Where do I begin with this post…I basically moved to downtown Austin for 10 days during South by Southwest and had the best time during the conference! I feel like South By Southwest can be overwhelming if it is your first time or your tenth time. However, if you go into the conference with a plan and extreme flexibility you will enjoy your time there. I want to share my purpose and goals of why I went this year, and a few highlights from the week.
For those of you who don’t know what South by Southwest is, here is a quick synopsis. South by Southwest is a 10-day festival and conference that covers Film, Interactive, and Music industries. There are countless panels and speakers to go see, film premieres to catch, and music showcases to experience. This year my goal was to continue to connect with industry leaders in the retail and fashion space. I was excited to be chosen to be a part of the mentor session at SXSW. From participating in that session, I was given a platinum badge to explore and experience South by Southwest to the fullest.
Wait! Let’s back up…
I wanted to cover the Mentorship program because that was my second time working with SXSW but my first time speaking during a session. I made a great connection with a woman who is a wardrobe consultant and stylist in the Austin area. It was so great to talk with Elizabeth about brand building and strategy. We also exchanged different resources and podcasts we listened to. It overall was such a great experience!
Now, what were some of the highlights…
This is going to be a little difficult to keep it short and sweet but here goes nothing! To start, Bishop Briggs really kicked it off with her performance at The Capital One house. I know there are a lot of smaller artists performing during the festival to catch their big break. However! I love that I can see the artist that I love in these smaller venues. It makes the experience that much exciting and fun. I was able to catch her show that Friday and the following Sunday at the Michelob Ultra Event.
Have you ever participated in a mass meditation?
No? Well me either until the Michelob Ultra Golden hour event which held this mass mediation in celebration of their new organic beer. I am not a huge beer drinker, so I didn’t care too much for that, however, the musical guests was what I was there for. The event had some yummy food options with sparkling water, which I thoroughly enjoyed. In all honesty, mass mediation was a cool experience but also slightly creepy at the same time. I just don’t like sitting with my eyes closed for 20 minutes in such a large group of people (in open space). I’m glad I was there and was able to catch an acoustic set from Miguel, Bishop Briggs, and Cautious Clay.
A few other artists I really enjoyed seeing was Khalid and my latest discovery was Saint Phnx. I could not forget my absolute favorite was the opportunity to see Billie Eilish again! That was a fun show to go to and hands down the Uber Eats house was my favorite venue. Each night Uber Eats hosted they served unlimited amounts of food and open bar which was perfect. For the night of Billie’s showcase, they served by CHLOE. I am the farthest thing from being a vegan ( I also had the biggest side eye when I saw they were serving vegan options). But this food was SO good!! I could literally eat that mac and cheese by the boatload.
Now for the interactive part of the conference
Create & Cultivate always comes through with one of the best panels each year. I loved the panel at the Dell Experience lounge that took place during the week. It was a little smaller and I felt like the environment was more personable and I loved the conversations. I went with Jon and afterward we had a great conversation with Karli Hernandez spoke that day. A huge take away I had was that I need to figure out my title and how does that stand out from the other thousands of “fashion bloggers” out there. Now I am currently trying to redefine my title as my homework.
There were a couple more highlights from the week including the Innovation Mansion, having the opportunity to make more connections with brands from their PR and marketing teams. It was overall a growing and learning experience.
A couple of tips for those wanting to go next year
- If your plan is to network and meet others in the industry, bring business cards. That might sound a little old school, but I highly recommend having those on hand. I feel like it is more personable than just following each other on Instagram.
- Make a list of events you want to attend to avoid becoming overwhelmed by all that is going on. RSVP for everything, then prioritize your list of activities you want to do. You want to be flexible and have backups just in case you order a Lyft and it doesn’t move for 30 minutes and you miss your next event. That happened to me with the Planoly event I was really looking forward to. However, I looked at the other events I had on my list (and favorites on the SXSW app) and went to one of those instead.
- Take a day off. I am not sure how many attendees went the full 10 days but since I live in Austin it makes that a lot easier for me to accomplish. However, I did burn out around Thursday and took a day off. It is okay to not go full steam around and rage for 10 days straight. Take a break if necessary.
- Comfort is key. I will be showing all my outfits coming up in a video, where I create comfortable and stylish outfits for the whole conference. Some days you might walk around 7 or so miles and there is no reason to be wearing heels during that.
Well, that is all folks! I think I covered so as much as I could without going overboard into a 239490-word blog post. If you ever have questions for me about South by Southwest shoot me an email, direct message, or comment below! This is one of my favorite times of the year and I would love to talk about it with anyone. 🙂
Outfit Details
Blazer Dress: Colton Gray Blazer Dress
Boots: Michael Kors Whitaker in suede
