Baltimore: The City That Gathers

Baltimore is a city that gathers.

Not necessarily in the biggest room.

Or the loudest one.

Just around a table.

Sassanova does this particularly well.

Recently, they brought together a small group of women for an intimate lunch at Tark's to spend time with Maggie, the owner and founder of Mignonne Gavigan.

There was no need for a ballroom.

No need for a stage.

Just a beautiful table, good food, interesting women, and a designer whose work had already given everyone a reason to be there.

Our peonies got to sit at the table too, which was pretty cool.

And if you haven't spent time getting to know Maggie, put it on your list.

Her story is incredible.

She started in fashion and eventually found herself following what began as an accidental trend—something she noticed, leaned into, and ultimately turned into a business entirely her own.

That's the part of entrepreneurship we always find interesting.

Sometimes the thing you're supposed to build isn't sitting there with a business plan attached to it.

Sometimes you notice something.

You follow it.

And before you know it, you've created an entirely new category for yourself.

But what we appreciated most about spending time with Maggie had less to do with the jewelry.

Although, obviously, the jewelry is very good.

It was her.

She's warm in a way that immediately puts people at ease.

She has that rare ability to make you feel like you're the only person she's talking to, even when there are plenty of other people in the room.

And there is grit underneath all of it.

You don't build something of that scale without it.

We talked for quite a while that afternoon, and somewhere between conversations about her work, her story, and the things that have shaped the business, we were reminded of something we really appreciate about creative people.

The best ones usually have more going on beneath the surface than you initially realize.

There is talent, obviously.

But there's also persistence.

A lot of decisions nobody saw.

A willingness to follow an idea before everyone else understands it.

Maybe that's what Baltimore does so well.

It creates opportunities for people to actually spend time together.

To sit at the table.

To have the conversation.

To find out who someone is beyond the thing they're known for.

People want to be around that.

Designers want to be around it too.