Aly Stacy

The Collective

We sat down for a Zoom conversation with Founder and Director of The Collective, Aly Stacy, to discuss her work as an artist and entrepreneur, covering her journey as self-taught clothing maker with a slow fashion brand, to managing a gallery/storefront with over 180 artists. 

“I’m kind of Multiverse,” Aly says when asked about her background that led her down this creative path. In fact, being an artist comes naturally to her.

Stacy explains that she, “grew up in the film business.” With a mother who was an Art Director and Makeup Artist, and father who was a Photographer, both of Stacy’s parents worked freelance for big corporations in town like P&G and Kenner.

“We were on the back of CareBear boxes and stuff like that,” she adds jokingly, “and we were very involved in the art production world.  And as I got older I did set design and working with props, which gave me a good background for setting space,” Stacy says. So being an artist and curating a gallery didn’t seem like a big leap for her.

The slow fashion artist launched her clothing company KreativeMindz in the early 2000’s, in what she calls the “art show circuit” over the past few decades.  She had initially created an accessory line that she tried to sell while wearing the clothing she’d been making for herself. And because she seemed to get more attention for the clothes she was wearing than from the accessories she was attempting to sell, she quickly pivoted to the more fashion-driven making.

“People asked, ‘Where did you get that skirt?’” She says, mentioning her now popular “sunburst skirt”, which Aly explains, “is a similar pattern, but every single one is one-of-a-kind and different.” So, taking a cue from her audience, she leaned into slow fashion, where there already seemed to be an interest for her creations. 

“It is my art and I just ran with it, and it ended up working out for me, and now it has evolved into all these other things,” Stacy says.

Right before 2020, Aly was approached by leaders in her hometown of New Richmond to “bring art to the village,” and she signed a lease two weeks before COVID. 

In June of 2020, she opened her first iteration of The Collective in an old church, drawing in friends and artists she’d identified in the region and set the place up, “like an art show in a store,” in order to “make it more accessible to everyone.” 

She features “a little bit of everything” in her space that features a “highly curated collection” of 180 local and regional artists making everything from “superfine original art to soaps made from farm-raised goats.”

“It’s probably not what people think of as a ‘gallery’” Stacy says. “But it is a hybrid gallery.”

She remained in that location for a few years before looking for a new space and they are currently in Columbia Tusculum with a recent additional location set to open sometime next Spring in the newly-built Findlay Market Garage building.

“I always thought about opening a gallery space but it was more once I was done traveling, once I was older—maybe in my 60’s,” Stacy laughs. “And it just kind of fell into my lap and I already had the vision so I was like, ‘might as well!’”

“I’m already kind of that way,” she continues. “I’m a leaper. If it feel it, I go for it. So we did!” The artist exclaims enthusiastically.

And despite that enthusiasm, the reality she explains is that, “a storefront is a whole different thing from just making art and traveling around to art shows and stuff.” 

“The overhead of all of that plus managing 180 artists is no joke,” she admits. 

“I am super grateful to be able to bring a space like that to Cincinnati and to give the artists a space to be able to sell their work,” Stacy says humbly. And she currently works for free, not paying herself and relying on the few hired staff like her son who lives above the Columbia Tusculum gallery. 

“I am very much aware of the sweat equity and putting that into the company. But the plan if we open up the second space is we’re going to at least have to hire one other person, on Columbia Tusculum maybe two.

When asked what she’s learned over the course of the past few transformative years, Aly admits that what her vision for the future has turned into is, “much bigger than anything I could do myself.”

“Growth is hard,” Stacy says. “I’m a do-it-myself kind of person but as you grow you find out you really can’t do everything by yourself.” 

And with all of the expansion she’s been experiencing, finding a good team will be crucial to her businesses’ success going forward. 

The Collective anticipates more foot traffic when they open the second location in the busy Findlay Market area, and Stacy says that “to me, that organic growth—just word of mouth—is a more stable foundation than paying for advertising.”

“And that’s all we have right now anyways,” the artist admits, laughing.

Born and raised in Cincinnati, when asked about what she likes most about her experience as a Maker in this town, Stacy answers “I’m really proud of this city now.” 

“Cincinnati has come a long way and there is this building of the art scene with more and more artists and people supporting that, and realizing how important that is too.

“I think Cincinnati has come a long way in the last 20 years—even in the last ten years,” Stacy says. 

And CMC hopes that we can foster and support artists like Aly Stacy, who are doing much, not only for herself, but also for her community of fellow makers.

To find out more about The Collective, visit the website at https://thecollective513.com or follow The Collective on social media @thecollectivecincy, @thecollectivefindlay or https://www.facebook.com/TheCollective513/