Person of Interest: Amy Patt

Amy Patt understands a fledgling designer's frustrations firsthand. A few years back, the Beacon Hill socialite launched her own clothing line, to lukewarm reception. Blaming the local fashion community's absence of infrastructure, she decided to shelve her sartorial dreams to help (or prod, as necessary) fellow strivers to avoid similar pitfalls, and, with luck, shake up Boston's notoriously impenetrable fashion scene in the bargain.

Patt's brainchild: Guilded, a new collective that provides unknown Hub designers a bridge between their dusty, anonymous studios and the Back Bay's swank boutiques. By having up-and-coming style pros pool their marketing resources and share a prime Newbury Street location for trunk shows and buyer appointments, Guilded aims to "get people out of their comfort zones, and give them the confidence to promote themselves," she says. As for swapping the spotlight for the front office, Patt couldn't be happier: "At Guilded, I'm the CEO. Everything goes through me."

Patt stays on her toes, no matter the occasion. While doing demo work on Guilded's Newbury Street atelier, she kept her BCBG stilettos on.