Issue 03 Editor’s Letter: A Love Note
Oh, reader. How are you?
Issue 03 Cover
I come to you wrung out and hopeful, and I’m sure you feel the same. This winter in Minnesota needs no introduction.
Collective Magazine was founded to put Minnesota on the map, telling the stories of the creatives and entrepreneurs who make this place great. In January, our state was undoubtedly put on the map, serving as the epicenter of our country’s reckoning with something much deeper.
Truthfully, there had never been a more difficult (or necessary) time to build a locally-focused magazine. The small businesses we love shuttered their doors in protest, the artists we admire redirected their profits toward mutual aid, and our neighbors donned their puffiest parkas and hummed powerful songs that echoed through our streets and across the world.
But amid the chaos and loss, what shone the brightest was Minnesota’s kindness, creativity, and resilience—putting us on the map as an example of how to show up for your neighbor. And so, Issue 03 of Collective Magazine is a love note to Minnesota. A celebration of the ways we pull each other close. As we built this issue, the conversations I had with our contributors are what buoyed me when I thought it couldn’t possibly get any darker. But, as any good Minnesotan knows, brighter days always return.
Our cover story, Rococo À GoGo, is a celebration of pure joy and chosen family. Our conversation with Bobby Rogers is a living archive of the movement. Our guest writers, Kelly Ryan Kegans, DeVonna Pittman, and Brittany Chaffee, each bring a unique perspective on passion and personhood. We added a little sparkle, too, which you’ll see on page 11.
“We can’t forget joy,” whispered Jolie on page 30. “We have to stay prepared,” insists Bobby on page 23. “We embrace the paradox of life,” says Brittany on page 52. “Our alignment comes from authenticity,” declares DeVonna on page 8. “We’ll never stop creating,” says Sophia on page 36. “We’ll always need small businesses,” says Mickie on page 20. We unite the voices of musicians, stylists, designers, artists, mothers, and entrepreneurs in an invitation to slow down, look again, and turn the page onto something new.
If the last few months have taught me anything, it’s that all of us have something to offer.
xo,
Emma
Emma Geary
Emma is Collective Magazine’s Editor-in-Chief and LAB’s Brand + Editorial Manager. She loves getting lost in a story and is sharing her own on her Substack, Hot Girl Walk. Find her staring at the sun on her daily lap around Lake of the Isles.
