Media Advisory | Wednesday at 10:30 am: Mayor Justin Elicker to Celebrate Opening of Tinaliah Designs on Chapel Street

[Len Speiller]

 

MAYOR JUSTIN M. ELICKER

CITY OF NEW HAVEN

 

*** MEDIA ADVISORY ***

Tuesday, October 18, 2022

 

MAYOR JUSTIN ELICKER TO CELEBRATE OPENING OF TINALIAH DESIGNS ON CHAPEL STREET  

 

The custom hat and accessories maker and business owner, Catherine Cazes-Wiley, is also the founder of Tinaliah Co-Op, a non-profit design collaborative to empower under-served artisans.

 

NEW HAVEN, CT – On Wednesday, October 19 at 10:30 a.m., New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker will join business owner Catherine Cazes-Wiley and other city, civic, and elected officials for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of Tinaliah Designs at 928 Chapel Street, Suite 205. A custom hat and accessories maker, Cazes-Wiley started the business at MakeHaven and then moved to the second-floor shop on Chapel Street last month. Cazes-Wiley is also the founder of Tinaliah Co-op, a non-profit design collaborative created to empower underserved textile artisans and foster sustainability in the fashion industry.

 

Cazes-Wiley, a fashion industry veteran with more than 30 years of experience, began her career in California as a sample purse maker, before moving to Connecticut to take up hat making – but the road was not an easy one. After moving to the U.S. from her native France, she struggled and experienced five years of homelessness. Her idea for the co-op grew out of her time living in homeless shelters around the country and helping other homeless women write resumes promoting their sewing, jewelry-making or other advanced manual skills. For her work with the co-op, Cazes-Wiley was awarded a Social Innovation Lab Award in 2018 from the Yale Dwight Hall Center for Public Service and Social Justice.

 

For her business, Cazes-Wiley uses upcycled fabric and trim to make her eye-catching hats in a range of styles ranging from French berets and bridal headpieces to fascinators and fur hats. Her best-known design is her signature New Havener fedora.

 

The event will include a tour of the space and products, brief remarks, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

 

EVENT DETAILS:

 

WHAT: Ribbon-cutting event for Tinaliah Designs, maker of custom hats and accessories.

 

WHEN: Wednesday, October 19, 2022 at 10:30 a.m.

 

WHERE: 928 Chapel Street, Suite 205, New Haven, CT 06510

 

WHO:

• Mayor Justin Elicker;
• Catherine Cazes-Wiley, owner of Tinaliah Designs and founder of Tinaliah Co-op;
• Cathy Graves, New Haven Deputy Director of Economic Development – Small Businesses;
• Alder Alex Guzhnay (Ward 1);
• J.R. Logan, Executive Director, MakeHaven;
• Win Davis, Executive Director, Town Green District;
• Betsy Herlihy, ​Director of New Haven Engagement & Business Development, Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce;
• Among others.

 

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Press Contact:

Lenny H. Speiller (he/him)

Director of Communications

Mayor Justin Elicker | City of New Haven

165 Church Street | New Haven, CT 06511

Phone: 203-725-4249

Email: Lspe...@newhavenct.gov