The following piece is a guest post by Judith Henriquez, founder of forthcoming sustainable fashion brand South Elevation—launching this fall. The brand specializes in contemporary plus-size fashion for women while being kind to the environment. Read on to hear Judith’s entrepreneurial journey to launch a sustainable fashion brand. xx Angela
Four years ago, if someone had told me that I’d be starting my own fashion brand I would’ve laughed in disbelief. I always dreamed of having my own business but never in a million years did I think it would be fashion related. My background is in a completely different field and given my socioeconomic status starting any type of business at that time was a far-fetched dream. That is, until I started listening to a podcast called The Passionate Few. Interview after interview I kept hearing the same thing “find a need and fill it”. One day I ended up signing for an online webinar on how to start a fashion brand and now we are here.
#1 Lack of Plus Size Clothing Options
The first reason or need I identified in my life was lack of clothing options. You’re probably thinking that all women have a closet full of clothes and nothing to wear, but this isn’t the case for everyone. The options for plus size women are few and non-existent in many retail stores. It’s almost as if we don’t have careers to dress up for or special moments in life that we want to look nice for. Fashion is not only a way to express oneself, it’s also a necessity.
#2 Need For More Sustainable Fashion Brands
Once I started learning about the process that goes into making a garment, sustainability came into the equation. Not only was the final product important but also the process; the more I learned about the making of a garment the more obvious it became that sustainability was a must. Now, let’s not forget that I am also a consumer, so when shopping for myself the lack of sustainably made garments was very apparent. I’d like to remind everyone that just like any other consumer plus size women care about the environment too. We want options, we want colors, and we also want to know that the planet and its people were treated with dignity and respect throughout the process.
#3 Pursue a Lifelong Dream
The third reason why I decided to start my own sustainable fashion brand was to pursue a childhood dream. As mentioned previously, I always dreamed of having my own business. As an immigrant, it’s almost an obligation that we put on ourselves to be successful in whatever we pursue. Not only for ourselves but for our families, we feel pressure to make our parents’ sacrifice worth it.
#4 Empower & Educate Women
Lastly, another important reason why this journey began was to empower women. I was born in a town where a woman’s future was and still is for many, getting married and having kids. Now, there’s nothing wrong with this, but many would like to pursue other paths and that means facing financial obstacles and experiencing a lack of opportunities. My long-term goal is to empower women by providing access to education and entrepreneurship. At the moment, we try to empower women by sharing encouraging content on our social platforms. We also set aside a part of our budget to donate to a nonprofit that aims to end human trafficking. Human tracking victims are predominantly women and girls, so this is our small way of contributing.
It’s amazing what can happen in four years but looking back at it, it makes perfect sense. As someone once said, “necessity is the mother of invention”: we either settle or take action. If you’re a small business owner I want to encourage you to look beyond the product. See how you can contribute to a better tomorrow because a small business CAN have a big impact.
Thanks to Judith of South Elevation for sharing! Follow along at @south_elevation for more on the brand and their upcoming launch.
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