Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Catherine Branch
Hi Mary Catherine, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
From an early age I knew I was creative. I didn’t accel at academics; I mean I got by but where I really thrived was when I was doing something creative. When I was little, my childhood best friend and I would hand sew old blue jeans into handbags. I still have the first handbag I ever made, from an old pair of jean shorts with butterflies embroidered on the pockets. I loved those shorts, and I was so sad when I outgrew them. I knew I wanted to make them into something I could use again, or they would be off to Goodwill. So, I got to work, chopping up my beloved jeans and getting resourceful. I incorporated one of my dad’s old ties and commandeered one of my mom’s butterfly broaches, that I eventually had to give back! I did not know then that this was the first of many handbags. In high school we had to write a paper on what we wanted to pursue as a career, and I wrote my paper on interior design. This was in the HGTV era of Trading Spaces and home improvement shows. When my dad heard I was thinking of interior design as a career, he encouraged me to learn to sew. He paid for sewing classes at a local sewing center and got me my first sewing machine. Fast forward to college (2006-2010), I officially decided to study the creative and practical career of Interior design. I loved my foundation art classes and learning about the principles and elements of design. Before and after graduation, I worked for a local antique store and home décor fabric store. Once again there was a common thread; my love of vintage and upcycled goods was paired with my love of fabric. One day while working at the fabric store, a customer came and mentioned she was making totes out of some of the fabric she bought! That sparked an idea to make some handbags “for fun” and the rest was history. I worked at my retail jobs and made handbags part-time from 2011-2016. I got involved with Tapps Art Center, I started doing Soda City farmer’s market and selling them at the antique store. I really started to thrive and see my handmade, handbag, business idea as marketable the more I did Soda City. It was a low risk, high reward opportunity to spread my wings and get my designs in front of hundreds of people on a given Saturday. Through Soda City I found out my handbags were marketable. At the beginning of 2017, I was about to ask my boss, at the fabric store, for all Saturdays off to do Soda City and craft fairs when they told me they were going to close the business. God had been preparing my heart and mind for this moment. It was scary but it was that final push I needed to go all in. So in March 2017, I went full-time! My mom was retiring from teaching around the same time, and she started helping me. Before we both knew it, we were spending most days working together and embarking on the greatest adventure filled with a lot of trial and error, wins and losses. We are thankful for every year we can pursue this dream together. We now have a brick and mortar shop in Five Points (713 Saluda Avenue), we sell online through Etsy and we continue to do Soda City farmer’s market and South Carolina festivals and shows.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
One of the struggles we encountered was when the pandemic hit. We had just moved from Tapps Art Center on Main Street to Five Points in December 2019, three months before Covid hit. All our shows were canceled, and people were scared. We had customers reaching out to us to make masks. And so, we pivoted and started predominately making masks. We were thankful to be able to help and we were thankful to be able to stay afloat by providing something people desperately needed at the time. By the end of 2020, masked were being mast produced, marking the end of mask making for us. And we settled back into making handbags. It was a trying time, but we were able to make it through and for that we were grateful.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Uniquely MC?
Uniquely MC is an upbeat, handbag company in which we design and make all of our products. Our main intention, behind all of our designs is to create truly unique, one-of-a-kind bags. We love working with upholstery and vintage materials, leather, waxed canvas and upcycled materials such as rugs, placemats, military surplus and belts. It is our mission to never create any two products alike to ensure you get a one-of-a-kind creation. We are a mother/ daughter team from Columbia, South Carolina. Mary Catherine Branch (MC), the owner of Uniquely MC, went to Winthrop where she acquired her BFA in interior design. Sherrie Kunze is a retired teacher.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
Don’t be afraid to try new things and switch up what you are doing but also remain consistent. If you are trying to implement a new idea, give it at least a year while also continuing to do what works. Remember, little changes over time lead to big changes and growth. It doesn’t have to be big and flashy.
Pricing:
- $18-$395
Contact Info:
- Website: https://uniquelymc.etsy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/uniquely_mc/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/uniquelymc
- Other: Physical store: 713 Saluda Avenue
Image Credits
Sergio Aparicio, Soda City
