It may have been just 5 months since Steph Claire Smith launched her Keep It Cleaner health program, but today sees the dynamic model influencer/content-creator jump into the business seat once more – this time launching a sunglasses brand with boyfriend Josh Miller: meet Soda Shades.
The couple have been pooling their collective 1.3+ million Insta-users to tease info about the launch since last November – when Steph first stepped out wearing a pair of the sunnies at Flemington Racecourse. But now the wait is no more with the two hitting the live button on the Soda Shades online store this morning.
Debuting with three shades, Soda Shades is all about salty shorelines and peak summer stylin’. First up is a pair of red cat-eye sunglasses otherwise known as Florence and described as “equal amounts baller & boss”; next is a pair of tortoiseshell roundies called Hazel, and then there’s Marilyn – classic, black and a self-affirmed “(fashion) statement”.
Each pair of sunglasses retails for $89 with free international shipping – but what makes this launch especially stand-out (besides its entrepreneur-savvy #girlboss co-founder) is that the couple are actually encouraging customers to communicate with them via text. No automated email responses here. If you want to be in the know when it comes to everything Soda Shades – then be prepared to receive a text directly from Steph or Josh… now there’s an incentive to sign on if ever we’ve heard one.
With a 5000 waitlist pre-launch, we suspect this is one brand that’s future is anything but shady [sorry, had to throw in a Dad joke there]…
Main image via: @sodashades | Words by Genevieve Phelan and Yelena Fairfax
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