In recent years, Downtown Las Vegas has been growing as a formidable startup hub. With the help of Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh back in 2011, he graciously invested $350 million of his own fortune to resuscitate an economically distraught stretch of downtown, home to some lower-end casinos and motels and not much else. His plan was to transform this lifeless area about a mile north of the neon blitz of the Strip into an entrepreneurial and tech epicenter.
Soon after, flourishing new business opened, new hopeful faces began populating the area and Container Park came into being. Many entrepreneurs migrated to the new hub to cement their place in history.
A Las Vegas local, she began having a passion for art in high school and wanted to pursue a career in it. When Jessica was 18, she moved to Los Angeles to attend the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM). While in school, she worked at an Italian restaurant on Melrose Ave and began requesting to create new paintings for the dining room after having a vision of what the room could be with different art on the walls.
She had only dabbled in painting prior to this, so it was a brave undertaking for her. Jessica put on an opening for the showcase and sold two pieces the first night. She was the resident artist for two years while working there and sold her paintings as she waited tables. Following this success, Jessica started painting more and began showing her work art festivals in both Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
While attending fashion school, she began wardrobe styling. She had a client that she was dressing for the ESPY Awards and upon putting together her ensemble for the event, there was a missing piece; a large hot pink cuff for her wrist. Jessica scoured the streets of LA and couldn’t find one anywhere. After not being able to find what she needed, Jessica went into her art studio to make it. She happened to find a scrap of leather, and began to create what she envisioned and gave it to the client to complete her look. Her client loved it and ended up commissioning a more for her friends. That was the birth of Leather Couture.
Jessica continued to exhibit her work at festivals and feature her leather creations. Although they appeared to be different mediums, she found the aesthetic to be very similar and she attracted the same kind of clientele.
Essentially a buyer would get a piece of art and a leather accessory – “art you can hang, art you can wear.” Leather Couture started becoming a viable brand when Jessica began selling in stores around Vegas. The exposure from the stores coupled with exhibiting at reoccurring art shows not only drove awareness, it also put Jessica Galindo Fine Art & Leather Couture on the art and fashion radar.
Leather Couture by Jessica Galindo was launched in 2008 as the love child of her successful fine art career and her education from FIDM in the world of fashion. As an artist, she has received accolades for her work and has taken her keen sense of craftsmanship and style from the wall of the gallery to the body. Drawing inspiration from all facets of modern life Jessica has created a wearable art that reflects the world around her. From tribal arts, to the runways of Paris, Jessica has found a unique language to inspire both your emotion and your wardrobe.
In 2013, Jessica realized her company was outgrowing her studio. She needed a larger space and Downtown Container Park was a great opportunity. It allowed her existing clientele to bring friends to the store, and allowed them to shop more frequently. Having a physical location introduced the brand to patrons from all over the world.
Jessica operated Jessica Galindo Art & Leather Couture at Container Park from November 2013 until May 2015. Due to the expansion of her online business, she was able to close her store to focus on e-commerce and additional projects. This past year, Jessica completed a commission for the Hard Rock Hotel and two commissioned series for Nordstrom. Her leather goods can also be found at Zappos.com.
Jessica’s story is truly inspirational. Once a struggling artist eager to make a name for herself, she is now a budding business woman. Her success story mirrors that of the Downtown community; young, hungry, eager to conquer the world. She followed this path because it speaks to her soul. She said it was her calling:
“My purpose in the world is to create beauty on the planet. And whenever I have stayed true to this calling and respect a vision that comes to me, I act on it. And when that happens people respond. It’s amazing.”
-Jessica Galindo