JJ Oliver: Mother-Daughter Duo Designed Their Dreams

Mother-daughter duo with Houston roots create JJ Olivier handbag company

The Bag That Beat the Odds—Powered by Perseverance, Passion, and the Spark of Creativity

Duo Designed Their Dreams

During Women’s History Month, it’s the perfect time to shine a light on bold and brilliant women blazing their own trail—like Jamie Scholhamer and her mom, Jodi Oliver, from Houston, Texas.

Jamie was once an engineer, working in a technical job, but her heart was always set on something more creative. “I always loved fashion and design,” she said. So, she made a bold choice: she left her career behind to follow her dream of creating beautiful, functional handbags.

Together with her mom, she started sketching bag designs while Jodi cut patterns and sewed prototypes. “Reaching out to people and cold calling is difficult. It takes perseverance and a lot of time just trying to get people to call you back,” Scholhamer said. But they didn’t give up.

Eventually, a manufacturer from New York took a chance on them. Just as things were picking up, the pandemic hit and production paused. Most people might have stopped. Not Jamie and Jodi.

“We used the time to figure out the details – we designed packaging and product cards,” Oliver said. That time paid off. Six months later, production resumed and their brand—JJ Olivier—was born.

Each bag was carefully designed. From a fifth “foot” that keeps the bottom of the bag clean to zipper compartments of all sizes, their totes and wallets were made to look great and work even better. “Every inch of these bags is intentional in its creation,” said Jodi.

Mother-daughter duo with Houston roots create JJ Oliver handbag company

And there’s more: their five current bag styles are named after their French ancestors—honoring family history while building something totally new.

“We never found a bag that we loved,” Oliver explained. “There was always something wrong … it either looked good and didn’t function, or it looked terrible and sort-of functioned.” So they set out to make the perfect one themselves.

As their small business grew, they found strength in community. “Everybody has been so kind and forthcoming with advice and you just never know who you’re going to meet,” Oliver added. “Just keep your network open.”

Their handbags are now available online, showing how far a dream can go when fueled by determination and creativity.

Jamie and Jodi’s story is more than a business success—it’s proof that chasing your passion, even when it’s tough, can lead to amazing things. Their journey teaches us that creativity and hard work can go hand in hand, and that with support and belief in yourself, your ideas can truly come to life.

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