Meet Mariah Hodges of Electric Bubblegum

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mariah Hodges.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Mariah. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
While in college at Savannah College of Art and Design, I explored working with a liquid glitter sealed in plastic clothing for my senior project in 2016-2017. This was inspired by a mixture of early 2000s childhood nostalgia and the liquid glitter phone cases that had started to become popular at the time. I thought it would be fun to see if I could find a way to use it as a textile and embellishment element in clothes and bags. After endless research and a lot of trial and error, I succeeded and designed my entire senior collection based on liquid glitter in clothes. During this project, my classmates started to ask if they could buy the liquid glitter star earrings that I made to go with the collection. And this essentially started Electric Bubblegum.

Immediately after graduation, I started Electric Bubblegum. I started by uploading about 12 different colors of liquid glitter star earrings on Etsy and I started selling them to complete strangers right away. This eventually turned into liquid glitter clutches, coin purses, raincoats, puffer vests, etc…. Not too long after, I opened my own website and less than a year later, I showed my first collection in Denver Fashion Week.

Three years later, Electric Bubblegum has drastically increased its online sales and is wholesaling to retailers all over the United States. I also received my first US Design Patent this past May 2020 for my Liquid Glitter Puffer Vest. I am still designing and running Electric Bubblegum but I also have a small team that help run and grows Electric Bubblegum in our bright pink office.

Liquid Glitter is a fun, sparkly liquid and glitter mixture that moves throughout the product it is put in.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Running a small business is hard. There has been a lot of hurdles along the way but I haven’t let any of these stop me. For example, just the initial research of learning how to use liquid glitter in apparel was a struggle. It took tons of research and trial and error and I definitely had a handful of people telling me it couldn’t be done successfully.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Electric Bubblegum story. Tell us more about the business.
Electric Bubblegum specializes in fun, fearless fashion. Meaning accessories and apparel that can bring a smile to your face but are also innovative and cutting edge. We specifically focus on products filled with liquid and glitter.

What we are most proud of as a company is designing and selling products that are different and unique and cannot be found most places and in many cases can only be found at Electric Bubblegum. We also pride ourselves and keeping our products fun and positive.

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I feel like good luck has played a part in this business. I don’t have any super specific examples but I feel lucky that I was able to create unique products that no one was selling before.

Pricing:

• Our products range from $6 – $200.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.electricbubblegumshop.com/
• Email: electricbubblegumapparel@gmail.com
• Instagram: @electric_bubblegum
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/electricbubblegumshop
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ElectricBubbleg

Image Credit:
Electric Bubblegum – Lucas Garlock

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