this direction so I quit my job in
October of 2022 and it was the end of the year so I knew I wanted to give
myself some time the holidays at least to kind of reflect before launching into whatever this next chapter was for me
and as I made mention of you know that little 21 22 year old Casey always wanted to start her own business so I
knew that was the direction that I wanted to go in but what that looked like I wasn’t 100% sure so I gave myself
some time like I said to reflect and then at the beginning of 20 23 I guess I received an email so a
cold email from someone via my blog as I made mention I had started a Blog in
2015 that was kind of like my online diary you know post college and trying to navigate life and this woman had
literally found me via Google and my blog because I had written about vintage
fashion in the Sacramento area and she was based not too far from the Sacramento area her best friend her
lifelong best friend had suddenly passed away around the holiday season and she was not only a seamstress but also a
collector of all things vintage and she had this it was literally a barn like an Adu on her property that was just full
of as you see now on my site dresses and vintage clothing and she was like I
really don’t want this to end up in a landfill like any of us would never want that to happen and so she reached out
and you know I I definitely did my digging on my end to make sure this wasn’t some weird scam that seemed too
good to be true because that’s kind of how it felt but on a whim I was like okay I got you I hear you like this is
what I’m supposed to be doing and so I literally took the leap and I flew from
Austin Texas back home to Sacramento my mom and I rented a U-Haul and drove and
literally I mean a U-Haul like a small U-Haul and filled up this entire van with dresses it was I still like when
I’m retelling it I’m like there’s no way that happened or that was real life because it was just one of the wildest
Things in my life yeah I I have very similar stories where I you know I found
this Warehouse or storage unit they were like $50 come clean it out that’s all
you got to do is come clean it out get all this stuff and you just have to do it by the end of the day $50 and it was
a 10 by2 and it was full of vintage teacups and plates and furniture and you
know East Lake Antiques and a washer and dryer and I went there and I got it and
I was like oh my gosh this is so much stuff and it was another flipper but it was a a man flipper so he was looking
for baseball cards and things that were more manly and and and things that he knew how to flip he didn’t want to deal
with all this Grandma stuff and it literally had the stickers like Goodwill stickers like it obviously was like a
collector or somebody who wanted a shop but something happened and they stopped paying their storage unit fees and I
just like was able to get all this stuff and that’s really what shifted me from
start you know picking up stuff on the side of the curb to actually doing more vintage stuff because I mean so many
people were just like hungry for all these beautiful Antiques and vintage pieces so I totally understand how like
the universe or God sends you like this thing and you’re like I did not ask for
this but I’m guessing this is what I’m doing right and you feel kind of like responsible right especially for you and
I like being in this industry and having the love for sustainability and you know
vintage fashion as well as Furniture it’s like you feel so responsible and especially with her saying I don’t want
them to end up in a landfill and I’m thinking I don’t either and who knows you know where the where they will go if
I don’t come in and Steward these onto their next life just like you do with Furniture you know it’s the same kind of
thing and I I think it’s a really beautiful responsibility at the same time for us to have and you know one
that we take seriously obviously absolutely and I want to get definitely back on kind of that
sustainability I’m interested because you did work at Nike and you have this you know sustainability
Um passion um but before I get on that part I did want to talk about the type
of dresses that you got from this lady are kind of a specific style so like I’m wearing a vintage um I wore this for you
um a vintage shoulder pads it’s beautiful it’s one of my favorites but it’s your stuff I mean definitely I
think includes stuff like this but it’s a lot of the and I’m blanking on the name of the type of dresses that the
Gunn sack gunny sack there you go and so it’s a lot of the gunny sack dresses so kind of explain when you got there at
the storage unit or at her Adu what was there oh my gosh so it was
like I said it was kind of a little Barn Adu type thing that was on her property so the first floor was all like her
sewing room so it was wedding dresses it was projects that she had been working on because she was a seamstress and a
creative herself and then you walked up the stairs and the second floor was just this makeshift inventory room you know
there were kind of like pipes hung from the ceiling and just Clos and close and Clos as far as the eye could see as well
as fabrics and whatnot and I’m so grateful that I was with my mom at the time because I think you know my my
knowledge of gunny sack now is so much more than what it was then and I think
one of the first dresses my mom saw was a gunny sack and you know having been raised in the 70s she was like oh wow
