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Meagan & Morgan Finn On Launching A Label With An Unrivalled Aesthetic

At only 23 years old, Meagan and Morgan have combined their passion for branding, beauty, and design into their own unique clothing brand.

Meagan and Morgan, self-titled as The Finn Twins, are two of Ottawa’s foremost fashion designers who have launched their brand entirely through social media.

They’ve harnessed the power of photography, storytelling, and design to create a boutique experience with no storefront. In the digital age, this has been well-received by the Ottawa market— the duo have amassed a following of over 30,000 for their brand and their personal accounts alike.

Their success is, of course, not by accident or luck. Morgan graduated from Richard Robinson Fashion Design Academy, and started to make clothing long before Meagan, who holds a degree from Carleton University, brought her business acumen to the team to start their brand.

All of their clothes are designed and made by hand, inspired by the twins’ unique lifestyle and travels. They’ve built their business on the values of female empowerment, the bond of sisterhood, and a commitment to customer service.

We sat down to discuss their Ottawa roots, their approach to working together, and what’s next for their budding brand.

When did you both realize that you wanted to go into fashion?

Morgan: I knew that I wanted to pursue fashion at the age of 6. Every time I went to visit my grandmother, we would hand stitch together and embroider little flowers on table cloths. My passion for fashion design only grew stronger as I grew older.

Meagan: I have always loved fashion but only knew I wanted to make it my lifelong career after finishing my studies in law and admiring my sister’s work.

When did you decide to start a clothing line? When did you realize that you wanted to turn your dream into a reality?

Meagan: Just as I was about to graduate from university, the global pandemic hit and it set forth an opportunity for us we could not pass up. We both have always dreamt of starting a clothing line together, but our studies and work always stood in the way. With the world being in lock down, we finally had the time to sit down, plan, and start our company.

Who inspired you when you were designing your brand? What makes you different?

Meagan: Our biggest inspiration while starting our company was Conna Walker, the founder of House of CB. She started her company at the age of 17 and now, 10 years later, has turned her bedroom business into multiple storefronts and design houses in both LA and in the UK. The biggest difference between us and Conna is she doesn’t make her designs by hand. She sketches them and then has designers make them for her. She started by making three pieces per design and then eventually grew her SKU as sales came in.

Where do you get your inspiration from?

Morgan: Our inspiration comes from our lifestyle. We love nothing more than dressing up and going out to fancy restaurants. Now that we can both sew and design, we create pieces that we see ourselves wearing out. We love travelling to new places, so that inspires us to work hard and continue to grow our brand worldwide.

What has been the biggest change between your first launch and your recent work? How has the way you approach your work changed since you started?

Meagan: The biggest change between our very first collection and our most recent one is sizing and range. We started by only offering one adjustable size and now we offer XS, S, M and L in some of our designs. We also only sold tops, whereas now we sell tops, skirts, pants, and dresses. We approach our work differently now as we try to be size inclusive and offer all the pieces we wear in our photoshoots.

Who have been some of your biggest supporters while starting your business?

Morgan: Some of the biggest supporters we’ve had since starting our business have been girls who have been following us on Instagram for five plus years. We have many girls who are returning customers because they’ve always been following our work and love everything we create.

What’s something that surprised you about running your own fashion line?

Morgan: Something that truly surprised us about running our own line is that our customers are drawn to our story just as much as they are drawn to the work we produce. We sell our story as sisters who want to promote the unique bond of sisterhood in Ottawa. Our customers might not have the same twin connection as us, but together through loyalty, support, and encouragement, we can all be sisters.

When we moved from Ottawa to LA, we very quickly learned that we lost our connection with our sisters. We didn’t realize how many people prefer to only support local and have that in person, local pick-up option. The biggest part of our work is customer service, and we want to keep that personal touch and make each and every one of our clients feel valued and appreciated.

Social media, love it or hate it?

Meagan: We love social media. We’ve always had a strong presence on Instagram, so posting has always been something we’re passionate about. Not only do we love everything fashion, but we also love the photography aspect of Instagram. It allows us to stay creative and artistic, whether that’s with work, food, travelling, etc. We’re also very transparent on social media and we enjoy sharing our journey with our followers and getting their feedback on things we’re unsure about. We see it as a great tool to interact with our customers, while also sharing with them what they want to see from us, particularly our unique lifestyle.

How has your relationship as sisters changed since going into business together?

Morgan: We’ve gotten much closer, just when we thought that was not possible. By working alongside each other every day, we continue to learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and that allows us to work better together as partners. Having two dominant personalities, we’ve learned how to always find a happy medium between both of our ideas and preferences. We’re best friends, so work never feels like work, it’s more of a great life adventure.

What is the best piece of advice you have received so far in your career?

Morgan: That it’s important to work hard, but also to make time for yourself. To stay motivated and creative, you need proper sleep and time off. Visiting friends and family, or even taking a trip away can really have a positive impact on your work. We work on average 12-16 hours a day, seven days a week, and we have seen the effects of burning out. It’s important to be aware of what you need to feel refreshed and excited to continue working.

What is the best piece of advice you can give to anyone looking to follow your footsteps in fashion?

Meagan: Just start and don’t look back. If you think you need to wait until everything is perfect, you’re wrong. You will come to learn everything you need just by starting. Don’t compare yourself to others. If you have an idea, run with it, everything is worth trying because you’ll never know if you don’t do it.

What’s next for you and your brand?

Meagan: The next step for our brand is a clothing factory. As our company is growing fast, and we want to create a facility where we can have our fashion designers work with us full time, in-house. Ideally, we would love to have a storefront beneath. A place where girls can come and meet us, try on their pieces, and customize the fit if needed. Creating a men’s line is also something we’re looking forward to soon.

@FinnTwins

 

Photography by Sean Sisk

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