#washiewoman WANDER with US
One of my absolute favorite spots in Atlanta is Westside Provisions District- a raw, industrial, kinda artsy shopping and culinary area. And nestled in the District is one of the most beautiful baby and children's store, Seed Factory. I fell in love with the owner, Rachel Baba quickly. She has the ability to put magic into any space and her love of books offers one of the most unique libraries for kids and their parents in the area.
A little background on Rachel Baba..."I grew up in Atlanta - went to Georgia State and studied painting & art history. Took a year to travel then went up to NYC to go to graduate school at Pratt - stayed in NY for about 10 years working as a visual merchandiser and freelance window display ( tons of fun - I would recommend ) and finished up on the visual team at ABC carpet & home. My husband and I (met at grad school) then moved back to Atlanta where our son Jack was born in 2003. I was 6 months pregnant with him when I opened my shop - which I called sprout. The store grew really fast and we moved into a 4,000 sq ft space and rebranded to seed factory, which just seem to fit our new size & space a bit better."
Our son is about to begin his junior year in high school! Having a store is the closest thing to having a child - the care & commitment - It is a real privilege!
- How would you describe the vibe that you have curated here at Seed Factory? A relaxed easy vibe - family friendly with plenty of space where people can hang. Parents often read with their children at the book wall - children play at the play table & magnetic chalk board. I am not one for pressure so we try to give everyone their space but will certainly check in to make sure people are finding clothing sizes and styles they are looking for… when people come in we always try to great them with an honest “ enjoy the shop! “
- Would 11 year old you be surprised to see you owning a children's boutique? Absolutely - I think my 11 year old self still thought she would be an Olympic gymnast - for real.
- What is an under the radar brand or item that you wish more customers could get their hands on? I love main sauvage - they make alpaca knit soft toys and rattles. Absolutely beautiful and natural palette! We just started carrying their gifts so hopefully more people can share!
- An ideal date night looks like… A dinner out - preferably on a patio - preferably when it is a cool 70 degrees ;) We have Sundays as a dedicated family day ( I work most Saturdays ) so a Sunday morning walk in our neighborhood around Grant Park is also a fav.
- A few of your favorite items in your home? I once bought an old hotel key cubby for a merchandising job - It didn’t fit the bill so I bought it back to take home. Purely decorative but it has just the right aged patina and around 100 evenly spaced cubbies in a grid - what could be better than that simple organized shape with a vintaged finish. Best of both worlds - It hangs on the wall in our living room
- Favorite way to spend a day off? As long as it involves my husband Richard and our son Jack it is good - those Sunday morning walks are usually the perfect start! We recently started an herb garden so we have been working out back a lot too. I think it’s safe to say we’re homebodies and take a lot of recharge for the week ahead being in our space together.
- What’s on your bedside table? OK Keeping it real - cholesterol medicine, a phone charger and Kheil’s body lotion
- Favorite Netflix series? Absolutely love ‘the detectorists’ ( not sure if it’s still on netflix but you should find it and watch ) Very clever storytelling! And more recently we enjoyed ‘After Life’ - also clever story telling… there is so much stuff on Netflix ( too much? ) so we really seek out a well told story.
- Best spot for coffee in Atlanta? Love batdorf & bronson coffee so we’ll go right to the source - their french roast is great! the stronger the better ;)
- What can we look forward to in 2020 from your store and beyond? This August I will celebrate our 17th anniversary in business - it’s a lot of history to look back on! We have been growing rapidly online so I think a lot of our energy will be spent there trying to offer the same relaxed easy vibe as we aim for in our brick + mortar shop. It’s all new territory and exciting to learn! I would love to do a nice print catalog too - love strong images and I think people would enjoy. - Thanks Stephanie for sharing seed factory!
