Catherine Fritsch, 1991 Hudson High School Graduate, launched Sweet Revenge Lingerie this January. Fritsch has spent most of her career as a pattern maker for professional theatre costume shops, but made the switch to owning her own business, Mercurious Designs, in 2007.
"I needed to break out of the tunnel vision that happens in such a stressful environment. I was always so focused on the getting through the show at hand that I rarely got a chance to be creative," says Fritsch, who worked at Indiana Repertory Theatre for 11 years. She's also worked for Kent State University's Porthouse Theatre in several capacities over the years. "I love the collaboration of theatre, but it can also be incredibly limiting." Designing for herself is both very freeing and of course stressful in a different way: she is responsible for every aspect of her business, from accounting to marketing, design work to quality control.
Fritsch started Mercurious Designs as a custom clothing and pattern making service, and made the jump to retail design as a way to learn more about the industry. Her training is in costume design for the stage as well as fine arts, so becoming an entrepreneur is a leap of faith. Her first line for Sweet Revenge is a small Spring/Summer collection of sleep wear for the young at heart. Made of 100% cottons, the sleep wear is made in the United States, and is designed to be a feminine, flirty look at a practical item.
The sleep wear can be purchased at the online catalog, http://SweetRevengeLingerie.com, and is also available at wholesale for boutiques. The pictured pajama set is a cherry blossom print camisole and capri pant; photo by Polina Osherov.