case these are amazing you know so I think that was kind of fun to have that
new discovery together but yes to your initial question the dresses that I have
primarily right now so I will say I inherited about 500 pieces from this
woman so just under 500 pieces I will say at least 85 Plus percent of them are
dresses if not more than that and a lot of them like you mentioned were gunny sack dresses so think very prairie style
kind of this like Cottage core for those that might not be familiar with GAC which has been around since since the 60s they’re very like that Prairie kind
of dress Cottage cor style that’s really popular right now so that’s been kind of fun too right to be able to like Usher
in a new generation that is already loving this style and you already see it
so much out in the world but having an understanding that you know it has been around forever and now you can have
these pieces that have such a rich history and invite them into your own closet and help help them kind of have a
new life with you too yeah well and I for a little bit Target tried to do a little bit of the gunny sack look but
there I mean and I know it would got a lot of hate on Instagram you know because they were like we can’t do this but there’s a whole Community around GNX
that they kind of really love this this look kind of talk have you I mean I
don’t know if you were in this community already or now you’re just expanding your brain to be in this community kind
of tell me about that Community it’s been very much a brain expansion on my end I was not aware like I said not only
you know my knowledge was limited of gys saac but to your point the community Elaine it is like a cult it is so wild
the following that gysc dresses have because you you know this is a brand that has been around decades right and
so there is really so much to learn which I have been so appreciative of the community for right there are Facebook
groups there are all kinds of platforms where you can go on and learn about the
dresses but also share you know your pieces with other people who love them and collect them and whatnot so I think
that has been one of the biggest eye opening experiences for me but also really enjoyable like you said to learn
because there’s there’s plenty to learn about them and I’m still learning to this day for
sure and so what is the price range of the dresses because I’m sure there’s some that are you know uh and even not
the gunny sacks but the price range of the gunny sacks and then the price range of your of your items um Al together
like because like some of the gunny sacks I think can go for a couple hundred am I right oh my gosh yes so the
gunny sack is really interesting those dresses because it kind of depends obviously on a number of things it
depends on the style the age of them I had ones in my collection that had the original tag so like the Hang tag from
the store which was so wild and kind of a little piece of me felt really badly even selling it because it just feels
like such a piece of fashion history that I should keep but I’m glad to have shared it with someone else who will love it so you know it really ranges the
older ones from the 60s that have a black tag are more rare they’re considered more rare so they are more
valuable but then as you kind of go on in time and get to some of the 80s fashion that you know not to be
controversial but maybe was a little bit less uh coveted for some people you know
those dresses can be a little bit less so the ones that are that I’ve sold are kind of from the 80s are usually like
under a 100 so anywhere from 75 to 100 but honestly Elaine I have sold a dress
for $800 and that was just one dress so like you made mention of they really do
run the full gamut and they it really just depends on a number of things and they’re such collector pieces a lot of
them um that being said you know I do I am expanding my business Beyond just
just dresses and while I’m so grateful to the dresses that have kind of sparked my business and started my business I
always wanted to do more than that and to me where my passion lies is really just inviting people into the world of
sustainable and secondhand fashion so my price points are much lower and I was
just having this conversation with someone like how I approach it is I would much rather someone whether it’s
at a market or coming to my booth or online whatever it might be I want someone to come in and feel like I can
buy an entire outfit you know I can have the jewelry I can have the clothes the shoes and feel confident from a
financial perspective being able to do that versus having to maybe like choose between one piece or the other so that’s
really what’s most important to me is just kind of more so inviting people into the world of sustainable fashion
and not making it cost prohibitive yeah definitely and I think
that I my own business has made a shift in itself now I mean obviously I went from picking up stuff on the side of the
road to Vintage and right now my inventory has dwindled down and I’ve allowed it to dwindle down number one I
think just because I was pushing so hard and I kind of got to a place where I was just like I need to sit back and figure
out what my passion is again because my passion is communication it’s doing things like podcasting it’s creating
content and while I love vintage furniture and I definitely will continue to do that I definitely am like you I
