By Sara Jane Martini believes two things: What you wear affects how you feel and that the word “hobo” is less of an insult and more of a compliment.
The word, however, took time to be accepted.
Martini’s career was spent climbing corporate ranks, and included a 2008 layoff and tumultuous periods of job insecurity which led her to pursue her creative dreams and embrace the title of a “hobo.”
“I realized I’m not a bum. I’m a hobo,” Martini said with a smile. “I was a traveler, dreamer, and a creator doing what I had to do to survive.”
Right in the heart of 4th St.’s Retro Row in Long Beach, Martini’s passion lives on display at Hobo Jane Boutique.
The shop holds the title of the highest rated boutique in Long Beach and the second highest in all of the United States, according to a recent OnDeck study.
The walls of Hobo Jane hold clothes and a variety of accessories for outfits, many with a slightly twisted sense of humor. Photo Credit: Aiden Redsteer
“I am here to help empower women to look good and feel good,” Martini said. “It adds confidence to you if you know that you look good, you can tell if you’ve got on a saucy little outfit, you have a different attitude about yourself.”
The shop walls are lined with a rotating collections of eccentric clothing and novelty items including greeting cards with phrases no grandmother would approve of.
Gag gifts, like candles, are labeled as being scented as “Garden Hoe, infused with Dirty Thoughts.”
In the back of the shop is a lounge area with an outdoor couch where customers can relax while sipping coffee, enjoying a view of vintage clothing and chatting with Martini about what they are looking to add to their wardrobe.
Martini’s love for fashion originated in the ‘70s with a pair of pink bell bottoms, a gift from her mother.
She described her mother as a woman with a style and presence that could fill a room– even though she was only 4 feet and 11 inches tall.
Martini poses in her outdoor lounge area as she talks about the relaxing environment she seeks to provide her shoppers. Photo Credit: Aiden Redsteer
Like her mother, Martini loved the effect wearing fashionable and eye-catching clothes can produce, both from others and from within.
Martini’s first job was working at a small boutique in Detroit, Michigan.
After years of working in visual merchandising and fashion, she received an opportunity for an entry level position working for the clothing brand Quicksilver.
There, she clawed her way up through the company and became the Director of Visual Merchandising and Store Design for North America.
During the 2008 recession that was caused by the housing market crash, Martini was one of many employees who lost their jobs.
The following years were difficult for Martini who had two kids to support.
“I felt completely lost, and I felt like a bum,” Martini said. “But I faked it until I made it. I didn’t have any choice.”
Martini said she worked hard to never let her children know the stress that she was under.
Every morning, Martini said, she would get up and get dressed as if she had work that day. She would then take the kids to school and seek out any employment she could.
Her son and daughter never knew that she was struggling to pay bills.
Martini refused to fold under the pressure, even when the only jobs available to her involved literally folding clothes in stores which was a step back from her previous position at a fraction of the pay.
Other times, she took freelance jobs outside of her comfort zone, and at one point designed the layout of a “shop in a shop” store that sold sex toys, specifically dildos.
It was during this time that Martini found a short description online that changed her perspective, “A bum neither travels nor works. A tramp travels and avoids work. A hobo is a traveling worker.”
Most of the clothes in the store are new pieces, but Martini keeps a “closet collection” which is a selection of vintage pieces. Photo Credit: Aiden Redsteer
After years of working her way back from being knocked down in 2008, Martini now owns her storefront, recognized as the highest rated boutique in Long Beach.
“I feel like it’s almost retail therapy,” Martini said, explaining what sets her shop apart from others. “It’s a safe space where you can kind of unload and walk out feeling better about yourself with what you purchased.”
Customers, including 10-year regular Dani Longo, trust Martini’s taste, honesty and real interest in their fashion.
“If something isn’t going to look good on you, she won’t even let you try it on,” Longo said. “She even told me once when I went in, ‘There’s nothing new here today, you don’t need anything.’”
Most of Martini’s customers become friends of hers, including this loyal shopper who stopped by to have Martini try his homemade Pumpkin Dulce de Leche treats. Photo Credit: Aiden Redsteer
The personal connection that Longo experiences with Martini is one that Matt Miller, owner of Kitchen Lingo Books next door, shares as well.
“People come to me because what I do is specific, people come to Hobo Jane because of her,” Miller said. “She is fun, infectiously fun.”
Although she now owns one of the highest rated boutiques in the country, Martini still appreciates the “hobo” mindset which, to her, involves working hard to make something out of nothing.
Martini shows off the variety of other items available in her shop, as well as her twist of comedy that she likes to provide to customers. Photo Credit: Aiden Redsteer
Today, Martini uses her love of fashion to instill confidence in her customers with the clothes they wear.
“I took the crumbs I could get and worked my way up,” Martini said. “I am lucky, I know I am.”
