Samantha Berman is currently one of two head honchos at Sweatsedo.com, the premier purveyor of
the leisure lifestyle and one-of-a-kind loungewear. Before this, she worked for a handful of years in film and commercial
production.

Born and raised in Calabasas, CA, and then high-schooled in Santa
Monica, she promptly left Southern California upon graduation for the
Pacific Northwest.

She earned her Bachelor’s Degrees in Political Science and
Communications from the University of Oregon in beautiful Eugene in
Winter 2000, and she lives in Mar Vista, CA, where she enjoys cooking
delicious meals, hiking around the nearby hills, riding her blue
cruiser at the beach, and watching the sun set from her porch.

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Tango Diva Questions:

1. What was the best decision you made in your life?

The decision to work for myself and co-found Sweatsedo.com.

2. What is your most memorable travel moment?

Walking around churches from the 1700s on cobblestone streets in
southern France…taking the route NOT frequented by tourists at the
Great Wall (go left!)…getting caught driving in the most rain I’ve
ever seen in my life during a freak thunderstorm in North Carolina
while listening to the Cape Fear score on satellite radio…watching 9
stars shoot out of the sky in 1 hour while laying on a big rock near
the Kern River…taking the ferry from Vancouver to Victoria on Canada
Day with members of the Canadian Navy Band…driving around
Beijing…dancing and laughing at a hole in the wall restaurant in
Taos, New Mexico with my mom last Christmas…

3. What was the worst travel experience you had?

I remember once being deathly and unjustifiably afraid on a trip my
mom and I took to Hawaii when I was younger. We signed up for one of
those “most-beautiful-and-unforgettable-moment-in-the-world” type of
activities: horseback riding through the green hills of Maui and
across some amazing black sand beach…

The hill part was spectacular, but when we got to the beach, our guide
kept reminding us to keep our horses’ heads up, because if they
started to look down, they would apparently feel an uncontrollable
urge to lie down and roll around in the sand, in effect crushing
whatever fool chose to sit atop them. Needless to say, my horse
decided not to roll around, but unfortunately, I only remember the
constant pulling of the reins; I don’t know if I ever saw the beach.

4. What have you learned about yourself through traveling?
I’ve learned that even at 5’5″, I’m still too tall to be comfortable
in a coach seat on China Eastern Airlines for 14 hours. At least I
was wearing the best invention for travellers since the airplane: my
Sweatsedo.

I’ve also learned that I can do pretty much anything I set out to do,
and that I can live through it and have a great story to boot.

5. If you could choose your ultimate travel companion, living or dead,
real or imaginary, who would it be?

Sounds so cheesy, but my ultimate travel companion is my boyfriend and
partner, Rich. He’s carefree and fun and completely open to new places
and things; we have a blast traveling together.

6. What moment in your life did you feel the most alive?

Flying to France by myself after conquering an awful fear of flying
that left me totally unable to even consider getting on a plane for 5
whole years.

7. If money and time were no object, where on earth would you go?

I would go to Italy. For months.

8. Who is your hero?

My mom. And her mom. And my best friend who just gave birth to a baby boy.

9. Name a place in the world that you know a lot about and would make
a great resource for our Divas. Tell us about it.

2 places:

Los Angeles. I grew up on its outskirts (LA/Ventura County line)
and live there now (up on a hill in a little cabin-like thing that
doesn’t fit in in LA at all unfortunately…with a view of the ocean).

China. We produce our womens and kids lines in LA, but our mens
production is in Hangzhou, China. China is changing at a mind-numbing
pace; it’s an unbelievable time to be there, and to be doing business
there.

10. And finally a word from our Featured Diva, you in your own words—give us a stirring, Diva-worthy battle cry for women everywhere to
hear!

Do your own thing & don’t be afraid of your own brain.
When everybody looks at you like you’re crazy and tells you that
you’re wrong and that what you want to do is impossible, you’re
probably on the right track.

Thanks, Featured Diva! Brava!

You’re welcome, DivaCentral.

Sam

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About Sweatsedo

Started in 2002 in Lake Tahoe, CA, by Sam and a few friends who wanted the
world to always be comfortable,
Sweatsedo.com is the premier purveyor of
the leisure lifestyle.

Now based in Los Angeles, Sweatsedo designs, manufactures and sells one-of-a-kind loungewear, personalized with unique embroidery. Happy to work with both groups and individual
customers, Sweatsedo creates custom comfortwear for women, men and
kids. Whether it’s on the slopes, on the couch or at the club,
Sweatsedo is the ultimate outfitter in comfort.