want to just promote the whole of I want to promote other people I want to promote sustainability because as a mom
of seven like it’s waste not whatnot at my house like I grew up with stories of my mom talking about how she had to
straighten out bent nails for her Depression era grandfather so these are the stories that drive me and it’s like
it it drives me nuts when I see waste when I see things that are on the side of the road whether it be an Ikea
dresser or a vintage piece going wait a second somebody somewhere like is hurting and they need they need that
piece for half the price that Ikea sells it or Walmart sells it and I can bring
it into my home clean it off stage it and get it to somebody for half price so that it becomes that affordable piece
and it’s kind of a win-win win for the environment win for the person that can buy it for half price and win for me to put money in my pocket so I can buy
groceries for my big family of nine so I totally understand how businesses shift
as you’re continuing um and you’re so grateful for where you started but you know you have an eye on someplace else
where you want to go that fits and aligns more with who you are as a person so I totally understand that so tell me
maybe you know you’ve already kind of told me a story about that you love tell me something that
maybe about your business that you would love some somebody listening to to know about you that’s kind of um something
important to you that’s a great question I think
goodness probably what if I could expand on what I was just talking about and really my passion for inviting people I
think into this community is something that I really want to focus on in the year going forward so you know that
could look like a number of new kind of directions that I’m thinking about moving in but for example like styling
or personal sourcing one of my best friends from back home had a party that she was going to recently and she’s
trying to dabble a little bit more into thrifting and secondhand fashion and stuff so she reached out and I helped
her put together an outfit for a party so you know I’m trying to expand my business to like I said just really be
super inclusive to people who are a bit maybe intimidated by or scared by the idea of thrifting because I mean trust
me I get it I know you do too elae we have spent our fair share of time in thrift stores in estate sales it’s
overwhelming like I totally understand but I think that’s where we can come in
right as experts and as people who are passionate about introducing people to this space and really help in that
direction so I think something that I would love people to know about me is
the you know kind of customer service like personal element of it as you made mention of earlier having a personal
brand and as well as a business brand but I really want to be able to meld the two together too and I am a person you
know behind papaya drive so that’s why I do kind of try and come on and do Instagram stories like showing my face
quite a bit and stuff too because that element is just as important to me I want someone I’ve had people in my DM
saying sending me pictures Elaine that are like how would you style this top you know I’m like oh my God I love this
like let’s do it so you know that’s kind of yeah I do too and it made me so happy
I think when that happened because to the point of this like conversation and question too right it’s like you have
created a space and you have cultivated a space where people feel safe and
comfortable doing that and that’s what’s most important to me is making sure that I am creating and cultivating that space
and that community so that people aren’t afraid to send me a DM in the dressing
room and be like Casey help me like do I get or no I’m like no somebody has texted me and been like
I you know with this and and usually it’s like oh is this piece available and would it look at in the space and a lot
of times I’m like actually it’s too thick for that space you need a like a gold table or something like that and
they’ll send me oh my gosh I found this and it looks perfect you were so right and that makes like it’s not just about
me selling my own product it’s about me making sure that the person behind that
phone has some something that they’re proud of because they’re living in their space and it’s a very sacred place that
they invite you into I mean if they’re inviting you into the Goodwill thrift store dressing room and sending you
photos that’s really I mean you’re talking about a friendship there which is you know goes Way Beyond the you know
big business model where you I mean it’s just you know you’re just another number to them um I had a a quick thought I was
like you know what would be really cool I’m really anti MLM but you know how they do the parties at home like where
you you could bring in like vintage clothes and like be like and this piece and this piece like and talk about this
suain but like so you could almost and if I mean if you don’t do it somebody listening like starting some sort of
like MLM style but not MLM sustainable like where you go and Source it because
people don’t also have the time and they don’t know the know they don’t have the knowledge of what is vintage or is it
quality or what should I pay for it and so having someone come into your home maybe and like giving like a
presentation like the old school a Avon parties that would be kind of a fun a fun thing to
