WHAT IS YOUR ELEVATOR PITCH? Menen I Designs is a luxury-clothing brand founded in 2007 by British Virgin Islander fashion designer Markita Turnbull Smith. Menen I Designs prides itself in creating chic and contemporary clothing that is perfect for any occasion or mood. The clothing brand exquisite pieces also has graced runways in Anguilla ,British Virgin Islands ,Guyana, St. Thomas (USVI) , St. Croix and most notably the Caribbean renowned event “Carifesta”. Menen I Designs also had the pleasure of working with renowned plus size model Tricia Campbell Oprah Winfrey’s Double and TV personality for Tempo network Empress Jeanille. WHAT WAS YOUR KEY DRIVING FORCE TO BECOME AN ENTREPRENEUR? The driving force behind me becoming an entrepreneur is to be self -reliant and being able to build a thriving black owned business that can in turn help the community. WHAT LED YOU TO YOUR PARTICULAR BUSINESS? I always had a keen interest in fashion, style and the arts from a tender age. As a teenager I always wanted to dress a bit different and on occasions designed my own outfits’ .After learning how to crochet, I made my first piece of clothing which was a beanie hat and sparked my love for creating pieces of clothing.
MARKITA
Turnbull SMITH - Designer -
HOW DID YOU RAISE FUNDING FOR YOUR VENTURE? The clothing brand is completely funded on both personal funding as well as fashion and arts hosted events. HOW DO YOU MARKET YOUR BUSINESS, AND WHICH TACTICS HAVE BEEN MOST SUCCESSFUL? The clothing brand is marketed with a mixture of contemporary marketing strategies such as social media marketing, email marketing and other digital marketing approaches. WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ARE THE TOP THREE SKILLS NEEDED TO BE A SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEUR? Being a successful entrepreneur, you need to be patient, selfmotivated and hardworking. WHAT ENTREPRENEURIAL TRICKS HAVE YOU DISCOVERED TO KEEP YOU FOCUSED AND PRODUCTIVE IN YOUR DAY-TO-DAY BUSY SCHEDULE? On a day-to-day basis, I utilise mindful meditation to keep me focused on the goals and objectives during a busy schedule. WHAT KEY ACTIVITIES WOULD YOU RECOMMEND ENTREPRENEURS TO INVEST THEIR TIME IN? The key activities I would recommend to entrepreneurs is to be open to learning new things at all times and network with other inspiring creatives and entrepreneurs.
CARIBBEAN POSH • INAUGURAL FEATURE
WHO HAS BEEN YOUR GREATEST INSPIRATION? My greatest inspiration is my family. My family, they keep me going, they motivate me to keep pushing, they need me and I need them.
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