Meet Spice Vintage's Gracie Collier: Sustainable Style and the Lure of the West Coast
Tell us a bit about yourself, Spice and your background?
I set up Spice Vintage as a pop-up shop in 2017 in West Cork then I moved to Limerick and opened a larger shop in 2018, I closed due to Covid 19 in 2021 presuming i'd reopen but I launched an online shop and the success of that meant
I never went back to a physical shop because I wouldn't have time to run both. I have been an online shop now for five years – nine in total in business. My background is I studied arts in NUI Galway and then did a masters in marketing, I worked in marketing for two years before quitting and pursuing Spice instead.
Can you talk me through what’s an average day looks like?
I get up at 6.30am and walk our dog on the beach, I come back and usually go for a run, I'll then start my working day whether that be packing orders or promoting or preparing for new stock to go live on the website. I'm also doing up my home and a studio space below to run Spice from, so a lot of my time goes towards that at the moment.
Can you describe the Spice Vintage space in Sligo?
Firstly it’s not going to be a shop! It will be a studio space to run the online business from and then I plan on having opening days/pop-up shops where my customers can come and shop in person. I will be hosting them a couple of times a year. I decided against having a full-time retail space for the business as I wouldn’t be able to do the online and the physical shop as the demand is so high for the online part of the business. We bought this space so I would have space to store stock, run the day-to-day of the business, get models in and then also being able to have pop-up shops whenever I like. The model is a new concept for sure but it suits me and Spice the best.
Can you tell us a bit about your college days in Galway?
Galway is honestly one of the most fabulous spots in Ireland. I have very very dear memories, probably partied too much, but oh well, it was great craic and I made great pals.
What drew you to the West Coast?
West is best! Myself and my boyfriend surf, so the West Coast is the only place for us. Not to mention the kind and friendly people, the great swim spots, the beaches, the hiking and everything in between.
Where do you go for inspiration locally?
I love to go to Rosses Point beach, its my fave. I also like to go hiking Benbulben there's endless inspiration and hikes in Sligo, even just walking by the river out of town, I just love it here.
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