Dawn Bradbury wearing one of her silk kaftans (Photo by Jay Paul)
Powhatan native Dawn Bradbury was the kind of kid who skipped the candy at the checkout line; Vogue magazine was her indulgence. This inspired a lifelong love of fashion that recently took her to international showcases and awards.
Although she entered a career in education, design remained Bradbury’s passion. “I was a schoolteacher for 17 years, basically crying to and from work every day,” says Bradbury, who taught at Pocahontas Elementary School in Powhatan. “As soon as I got home, I would jump on the Neiman Marcus website and study the designs.” She also worked at boutiques and attended buyers’ markets to keep her finger on the pulse of the clothing scene.
In 2025, health struggles, including an emergency hysterectomy, brought Bradbury’s fashion interest to the forefront. When her physician ordered her to wear loose-fitting clothing, the idea of making a kaftan — a long, flowing, dress-like garment — occurred to her. “I had to wear nothing around my waist while I healed,” Bradbury says. The moment, paired with a closer connection to her faith after the surgery, inspired the launch of her clothing line, Dawn Bradbury Design.
To begin, she ordered fabric from Asia and got help from a local seamstress — a connection from her teaching days who still sews dresses for Bradbury. As her business grew, Bradbury joined a Facebook sewing group and began recruiting members. “I put a post saying I was looking for seamstresses, but they must know how to sew silk,” she says.
Although she imports the fabrics, every Dawn Bradbury Design garment is constructed by women in their homes in the Richmond area using high-quality mulberry silk. “It’s the strongest, most durable silk in the world,” Bradbury adds.
Eight weeks post-surgery, Bradbury headed to Florida, where a boutique manager complimented her outfit as she shopped. Revealing that she was the designer was emotional. “I cried right there in the store,” Bradbury reminisces.
The shop bought 20 pieces, which motivated Bradbury to contact other storefronts. Wholesale orders followed, including from The Ritz-Carlton in Sarasota and a Palm Beach boutique on the famed Worth Avenue. “God really took it to another level,” she says. Locally, Bradbury’s designs are carried at Mulberry Layne in Powhatan and The Sassy Sisters in Farmville.
Bradbury won the Newest Fashion Designer of the Year award at a successful runway show in Monaco in May, and her work will appear on runways during the fashion weeks of New York, Paris and Milan. Bradbury will also share her designs with clothing store buyers at a market in Atlanta later this year and, not forgetting her roots, she plans to present at trunk shows in Richmond, Virginia Beach, Charlottesville and Chantilly while looking to expand her presence in local boutiques.
As she’s gained attention for her work, Bradbury’s mission has remained the same: “I want to make women feel beautiful and comfortable,” she says of her one-size-fits-all gowns. As a mother, she’s encouraging her 15-year-old daughter to follow her own dreams. “I want to be able to show my daughter the world and what a good work ethic is,” Bradbury says. “If you want it bad enough, you’ll make it happen.”
