Danielle Ferrari
Danielle started Valhalla with a vision of sustainable fashion for everyone. Once Danielle discovered that the fashion industry is the number two polluter in the world next to fossil fuels, she knew there was an answer to the problem. And she knew that answer wasn't in asking people to wear less. With a Valhalla membership, we can wear more with essentially zero environmental impact. The key is in sharing. Danielle's ultimate vision for Valhalla is to bring our collective closet to every corner of the world.
Achievements/Accomplishments
Finalists in the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year competition
Achieved gold status in the Tampa Bay Time's Best of the Best in the Consignment category
Achieved silver status in the Tampa Bay Time's Best of the Best in the Women's Boutique category
Favorite Item Fashion Item
It's really hard to pick just one, I love to wear all sorts of different things all the time - that is one of the key parts of the membership after all! I only have two dresses that I own and they actually have a lot of similarities, both are incredibly soft, meant to be worn braless, and are very low cut. One of the dresses came from Valhalla and the other came from The Disco Dolls Studio. It's the Maeve. If I had to choose only one thing to wear for the rest of my life, that would have to be it. It's timeless, stunning, like wearing nothing at all, and I never fail to get complements every time I wear it.
Go To Accessory
I'm almost always wearing some sort of necklace. When I travel, I like to pick up a new piece of jewelry from each place I visit to remind me of my experiences. Almost every clothing item I wear is rented but about half of the accessories I wear are my own.
Favorite Clothing Story
I love that all of our clothes have the opportunity to have as much life as possible before they reach the end of their useful lives. We often hear stories about the lives the items had before they came to us, like the shirt one of our members wore on the first date with her future wife. Or big moments that happen in the clothes that are rented; we've had engagements and even a marriage in our clothes.
Favorite Part of Working at Valhalla
There are probably thousands of things I love about Valhalla but number one; I love empowering people to feel comfortable in their own skin. I also love encouraging our members to break all the rules and push the boundaries they've created for themselves. Exploring your style should be fun and exciting and not full of self imposed rules. If I see some, I'll push gently. ;)
What Inspired Your Love of Fashion
Fashion and clothes were a huge part of my childhood. My grandmother sent my sister and I a huge box every season full of new clothes until we were about 10. I remember being incredibly excited to open the box and discover what treasures were inside and then doing a little fashion shows afterward. My sister and I were the same size so we were able to share our clothes which essentially doubled our wardrobe size. That early childhood sharing may have played a role in inspiring the idea for the Valhalla membership.
Love Affair with Fashion
One of my favorite things about fashion and something I am constantly mystified by is the magic that clothing has. The magic that putting on a dress that you just know looks amazing on you can do wonders for your self confidence and overall mood. I'm terrified of public speaking and during one of the most important talks of my life, I started having an internal melt down and I swear, the only thing that got me through was remembering how amazing the sheath business dress I was wearing looked on me. I looked and felt like a "boss babe" and that feeling got me through that stressful moment.