If you have not heard of Shannon Berg, aka The Haute Hatter, be prepared for the mass amount of attention that is about to be paid to her. She is just one year into her hat-bar business, and she is on fire!
Shannon started her business with the same goals and dreams as many other entrepreneurs, except, she is not the same as everyone else. She is a bundle of energy, whit, laughter, and talent with country-style and class that anyone will want to look up to. Her fierce determination and desire to succeed is launching her to the top of the rising customized hat business.
Shannon and I first interacted through another talented singer/artist named Taylor Tones when Taylor showed up for a photoshoot with one of Shannon's hats on. I happened to comment that it was a beautiful, custom hat when Taylor let me know who made it for her. After I found her on Instagram, where most of my interactions have been with her until recently, I tagged her and she thanked me.
I followed her page frivolously dreaming about the hat I was going to create one day. I had a lot going on at the time, so I knew the hat was destined for a time pocket in my future, but didn't pay too much mind to it. Then the hype started around the Hardy/Lainey Wilson concert coming to town last October 2023! I was also going to see the show and was excited that Shannon was donating two hats to Lainey and was planning to give them to her during the show. I was in the crowd in front of the stage and watched the whole thing unfold in real time. I love Lainey and I knew she would grab the hats -- and she did! After the show, I sent Shannon the video which she thanked me for and I can tell how happy and proud she was.
Fast forward to March 2024. I was getting ready to graduate from FIU and had started considering finally making my hat. Previously, I just had so much going on that I could not focus on it. It's not because I didn't want a hat! LOL Then the BEST thing that could have happened came of all of my admiration for her -- Shannon asked me to do a branding photoshoot for her showcasing her stylish hats!!! GAHHH, meeee?
We just completed the photoshoot on Sunday, and as I write this, she has not even seen the full camera roll of photos that I am preparing for her. They are going to be epic. I just have to take a moment to explain how the photoshoot went down on a remote location with a cattle owner named "Braxton". This is too good to leave out:
So, a couple days before the photoshoot, I was getting super anxious and excited about working with Shannon. She gave me a few details but to be honest, a lot of it was up to imagination at that point. I knew there would be a vintage truck, some cute girls to model the hats, and some cows haha -- true story. This is the life of a freelance photographer. Sometimes, you go with the flow (like the time I took 2 cars, a ferry, and a golf cart to a remote island and got dropped off on a beach with my camera? Different story, coming soon!) Anyways, I was given a pin drop to the location and the night unfolded with four 4WD trucks rolling out on a back road to a cow pasture loaded with cows and donkeys AND us. The truck was strategically placed in front of the sunset, and then the fun began. What happened next is the story of legends. Like either you were there, or you were not. Period.
^Taylor Filiault
Shannon orchestrated the whole event with ease, as if she was born for this. Photographer, wardrobe, cattle-owner, models, everyone in their places perfectly as if it were rehearsed. The beauty of it was, it wasn't! It came purely out of the hearts and imaginations of a few determined women-entrepreneurs that were bound and destined to makes their marks on this life. It was a dream come true for all of us. I have to also mention that Shannon invited Jaime, the curator of the fashion at Montgomerie Gray Boutique who provided all of the clothing that the models were wearing with their haute hats.
^Jaime, Owner of Montgomerie Gray clothing, and vintage Ford truck
I am anticipating all of the fun and interesting ways that Shannon will be using her branding photos to update her content on her media pages and website which is also coming soon.
I live for this stuff, ya'll! Special thanks to The Haute Hatter! Thank you for letting me build my passion alongside yours.
xoxo,
Dee
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