When Tara Martin was considering her next move, she knew she wanted to be in the South. Her luxury customization company, DTLAcustom, has always had a strong client base in Texas and she quickly recognized the strong entrepreneurial community that Houston has to offer. After spending the majority of her life and career in New York and Los Angeles, she quickly made a decision to expand the business and relocate her company’s headquarters to the Bayou City and we are so excited to make her a Houstonian!
Specialty commission for art for Louis Vuiton for Elton John
I had the opportunity to speak with the lovely entrepreneur the other day and was very impressed by her elegance and enthusiasm for her business. DTLAcustom, which stands for Design Team Los Angeles, works with specialized artists to hand paint on luxury items for brands, celebrities, and high-profile clients around the world. Her first-class client roster includes top fashion houses such as Louis Vuitton, Jimmy Choo, Dom Perignon, Stuart Weitzman, and Neiman Marcus, to name a few. Most recently, DTLAcusom painted COTTÖN25 logos on Moët splits as parting gifts for disaster recovery company Cotton Holdings’ 25thmilestone anniversary gala in June. Her Instagram, @DTLAcustom, is filled with colorful monograms, intricate scenery, and stunning portraits of horses, pets, objects – anything you can think of, DTLA will make it happen!
The idea started when Tara saw a woman’s painted Louis Vuitton purse and decided she wanted to do something similar and special to hers; however, she was told that monogram customization could only be done to new purchases. She decided to take it up with Louis Vuitton in Paris and was told the same thing – only new purchases! She disagreed with their answer and reached out to an artist to paint on some of her purses. Her cocktail napkin idea quickly grew out of a strong desire for personalization and, in 2015, Tara decided to officially launch DTLAcustom. The customization service has turned into an outlet for fashionistas to accessorize artistically. Whether its shoes, purses, jackets, or interiors, Tara’s clients are constantly looking for new areas to uniquely express themselves and their styles.
DTLAcustom isn’t Tara’s first venture on her own and she mentioned that each of her businesses grew out of a personal need for herself. In 2011, Tara launched My Other Bag, an eco-friendly, re-usable tote bag that was born out of her own need for a line of practical totes with style. The company quickly became a worldwide sensation with luxury purses screen-printed on the side of canvas totes. For me, it was a trip down memory lane as I recalled with Tara this era of replacing plastic bags and creating environmentally correct very affordable canvas bags that were stylish and chic!! I knew it then! Her keen eye for fashion and gaps in the market have led her to great success while working with some of the top luxury brands.
“Houston continues to surprise me,” Tara said about her recent move. “When people in Houston say they are going to do something, they do it. I have made the most incredible connections, personally and professionally, since arriving here and it’s all been because people here are so nice. Houston feels like home and I’m not going anywhere!”
If you are interested in learning more, please reach out to Tara via email tara@dtlacustom.com or phone at 310-617-2672.