History
Portable Shops is the brainchild of Andrew Apostola and Simon Goodrich, founders of Australian digital design studio Portable.
After gaining invaluable experience whilst designing, promoting, project managing, editing and supporting online sites, the duo launched the Portable Film Festival in 2006. A user-generated film and video portal, the Portable Film Festival allows filmmakers to share their work with the world and film enthusiasts to view rare films from independent talent. With 550 entrants from 38 counties applying to the festival in 2008, and technological advancements allowing anyone to become a filmmaker, its popularity is infinite.
Drawing on their Portable Film Festival experience and aware of the increasing popularity of social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace, Apostola and Goodrich, along with the team at Portable, created Portable Shops.com in 2008. The idea was born when Andrew noticed his mother, Judy Apostola, who owns a kids clothing store, was selling her stock on eBay and communicating with buyers across Australia and New Zealand. After doing further research with friends in the fashion industry, Andrew and Simon identified a demand for an online platform for designers to sell clothing online.