Meet Stefan Wiliams, Creator Of VI BLVCK Clothing
It took me a while to realize but due to the performance of the last article and also due to some feedback I received from the readers, I have decided to interview and write about more local creatives and entrepreneurs. I decided to let people that are involved in the local fashion scene know that I wanted to work with them to put out articles based on them and what they do and a few people got back to me. One of the individuals that contacted me was Stefan Williams.
Stefan is the creator of VI BLVCK clothing, which was launched back in December 2016. VI BLVCK has been growing a genuine following ever since and I'm glad I got the opportunity to interview Stefan and learn more about him and the story behind his brand. I hope you guys enjoy this article, leave your comments and share with your friends.
1. Could you tell us about yourself?
My name is Stefan Williams. I am 21 years of age and I'm from South Trinidad. I am currently doing my degree in Business Information Technology at college.
I consider myself to be a pretty fast learner and I tend to dedicate myself to whatever I am passionate about. I love listening to other entrepreneurs speak, especially since motivational speaking is one of my hobbies and I love to motivate and encourage others.
2. When did you start your brand?
I started my brand officially about 6 months ago on December 19th 2016
3. What made you want to start a brand?
I developed a love for fashion during my teenage years. I have always been into fashion, street wear fashion to be exact. My go to website as a teenager was Karmaloop, where I would be obsessing over some of my favourite brands like 10 Deep, Blvck Scvle and Crooks & Castles. After realizing I could start my own brand I immediately decided to just do it and create something that people would love and want to wear and feel a part of. It was then and there that VI BLVCK was born.
4. What is the meaning behind the name of your brand?
The brand VI BLVCK is actually pronounced "6 Black." It is essentially a brand that would make people feel like they are a part of the journey through urban clothing.
5. What do you think makes a brand successful?
What makes a brand successful is what makes most things in business successful. What I am speaking about is known as "perceived value." It's all about making your customers feel like they are a part of something elite or exclusive if you will. If you make something that people are proud to wear and "rep" then I think that is a form of success. When creating a brand you also have to be unique and creative so that you can capture the attention of people.
6. What are your strengths and weaknesses when it comes to designing?
My strengths are being adept in urban and street wear fashion, knowing all the trends and knowing what people would like to buy and wear. I know exactly what I want to accomplish with each piece and I know how I want the brand's logo and the name to look on clothing.
My weaknesses I would I have to say are not being able to sew and actually make the clothing myself. Due to the fact that I can't sew I have to depend of a seamstress/tailor.
7. What are your top 5 favourite street wear brands?
I think I mentioned a couple above but my top five favourite street wear brands are: 10 Deep, Blvck Scvle, Entree, Crooks & Castles and Supreme.
8. Are you inspired by any brands or designers?
Yes, I'm inspired by 10 Deep because of their outlandish designs and uniqueness. I'm also inspired by Herschel Supply because of how they engage with their customers through their content on social media.
9. What are your plans for the rest of the year with regards to the brand?
I have a lot of plans that I want to start working on with regards to the brand before the end of the year. Some of the plans I want to start working on are: Going into outerwear and having a wider range of clothing, Having more control over my pieces from start to finish in terms of how I want each piece to look and feel, achieving a bigger outreach and also hitting different platforms to produce content such as Youtube and Twitter.
10. Do you plan to go international with your brand or do you plan to stay local?
Yes, I do plan to go international maybe sooner rather than later. I just want to create a strong foundation here locally before I make that transition into the international territory.
11. What is the hardest part of owning a brand?
The hardest part of owning a brand is getting people to recognize you and treat your brand like some of the bigger brands. Also, trying to convince people that even though your brand is not international yet or well known, you are still going to create top quality pieces that would be worth the price tag.
12. Are you working on your own or do you have a team?
I work on my own mostly but I do have some key people that help me out and work closely with the brand.
13. Could you describe your creative process?
I usually get inspired by anything I see that I think could tie into the values and standards of the brand or a song or anything really. After finding my initial inspiration I would go get the opinions of others and then I try to figure out where I should put the brand logo and name on the garment. The process is simple because the brand art work and graphics is basically the name and the logo.
14. Have you experienced any form of failure with regards to the brand and how did you overcome it?
I don't even know where to begin. Failures were aplenty but somehow the brand always overcame. I would say my biggest failure with regards to the brand would be poor management of the income and profits we received from sales and not reinvesting it wisely. I overcame it by pumping more money into the brand and breaking even. I also improved my accounting and management of the profits.
15. Do you have any advice for young individuals that want to start their own brands?
Yes, I actually get quizzed on a weekly basis by people who know me and want to start their own brands and my advice to them and everyone else is not to skip the PROCESS!! You are not going to start a brand and burst into having plenty sales and become the biggest thing out. You have to make the mistakes, you have to go through the hurdles. I would say just take it slow and don't try to rush anything. You should also make sure that when you are putting out something, that it's something you would be willing to spend your hard earned money on. Do not gauge the success of your brand until like after about 3 months when the sales from your supportive friends and family have subsided and last but not least, DON'T EVER GIVE UP. JUST DO BETTER!!
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