Editor\u2019s note: Made in Tarrant is an occasional Q&A series on small businesses started in Tarrant County. Submit your business here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Tammi Putnam is contributing to Cowtown chic.<\/p>\n Putnam, who moved to Fort Worth from Austin 11 years ago, is selling double-sided, Western-inspired silk scarves through her online company Cowtown Wild Rags<\/a>, a 5-year-old business.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was like a defining moment for me,\u201d Putnam said. \u201cI\u2019ve always loved to wear wild rags. I was the weird kid who wore a bandanna.\u201d<\/p>\n Shopping in the Fort Worth Stockyards years ago, Putnam overheard a woman complaining about one-sided scarves on sale and she realized many of her rags didn\u2019t have the print design on both sides.<\/p>\n That seed planted in Putnam\u2019s mind led to the company\u2019s creation. \u201cShe doesn\u2019t even know she\u2019s part of our story,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s how we were born, honestly.\u201d<\/p>\n Her premium, double-printed scarves \u2014 available for women and men \u2014 show more of the design when worn tied, she said. She offers the full-color scarves in two sizes: 36 inches and 42 inches.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt costs more to print on both sides,\u201d Putnam said. \u201cWe made that choice. We\u2019d rather have an excellent product \u2014 that we wear, too \u2014 that people are really proud to wear.\u201d<\/p>\n Women make up most of Putnam\u2019s customers, although a large percentage are men, she said. Prices begin at $78.<\/p>\n Tammi Putnam spoke with senior business reporter Eric E. Garcia. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.<\/p>\n Garcia: Your products include wild rags for men. How did you decide to design men\u2019s scarves?<\/p>\n Putnam: When we designed it, we really kept men in mind. So often, men were the afterthought for a lot of companies. We really kept men in mind and created products for both women and men. About 23% of our customers are men, a large percentage.<\/p>\n Garcia: How did you decide on the Western theme?<\/p>\n Putnam: My husband and I are both in the Western world so that was really our focus. That\u2019s what we love, that\u2019s what we wear. If you see us in the Stockyards, we\u2019re gonna have on our boots, our hat, our belt buckle. That\u2019s how we dress so it was a natural fit.<\/p>\n Garcia: Western wear is ingrained in the culture of Fort Worth. Does that help with your sales?<\/p>\n Putnam: Yes, that\u2019s so true. We\u2019re so proud of Fort Worth, we love Fort Worth. We\u2019re such a wonderful city that welcomes people from all over the world as we saw during the World Cup.. They come to Fort Worth because they want to see cowboys. They\u2019re excited to see cowboys so we\u2019re just so proud to be a little bit of the story of Fort Worth.<\/p>\n Garcia: Who designs the wild rags?<\/p>\n Putnam: I design and I also have a couple of other designers. It’s a small team of us that designs.<\/p>\n Garcia: How do you pick the designs?<\/p>\n Putnam: Sometimes it’s just inspiration, sometimes it’s colors. A lot of times I\u2019m thinking, \u2018What do men like to wear? What is it that appeals to a lot of men?\u2019 Sometimes men like a smaller print, they don\u2019t always like a large, vibrant loud print. Some men do. I have a lot of men who buy our bright-pink paisley silk scarf. I just try to think about different groups and what they want.<\/p>\n Garcia: Do double-sided scarves sell better?<\/p>\n Putnam: They do. (With others) you have to try and strategically tie it so that the washed-out back doesn\u2019t show \u2026 That\u2019s one of the things that we\u2019re so proud of, our double-sided full-color prints. You can tie however you want and it\u2019s full color.<\/p>\n Garcia: You sell different sizes, right?<\/p>\n Putnam: We have 36 inches and 42 inches. \u2026 When we first started, we had a 34 inch and we just found that it was too small for men. A lot of men buy the 36 inches and a lot of women buy the 42 inches. They decide what size works best for them.<\/p>\n Garcia: Some people have difficulty tying scarfs. What\u2019s your advice?<\/p>\n Putnam: I thought I would show a little video showing people how to tie \u2026 I walk them through, I\u2019ve always had that teaching background. I was looking at our TikTok (account) and we have, like, 600 videos.<\/p>\n Garcia: I see on your site that some designs are sold out. Do you plan to restock those items?<\/p>\n Putnam: We do sell out pretty quickly. We\u2019re a small, family-owned company so we don\u2019t do thousands of units. We do like 50, 100, whatever it may be. People really seem to like our designs.<\/p>\n Garcia: Do you have a favorite scarf?<\/p>\n Putnam: Gosh, that\u2019s like choosing your children (laughing). I do have a few favorites. I do love Sunset in the Saddle, that\u2019s the deep red one with the turquoise. I love wearing Stormy, which is a grey paisley with turquoise. I love Cowboy Canyon and Cowboy Campfire, I wear both of those a lot. It depends on what I\u2019m wearing.<\/p>\n Garcia: Do you plan other products?<\/p>\n Putnam: We\u2019re sticking with scarves. We just introduced a solid line about a month-and-a-half ago. We have a jacquard line coming late this year or early next year. Lots of fun things are coming up on the horizon for us.<\/p>\n Eric E. Garcia is senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n