do inventory like that right I I honestly had someone elae it’s funny
that you say that because at one of my recent markets I had a mom and daughter come into my booth and I had some
dresses in my booth and they were she made mention of her daughter’s upcoming dance or prom or something and I a
little part of me inside was like oh my God she aged me because she was saying how it was vintage themed or something
and I’m like oh wow okay um but she made mention of exactly that that there was a
group of girls right who are looking for dresses and I’m like heck yeah let’s do a shopping party like I will bring my
stuff over so I love that idea and I’m so on board because like we’re saying right it brings in that more personal
element it’s like I’m doing all the work for you and I’m coming to you and then let’s have a conversation about it and I
can help you feel and look your best for whatever that event might be yeah and I
love the idea of bringing it to the next Generation because I did the calculations um I was listening to a
geopolitics speech about how Texas is one of is like it’s up there like between two different like two different
countries like France and India on how much we are gross domestic product is
and you know I started doing the calculations about like the children under the age 18 and under and how much
money if because like my children God forbid I’m so sorry they shop on Shen
they’re they’re they’re broke little kids right and they can get a top or an outfit for $10 and I and there’s that
place where as somebody you’re like I’m having to make a decision between sustainable and affordable and that’s
that’s hard but when you when I did the calculations it was something like
700 million or something like that that just the eight 13 to 18 crowd is
spending if they spend $50 a month if half of what the population spends $50 a month on Sheen that’s like $700 million
that that another country is getting of you know sweat labor cheap labor that is
you know and and I and I mean you can’t blame them they’re kids right and but if they were informed if you had a a a
little party where you’re talking about why sustainability is so important and
why you know what happens on the other end when they’re buying from these big conglomerates um you know I think that
would you know I mean it just plants a seed and you know we can’t always always see the from that but you know just
enough that we’re trying to move forward in the right direction and so just real quickly and we don’t have to get too
political here but the fact that you work for Nike and do you feel like are
you do you feel better or were you happy at working at Nike because I know that there’s a lot of controversy surrounding
Nike and now you’re in an entirely different field with sustainability kind of me talk about that whatever you’re
comfortable talking about because I don’t want to get too too political in trouble on that no of course and look I
am so grateful for my experience at Nike you know I was there like I said seven and a half years and my grandma used to
always joke she’s like case you are getting a real life MBA and I really did you know my experience is unmatched and
I know it has set me up for success as my own business owner now and kind of going forward into my career but of
course Elaine like I won’t lie I think you know I will be honest I haven’t purchased anything from Nike since I
left just because I am so much more aware you know of waste when it comes to
clothes and shoes and all of the in between and the reality is is that Nike as much as we might not think it is a
fast fashioned brand you know and so I think my awareness of course after
leaving has heightened and now that I am so much more passionate about secondhand
shopping whether it’s for my home or for my closet that has kind of shifted you know my priority as well and But to
answer your question it wasn’t necessarily something that was at the Forefront of my mind when I was working
there you know um because it it it was I don’t know it just wasn’t top of mind it
was more so you know what event was going on or what influencer we were going to use or whatever might be yeah
so like I said I’m so grateful for my experience and I think now having had the behind the scenes look working for a
Big Brand right I am that much more passionate about supporting the little guy and as a
little guy myself over here um you know and really making sure that I continue to cultivate and learn more about
sustainable fashion going forward to and like you’re saying sharing it with other people as well yeah yeah and by no means
am I an extremist like I know some people really are like you know extreme I mean shoes especially like I got boys
they’re running I mean that it’s just a consumable product in general um but
definitely one of the things that I I’ve thought about recently is like whether you’re buying unless you’re buying from
a brand that’s expensive that you know is sustain is being is trying to be
sustainable like it’s all coming from China it’s all being mass perused and in sweat shops and stuff like that so
whether it’s you know a brand that’s higher end or a Sheen you you unless you
know you don’t you know you don’t really know where if it’s sustainable and then also you know one of the things that
I’ve been thinking because I saw somebody on Instagram that said proudly made in China because she was a small
business herself in China and she was like I’m trying to fight this idea that made in China has to mean bad it could
