Meet Dre Wien | Founder, sustainable clothing boutique LADDER

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dre Wien and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dre, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I think I have a different relationship with risk than most people in that I’m a pretty big risk taker. My philosophy is that I always know what I’m leaping FROM and I can usually return to where I was before if things don’t work out.

For example, my thought process when starting LADDER was that if it didn’t work, I could return to my career as a writer or nutrition coach. There’s always more money to be made somewhere, so I take the risk. I’m more scared of not doing something and regretting it than doing it and failing.

The other thing that has helped me to assess risk was getting very clear on my values. I value autonomy and freedom above all else in business, so when I’m evaluating opportunities in my life, everything gets put through that filter first. These types of mental calculations save me from a lot of unnecessary risk.

What should our readers know about your business?
LADDER is a clothing boutique focused on independent, sustainable designers. I opened the store a little over 2 years ago because I was new to the city and looking for ways to meet people in the community. In addition to selling clothes, we also host events for our neighbors and I’m happy to report that my dream of creating a space to meet friends has worked.

It is also important to me that the items in the store are sustainably made by people earning fair wages in ethical conditions. I’m passionate about the health of our bodies and our planet, so this is a non-negotiable for me.

The store has exceeded my expectations in terms of what I thought I’d accomplish in my first few years of business, but that’s not to say there haven’t been challenges. My biggest hurdle has revolved around staffing and finding reliable salespeople who want to stick around for more than a couple of months. The nature of retail is that it’s easy to move on from, so that’s definitely a spot that’s been tough to work through.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
We’re lucky to be in a great area called the Van Aken District of all independent shops and restaurants. I love SLFMKR next door to our shop. Kait curates a collection of clean beauty and makeup products. I also love Brassica, a fast casual Mediterranean restaurant. Just a short drive away, my favorite restaurant is Amba, an elevated take on Indian-ish food.

I live for good food, so my trips typically revolve around where to eat. Some of my other faves:

Larder, a modern Jewish deli. Chef Jeremy is doing insanely creative things (like vegan charcuterie!) with koji, the ancient mold used to make soy sauce and sake.

I also love Zhug, Bataqui and Alea for dinners and Juneberry Table for breakfast and brunch.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My husband is by far and away my biggest supporter. I couldn’t do what I do without him.

Website: www.laddercle.com

Instagram: instagram.com/laddercle

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/laddercle

Twitter: twitter.com/laddercle

Facebook: facebook.com/laddercle