Father’s Windrush legacy continues with style

Janette ditched her 15-year career in property to pursue fashion.

By Joel Campbell

JANETTE MILLER is a personal stylist, transformation coach and mum of two – but she’s also the daughter of Lloyd Miller, a well-known bespoke tailor who came from Jamaica as part of the Windrush Generation.

Lloyd, inset right, served in the British Army before opening his first high street menswear shop in an affluent part of south London in the 1970s, he was also one of the few Black tailors to operate out of a Savile Row fitting room.

Janette admits she didn’t know it at the time, but her father’s influence and insistence that she figured in the family business, would influence her career decisions years later – not that her dad encouraged her to follow in his footsteps.

She explains: “He (Lloyd) wanted me to go to university and study to be a doctor, accountant or lawyer and have a career where I would be in an office all day. I was a people pleaser, so I went to college after college and did course after course. I was always seeking his approval.”

Course after course left Janette pursuing the road of prop- erty management, but a seminal moment made her stop and pivot back to her roots.

“I’ve always had a flair for style and know what I like, even though I didn’t always feel confident to wear what I wanted.

“After 15 years in the property industry, I felt really unfulfilled and knew that I was meant for more. I was listening to an audiobook by Carrie Green, and she mentioned a book called the E-Myth which I had read before, but what I heard her say from the book changed my life.

“’What do you want someone to say about you at your funeral? What do you want to be known for?’ I knew that no one was going to say that I was a good property manager at my funeral and I didn’t want to be known for that.

I knew I wanted to change women’s lives in some way. I wanted women to say, ‘If it wasn’t for Janette, I wouldn’t have...’”

She added: “So after a few months of soul searching, I asked myself: ‘What would I do if money was no object?’ I love styling, my friends and family always ask for my advice. I’m that woman in the fitting rooms that wanted to help customers because I knew the staff didn’t always care, or might’ve been too young to give advice to an older woman. So I quickly found a personal styling course online and enrolled.

“After a few years, I knew that I wanted to work on a deeper level with clients. Fashion and style isn’t just about what you’re wearing, it’s about how you feel and your self image. So I then trained in transformation coaching to enhance the work I do and help my clients even more.”

NEW WOMAN: Janette said she had hoped to fulfil her father’s dreams for her in gaining a ‘successful’ career in property – but now she is much happier working as a personal stylist

Speaking on her father’s influence, Janette enthused: “My father is always well-dressed and I knew that I wanted to help women to achieve that polished and impeccable look that I know so many struggle with.

“I’ve never ever seen my dad in a pair of jeans and he would only wear a T-shirt in the gym. Even on family holidays he would wear tailored shorts that he made himself and a short sleeved shirt.

“This is the difference between fashion and style. I was definitely influenced by my dad’s tailoring business. The cut, the stitching and fabrics used, really show how well a garment is made.

“We all want to look elegant at some point in our lives whether it’s for a wedding or a Christmas party and I knew I could help women with this because having an elegant classic style was like a uniform to me. It’s all I knew growing up.”

Detailing her experience growing up working in her father’s shop Janette said: “When I was around 14, I started to help in my dad’s ladieswear shop on Satur- days. He would take me to the wholesalers with him and fashion exhibitions so I had a good insight into the fashion industry and behind the scenes. I was a very introverted child that lacked self esteem, so working in his shop was hard sometimes, because I didn’t feel good enough or fashionable. It’s lovely to relive the experience I had now, but it took many years to do this.”

Janette says making the transition from a career in property to personal styling wasn’t easy, but she thanks her dad yet again for enabling her to take the leap.

“He (Lloyd) was a huge support when I started my property management business and my parents even gave me their rental properties to manage.

“It took a long time for my dad to understand how I help women, because he’s not used to the online space. He had a shop on the high street for 40 years, so he didn’t understand how I could style women without a shop.

“I struggled to market myself online at first, because I was used to working on a computer behind the scenes. As an introvert, I really struggled with Instagram. Everyone just seemed so loud and out there, but I’m used to it now.”

Offering her advice to any one who wants to pursue a career in fashion or personal styling, Janette said: “Know the difference between style and fashion.

“It’s easy to not understand the difference, but not every client will want to be styled in the latest trends, so it’s important to know the difference.

“Also decide who your ideal dream client is. I see so many stylists that say they style ‘every age’. When it comes to marketing, I once heard that ‘if you talk to everyone, you’ll talk to no one’, and that really stuck with me.”

JP Logistics Solutions has been connecting the Caribbean and the United Kingdom since 1929, providing the goods and services that keep us together.

JP Shipping has been connecting the Caribbean and the United Kingdom since 1929, providing the goods and the services that keep us together.

JP Shipping has been connecting the Caribbean and the United Kingdom since 1929, providing the goods and the services that keep us together.

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