mean that it’s from a small business is sustainable um it’s a lot more rare maybe but I just thought man you know
she’s over here just like me trying to do something important and she’s gonna
say made in China and it’s gonna have a whole different meaning so you know taking that and putting that in mind too
is also like you we live in a world of people not just you know that there you know yes there’s big companies but
there’s people and they all have feelings and emotions and dreams just like us so um I want to ask this
question because it’s one of my favorite questions like I said on my podcast the other day is that I got asked this and I
thought man this is such a a a a thought-provoking question what is an
area in your business in your life that you feel very expansive you feel very good like you’ve got sure footing on and
then what’s an area in your business that you could use
support goodness wow that is a really good question um I think I would kind of
touch back on what I said earlier about the community piece I feel really good about building a brand that’s something
that I love so I just recently opened my booth at lady Collective over the weekend so this is my first kind of like
brick and mortar thank you brick and mortar if you will shop papaya Drive IRL
I like to say so that part I feel really good about Elaine like I love
merchandising I love the physical manifestation of papaya Drive The
Branding the advertising the marketing like that is my background and being building this brand right as Casey as
papaya drive I love that stuff um it’s the creative visual person in me right
however I think the flip side of that also and I will be totally transparent and vulnerable here is I very much
suffer from analysis paralysis so I’m sure yourself as well as a lot of people
listening are very familiar with this I a perfectionist through and through and as much as this you know sounds like an
interview question right where you’re talking about what are your weaknesses and you make it sound like it’s a
strength right that’s not what I’m doing here people just stay with me for a second so I overanalyze everything so
even like la launching my business launching my website I mean I built my website but before I built it out I was
like spent so much time thinking it’s not going to look how I want it to it’s not going to be perfect it’s not going
to be visually exactly where I want it to be I should just hire someone like I spend a lot of time in my head day in
and day out over analyzing every little thing that I do because I want it to be perfect and I feel like it’s a
representation of me so it has to have that certain level it has to meet those
expectations that I have which are very very high for myself so as a result of
that it takes me longer to do things and sometimes honestly Elaine I won’t even do it because I shoot myself in the foot
because I overanalyze things so I do this like so often even now where I’ll
see other people and I think gosh case like you can do that like why aren’t you
doing that you know you’re just as capable but it’s all of the time that I spend in my head over analyzing that
keeps me from doing a lot of those things so it’s a really long-winded answer but that’s what I would say you
know I I suffer from to be honest and I think it’s like an impostor syndrome
thing maybe too I know people talk about that quite a bit but yeah the think
you’re yeah I don’t think you’re alone in that I think that we all get in our
head and we we look outward so much and we start comparing well like it’s not good enough or whatever and it’s like
this place where part of becoming a successful business is accepting who you
are where you are as you are right now and knowing that like it’s it may be
messy it may be imperfect but like you can always improve on it but if you
don’t you can’t move a parked car you have to be a car in motion and so just
doing I my one of my favorite pieces of advice when I’m talking on stages and talking about business is you have to do
it dirty it has to it has to be imperfect and now obviously you know you want to you know if you can improve on
it quickly then let’s do that but it’s okay to do it dirty and then keep improving upon it you know and
especially like I’m doing you know when I’m making a story or a real you know I always asked before publishing can I
make it better and how quickly and then if not let’s just publish it and then not second guessing myself and deleting
The Reel after I post it like three seconds later um because I know that that’s so you’re you’re definitely not
alone I think that a lot of people can probably very much relate to that
sentiment right so like you said it’s the comparison thing I think right also which doesn’t help and the reality is
all of us every single day are comparing ourselves to others whether we think we are or not you know so I think that’s a
really good point too yeah yeah I’ve heard that comparison is the thief of joy and it’s like one you know I you
know I have seven kids so one of the things that I think really is beautiful about children is that they like have
blinders on like up until a certain point you know my I got my youngest he’s six like he thinks he’s the coolest
thing like he has no like everybody else’s opinion doesn’t matter and so I
think if we can be more like children in like in in business and just have blighters on and be like what I’m doing
