Spotlight on .... Mimi's Choice

Mimi’s Choice is an extremely well known fashion outlet in Second Life and Mimi Juneau herself is considered the Doyenne of SL fashion.

Mimi decided very early on in her SL that she wanted to be a reseller of some of the best brands that SL has to offer and I think that most of you would agree with me that she has achieved exactly that.

Mimi’s Choice has been on the grid for 6 years and is still going strong and in Second Life this is no mean feat, bearing in mind the fluidity of the commercial side of things and in fact of the community as a whole.

Mimi’s goal, in fact her passion, is to make sure that the avatars of SL, both male and female alike look gorgeous.

I asked Mimi for some insight into her success.

Mimi, today, there is a rich mix of players in the virtual-world market place, but individuals need to carefully consider the business imperative before moving into virtual worlds with the intention of making money. Do you believe that there is still an opportunity in Second Life to make money?

“I do, but I'm sure you can't get very rich here anymore.  Or maybe the happy few, I have no idea.  But I'm sure that talented people still can make money if they can make their own sculpts and mesh. Bringing exclusive things.  So many things look the same now.  And you must be willing to spend hours and hours here.”

What goals do you hope to achieve in the short term and the long term for Mimi’s Choice?

“In the short term: I still have some names of good brands in my black book, who I want to persuade to come to Mimi's. In the long term: I want to work at a better range at Mimi's, I want to have the best staff members, I want to improve my social networks, organise more parties, and have more fun in SL :))”

Do you actively use the likes of facebook, twitter, youtube, flickr etc.?  Which of these do you think is most effective?

"I spend a lot of time on all these social networks, I like it and I believe they all are good to promote Mimi's Choice and myself. The problem is, you can't measure the results of each, but I'm sure it helps.  I often meet people in my shop who know me from one of these pages, they read about me, my shop and the offers.  I have reached the limit of friends at my Facebook page (5000), I have about 500 daily views on my blog etc. Isn't this amazing?”

It sure is Mimi, do you get comments and feedback from these and do you respond?

"Oh yes,  I get comments on Facebook and Flickr, as for Twitter , I think I still have to learn how to use it better, it's a start. I'm trying to respond to every comment, yes."

How have you identified and engaged and/or networked with influentials in your target industry?

"During my 6 years in SL, I met some fantastic hard working people I admire a lot. Some of these people liked what I was doing and supported me, like Dean Ashby and Emilia Redgrave (of Redgrave).  We work very well together and they are amazing people.  Then there is Frolic Mills, I so admire that man and I thank him for the support he gave me through the years.  I love the BOSL group a lot; this group made Mimi's Choice what it is today. And then there was Giancarlo Takacs of the Costa Rica Sims, a man with a dream. He supported me too, and gave me my own monthly show.  I also want to mention IrishGent , he's building a fantastic new Estate: Irish Estates.  He works so hard, I admire what he's doing and how he tries to support me too. I also want to mention group owners in SL, who give me posting rights in their fantastic groups, even though all I am is a poor reseller :)."

What unique value does Mimi’s Choice offer designers?

 

"In the first place, I help them to get known by a wide variety of people. Believe me, a LOT of people know about big brands like Gabriel, Utopia, Hoorenbeek, etc because of my store.  I get so many IM's from people thanking me, because through me they found such great brands.

I also blog a lot, make my own pictures to use in Flickr, Facebook, LL page, other blog feeds etc. And I'm selling for them too :)). Oh, and I do a quality check sometimes :))) I mean, sometimes I can warn the designer about a little mistake, not that this happens a lot :))

What need does Mimi’s Choice satisfy better than the competition?

"Oh you asked about competition? What competition? LOL

No seriously, I think an important point is the personal contact, the service, the friendship that I offer my customers.

I hate Market Place, and that is no secret :)) It has killed inworld business completely.  I think it was not that smart of LL. So many sims and mainstores had to close.  People buy on Market Place, end of story !!!  They sit ALONE in their skybox, buying an outfit on marketplace.  They make a picture ALONE in their photo studio to put it on Flickr or Facebook, ALONE ! Now where’s the fun in that!"

What is your opinion on the sustainability of SL?

"SL will survive, it will always be here, in this form or another one ! I believe in virtual worlds.  Virtual worlds make the REAL WORLD smaller. Isn't it amazing that we can have good friends online from all over the world?? Party and work together?

I have even met up with some of my SL friends in RL. I have travelled to Germany and Italy to meet them.

It allows us to learn about each other’s culture and habits.  I hardly see any discrimination here about race or colour ! Isn't this amazing? Isn't SL a fantastic place for people with a disability too?

There's one thing, SL is becoming too expensive for a lot of people.  I know there's a lot for free in SL, but I mean, land, where people can have a place of their own.  I so wish LL would consider to lowering their tiers, that would bring more people to SL, I'm sure."

Pop in to Mimi’s Choice soon, I guarantee you will not come out empty handed.  Mimi’s Choice caters for both men and women, so there is no excuse for you to not to look your absolute best.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Deep%20House%20Island/96/81/21