THE ROAD TO HEIDI & TIM

Gottwald always knew she was going to be a fashion designer. “I actually dared to major in art at Sewanee,” she says. “But after my rigorous freshman course, I was given a C- and was told that my art looked like something I would wear. Quite true.”

Fashion design was always the destination. And while the destination was concrete, the path to get there was full of sudden twists, plenty of forks and unexpected speed bumps.

“My ‘why’ evolved into something much greater than just the love of clothes, embellishments and color,” says Gottwald. She’s referring to the near-fatal car accident she suffered the week before her college graduation. Gottwald spent the next year in rehabilitation, regaining her strength and trying to redefine her life. “I got into the Peace Corps and had a week to decide. I was accepted to Loyola Law School but postponed my acceptance. I decided that life is too short, I needed to do something more,” says Gottwald. 

If joining the Peace Corps or attending law school was a left, Gottwald took a right. She followed her heart to Richmond, Virginia, to be with her now-husband, Daniel. There she gave birth not only to a daughter, Eleanor, but also to her fashion line, Neubyrne.

With inspiration from the sights of Hoi An, Vietnam, Gottwald created a collection that aimed to harness reinvention and a curiosity for the unknown. Gottwald’s creations from first NYFW show were compared by fashion bloggers to the playful looks of Betsy Johnson and Nasty Gal.

Fast forward to 2020, Gottwald was one of 12 designers chosen to compete on the new global fashion competition series, Making the Cut, with Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn, for a chance to take the Neubyrne brand global and the prize of one million dollars to invest in the company. SPOILER ALERT: Although Neubyrne was eliminated after the Haute Couture challenge, designer Martha came back with a boatload of new friends, new ideas, and new GUSTO to take the fashion world by storm and never. give. up. This is just the beginning of the Neubyrne brand and the Neubyrne; New You has never been more apt.