At the age of 13, Lindsay Hearts’ passion for alternative fashion design began. As a young adult, she sold her first product, a fuzzy cross-body messenger bag. She has since founded Foxblood, a beloved goth fashion brand, hosted her own show at New York Fashion Week, and styled iconic rockstars.
The road to creating Foxblood was not smooth. However, Lindsay received a surprising amount of support early on, and held strong to her idea of an alternative lifestyle brand that stood apart from the rest.
“Everything at that time was covered in upside-down crosses and pentagrams or had a huge logo of the brand on it. There was not really any in between. I wanted to create comfortable streetwear clothing that people who lived that lifestyle could wear all the time. Foxblood became an alternative brand of solid black clothing, so there was no need to search by color.” Lindsay said.
Image Credit: Foxblood (Via Facebook)
“The first time we had a sample sale in Downtown LA. I really didn’t think anyone would show up and, to my surprise, a lot of people showed up. I was so blown away! I was like, ‘Holy shit, I’m onto something.’”
In the early days of Foxblood, Lindsay oversaw every element of creation and distribution, handcrafting each item in her loft apartment whilst also undertaking the roles of designer, photographer, model and web developer.
“You have to teach yourself how to wear every single hat, so I watched a lot of YouTube.” She told TMP.
“For the most part though, I was behind the sewing machine. I was also packing and shipping everything myself, so there were a lot of walks to the post office to send off orders.”
Image Credit: Cameron Alastaire
Lindsay doesn’t stick to a strict creative process, instead gaining her inspiration by inspecting the brand’s current inventory.
“Most of the time, Foxblood doesn’t design seasonally unless it is a themed holiday like Halloween or Valentine’s Day. I also really listen to the feedback from our customers on our live shows on social media. They give me great feedback on things that they want in their wardrobe, as well.”
“A lot of companies cut the quality of their products to grow faster. I have never considered doing that. Our customers are used to one thing. Why would we change the quality? Foxblood takes pride in remaining high quality in production pieces and remaining true to the mission of being size-inclusive.” She stated.
Image Credit: Cameron Alastaire
Foxblood takes body inclusivity very seriously, releasing alternative fashion lines that come in a wide range of sizes.
“Even as we are in this Ozempic era, all bodies still exist. For a while, the industry was big on inclusivity, and now it is going back down. I feel like that’s where they miss the market of the alternative universe. We are accepting of all people and bodies.”
“To this day, our best sellers are 2X and 3X out of all sizes, and for many companies in the industry to not even consider making those sizes is a huge disadvantage to them.”
Image Credit: Cameron Alastaire
As consumers, we often see the finished product and aesthetic of a brand, but not the less glamorous side of running it. Lindsay admits that she often feels the pressure of her success.
“Running the numbers on a business is stressful on its own, but the challenge of not letting it run into the creative side is hard too. Every day is different, there are lots of design meetings, photoshoots, creating content, packing and shipping, running the storefronts, and handling any random issues that come up.”
“If a Fashion Week is on, I will sit down with my team and have us watch the shows together to venture outside of our bubble to stay up-to-date on what is going on in fashion.” She continued.
Fortunately, the good experiences outweigh the stress. Lindsay has been very successful in fashion, thanks to her determination and business initiative. Following the creation of Foxblood, she opened My Violet, a pastel-themed sister brand.
Image Credit: Cameron Alastaire
Her proudest moment, however, was designing a tour outfit for Alissa White-Gluz of Arch Enemy.
“It was really cool watching her wear these clothes all over the world. Recently, I visited
the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, and I saw one of the outfits I made for Alissa on display. That was a huge surprise to me, so now it is officially my favorite piece I have made for someone.”
Lindsay hopes that Foxblood is remembered for its “Hollywood Cool Girl” vibe and its commitment to providing alternative fashion that embraces every body size.
Featured Image Credit: Cameron Alastaire