is awesome and I think some of that confidence comes off when you’re on
stage or on screen on stagram you’re just like I am stupid confident and you
love it and people are like I do love it you know and then you got the haters and then they’re not your people but just
being stupid confident and just going you know what like I’m gonna embrace it all because you know YOLO you only live
once like you only have you’ve only been given this body and this mind and this space and you’re doing this thing and
it’s like you might as well like go big or go home there so I yeah right so what
is one of the big if someone is starting if they’re starting a either a vintage clothing or or or whatever it is that
you know a sustainable business what is one takeaway like tip that you wish you
would have known when you were starting out what would you tell younger Casey
yeah I it’s funny because I feel like it kind of goes off on what we’re talking about right now right the the idea of
just doing it like just go for it because you really do learn as you go so
as much as younger Casey you know know a little over a year year and a half ago now that I started my business as much
as I was so fearful of not doing it perfectly I did end up just doing it
right and just like going for it and because of that like you’re saying I have learned so much along the way but I
wouldn’t have if I hadn’t have just launched and gone off into the space so
I have a lot of conversations with you know undergraduate or young people who are kind of going off into the world and
that the biggest piece of advice whenever they ask me that I give is just try it like especially when you’re that
age where you don’t you know you’re not settled down necessarily and you don’t have other mouths to feed or whatever
like now is the time to just go for it and not to say that you can’t later in life it’s just a little bit easier when
you don’t have as much pressure right like writing on it so try everything um
and see what works you know because you really don’t know whether it’s what you like what you don’t like what works or
what doesn’t work you don’t know until you try right and you just put it out there and you can kind of get feedback
along the way from other people and whatnot so like biggest piece of advice which is funny I always feel like the
advice that I give is like you know look in the mirror Casey it’s advice that I’m giving to myself as well but literally
it would be just to go for it and try um because you will learn along the way and
whether that’s easily or not so easily you know you’re learning at the end of
the day but you won’t learn unless you just put yourself out there and kind of test things out yeah I absolutely agree
and I’m thinking about businesses that were started pre internet pre social
media how the the good in the bad that goes along with that like when you
weren’t on social media you could just do your business and you could put those blinders on and and be like well I don’t
have anybody to compare myself to I’m the only vintage shop in town and now you get to see the entire world and all
the Vintage shops and all that they’re doing and so you know comparing yourself is probably a lot more you know it more
you know what what we do but in the same vein how much more information a vintage
owner and how much more marketing and how much more exposure can we get today is also this beautiful thing and so you
know I totally know that like when you’re like just you want to you know because and then on top of that like everything that you do is like Memorex
so like you can go back and scroll down my feed and say man she didn’t know what she was doing in the beginning but it’s
also like this place like for other people who were starting out like she didn’t know what she was doing and so maybe I can start and I can do it too
and I eventually 10 years down the road might be where she is at and I love the
saying that says don’t ever compare your beginning to somebody else’s middle because right you just starting out are
of course you’re going to make mistakes even if you listen to all the podcasts in the world you’re still going to make mistakes for yourself and you’re still going to learn there’s still things
challenges that you need to learn not only as a business owner but you as a person and um so I love that advice um
so just for the audience to remember where can we find you out on Instagram on your website and just a little bit
recap where we can find you yeah definitely so first I will just say thank you again so much for having me
this was so much fun I feel like we could keep talking for hours but again my name is Casey Kidwell I am the
founder and owner of papaya drive you can find me on Instagram at shop papaya
drive as well as my website which is Casey Kidwell decom I’m also on Etsy under papaya drive and my personal
Instagram is almost Fab like almost fabulous me so feel free send me a
message reach out I would love to connect with you whether it’s related to finding you know the best ice cream in
Austin or coffee or whatever it might be or finding a new vintage piece for your home and closet so I would love to hear
from you awesome thank you so much for joining us and join us next week as we
continue to talk about the behind the scenes of vintage reselling and all things business I am your host elain
Mingus you can find me at Curb vulture on Instagram and curb vulture.com for all of my inventory see you next week