Meet Pam Seidman | BYBBA Founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Pam Seidman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Pam, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
After working in fashion for 25 years building brands like Valentino, Express and Nine West, I saw an opportunity when NY started making noise about banning single-use plastics. I’ve always had a fascination with packaging and shopping bags (even collecting them as a young girl growing up in NYC) but was now faced with the impending idea that single-use bags-plastic and otherwise- were truly wasteful and, more often than not, destructive to our planet.
I challenged myself to start carrying an extra bag with me at all times, asking myself when I couldn’t find one that felt sophisticated, well designed and responsibly made, “what would it look like, feel like, be made of and how would it function?” No sooner did I ask these questions that the world shut down for the pandemic, allowing me time to work on the concept and dream up a brand that challenged the idea of the shopping bag and created well-designed solutions to replace them. Now, six months since launching I’m proud to share that we’re being sold at Nordstrom and starting in 2022 at MoMA Design Stores in addition to our website, www.BYBBA.com.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I was fortunate to graduate from Northwestern in the early ’90s with a clear idea that I wanted to go into advertising. I landed a job at McCann Erickson working on L’Oreal cosmetics which provided exposure to an amazing brand in a really structured environment at a time when budgets were big and living was large. Within the portfolio of brands under the L’Oreal umbrella were Ralph Lauren fragrances and I set a future goal of working on this business. I saw a strong brand with a clear and consistent story while recognizing that I really wanted to get into fashion. I’ve always believed in setting goals and in this case, it paid off. I got hired by the client effectively, going to work at the in-house agency at Ralph Lauren and that was the true entry point to my career in fashion. I worked hard for years, lots of long hours and paying my dues, soon realizing that I wanted to learn more about brand and image building so I decided to get into PR, going to work for the top fashion PR agency in NY, KCD. I was assigned to work on the Versace account and as soon as I was exposed to European fashion I never looked back. From there I went to Valentino where I handled US press and marketing which was equally, if not more, intoxicating, sexy, and exciting. I loved the business of fashion as much as I did the image and quickly learned the art of working around creatives, allowing them to be the star, staying in the background and letting them shine. What set me apart was my understanding and appreciation for culture and thirst for staying on the pulse. Often I imagine if there were social media at the time what that would have added to the equation. I was thankful all throughout for the access and exposure but also recognized that I wanted a family and that traveling to Europe 7 times a year wouldn’t be conducive to starting one. I made the choice to prioritize this and also the rational decision to go work for a US company with less travel involved. I spent the next 11 years at Limited Brands building Express and this was the best decision I made. I went on to have two children and while there were many trips to Columbus, Ohio I was proud of myself for putting family first and still maintain that it’s not an either/or but the pecking order needs to be clear, especially as my husband was also building his career. Express allowed me to learn the business of fashion to compliment all I knew about brands and their image. Today I recognize that it was all the varied experience that ultimately stacked up to understanding brands at all levels and the ability (and guts) to start one of my own.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’d share my favorite NY places: JG Melon’s for the best burger
Laut for Thai
Le Bernardin for the most over the top, high end dining experience.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Uptown, The Whitney downtown.
Central Park- for 5 hours– walking endlessly.
Ina and Roundabout for vintage, Bergdorf Goodman for makeup and designer shoes
The Little Island off the Highline for people watching
The Westminster Dog show, US Open, a Giants game and the Knicks!!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Having worked for some incredible people (and some far less inspiring), there have been a few that have made a lasting impression and taught me so much. Ed Filipowski at KCD and Michael Weiss at Express are the two that stand out the most.

You can see more of what Pam is working on at www.BYBBA.com

Website: WWW.BYBBA.Com

Instagram: @Bybbagoods

Linkedin: Pam Seidman. https://www.linkedin.com/in/pam-seidman-0a84644/

Facebook: @bybbagoods