The idea for With Bogart originated several years ago after I became unwell.
Previously, I'd been a happy, healthy student spending my days doing what I loved, flying. I was afforded remarkable experiences, met wonderful people, and ultimately achieved my dream: my Airline Transport Pilot's Licence.
And then, very suddenly, I became unwell and my world changed dramatically.
Countless aspects of my life were transformed and the simple freedom to move about was one of them. I was not well enough to wander shopping centres or city malls. Everything needed to happen online and, as I soon discovered, this was a time-consuming, and often dull, process.
The scope of the Web is tremendous and when you're searching for something specific, or even just 'wandering', you can be overwhelmed by the search results.
A Google search for stores offering what I was looking for would return thousands of results, the majority of which were useless: wrong price, wrong style, and wrong country.
Then one day a thought struck me: wouldn't it be great if there was a website that did all of the tedious work for me?
And so With Bogart was born.
An index of thousands of online clothing stores from around the world, organised to personalise, simplify, and modernise online shopping.
Not only do you have direct access to all of these stores - conveniently organised by the average price of their product, the country they ship from, and the styles they offer - but when you have an account, you also have the option to save your favourites so you can find them quickly whenever you visit.
And as well as hoping to make shopping online easier, I also wanted to help you shop closer to home to reduce carbon emissions from purchases travelling far and wide.
Like you, I worry about the planet and the damage it suffers due to our lifestyles. Climate change is a topic we all know well and we understand it's essential to make whatever changes we can to reduce the damage we cause our planet.
Other shopping platforms are yet to make it possible to choose the location of the stores you shop. When you use these sites the stores you see, with the products you like could be anywhere in the world. Which means you could be paying a lot for shipping, waiting a long time for a product to arrive, paying import duties and taxes, and facing fees for returning items you don't wish to keep.
But even more significant, purchasing from overseas means what you buy will be travelling further and most probably travelling by air. Both of these factors mean more carbon emissions and damage to the planet. And just imagine the impact if you then need to return a purchase!
At With Bogart you can choose to shop just those stores with whom you share a national anthem!, which means things aren't travelling from afar when you buy online. An option not available on any other shopping platforms.
More benefits for shopping at With Bogart are that I'll regularly be adding new stores for you to discover, including emerging labels, while also publishing new blogs (or Musings, if you may), covering what's trending, style inspiration, health and wellness, and social topics.
Also, just recently I've added a section sharing over 200 second-hand and vintage stores, which are essential to reducing the impact of fashion on our planet.
So, welcome to With Bogart, it's wonderful to have you here.
Kindest regards,
Gemma.
PS. The name With Bogart has strong meaning for me. Before I began flying I worked an office job, saving for my flight training. I would use my lunch breaks to surround myself with all things aeroplanes and much of the time this meant searching for antique aircraft online (see, not just vintage fashion I love!).
The Stearman was one of my favourites. I fantasised about spending my weekends soaring in my very own, exposed to the quick, crisp winds, suspended in flawless skies. It appeared to me as would a debonair gentleman, decorous and poised, evoking thoughts of screen legend Humphrey Bogart. So I decided I would call my plane Bogart. And I would spend my fantastical weekends, with Bogart.
With Bogart is now a reality in a very different sense, but still one with great meaning for me.
