My name is Heather Coggins and I am the President & Founder of Holidickeys.com. After I was laid off working as an engineer for a non-profit, I found myself pregnant and without a job! With the support of my husband, I decided to do a 180 and start my own niche fashion line. I had to adjust to not only motherhood but to not working in a technical, conventional office environment for the first time in over 15yrs.

I started Holidickeys after the birth of my son 2 years ago. I had pre-eclampsia that never resolved after childbirth and I was going to every doctor in NYC , trying every test & high blood pressure pill. Needless to say, I was getting frustrated with taking my button down blouses on and off at every appointment and looking like a mess afterwards! WIth all of the beta blockers, calcium channel blockers and diuretics I was taking, my weight fluctuated significantly and some of my clothes were either too tight or too big.

I spoke to my mom and said “Remember dickey collars? I want to make them, but not ugly mock turtlenecks but cute ones”. She replied saying that my grandmother – with whom I was very close with – was a big fan. My mom actually had some of my grandmother’s old knit dickey collars and cuffs from the 50s! I designed 2 styles, ruffle and peter pan collars, found a seamstress, picked out the fabric and programmed the website myself. My mom is my website model.

In the beginning, I started a Holiday Line for women that needed something to wear to a holiday party but didnt want to invest in a new outfit. And so Holidickeys was born!! Since then, we have launched Solidickeys – solid color collars a line of Peter Pan Collars in pastels.