Urban Freedom 2/26/24 Urban Freedom 2/26/24

Queens Closet Founder: Tracie D. Washington

Tracie D. Washington is the owner of a new up and coming online retail store called The Queen’s Closet-31. She is a lifelong lover of fashion with a passion to learn more about African culture so embarking on this business venture was a natural choice. She earned her degree in Business from Point Park University located in Pittsburgh, PA in May of 2015.

She was inspired to start The Queen’s Closet-831 while she was facilitating a single mothers support group called Queens Raising Kings. During that time, she noticed a need to help uplift and empower women of color. The Queens Closet-831 provides women of all sizes with clothing and accessories that celebrates their strength and beauty. Recently, the clothing has been expanded to some children’s and men’s clothing. Look out for new apparel coming soon to help the whole family look amazing together!

Starting August 31st, The Queen’s Closet-831 (the 831 is my birthday ☺) will be launching a Women’s Empowerment Initiative. Select bracelets will be sold throughout the year with 10% of the sales going toward helping one woman every annually launch her own business.

“If I could give one piece of advice to future entrepreneurs, it would be to embrace the process. Be patient with yourself. Understand that there will be good and bad days. Understand you will make mistakes. Learn from those mistakes and celebrate small victories.”

Urban Freedom Promo Code: UrbanFreedom20 (20% off)

Facebook: The Queens Closet-831

Instagram: @TheQueensCloset831

Website: TheQueensCloset831.com

Email: TheQueensCloset831@gmail.com

Location: Online, based out of Pittsburgh, PA

Urban Freedom 10/2/16 Urban Freedom 10/2/16

ALMVGHTY Steetwear: Founder Dondre Smith

Ever since I was in high school I always wanted to have my own clothing line. I have been very interested in fashion since I was a shorty rocking Girbaud straps and crisp Air Force Ones or bathing apes. Or wearing the newest Jordans and Sean John, lbs. Every one could sense my unique and creative fashion style and I was always ahead of the trend. I was also a big sneaker head in my high school days. It wasn’t until December 2013 when I finally began to organize all my thoughts and ideas into one concept. I had friends that talked about wanting to start a clothing line as well, but none of them were really about it. So I took matters in my own hands. I was interested in Greek mythology so I initially was going to call the brand “Almighty gods.” I figured that name was too much and changed it to “ALMVGHTY” and the V stood for versatility. Versatility and Influence are two major themes that are embedded in this brand. The term “almighty” is defined as having complete power or influence; omnipotence or preeminence.

I believe anyone who has the ability to influence one’s mind, thoughts, or action is a powerful being. ALMVGHTY is a street wear/lifestyle brand that focuses on manufacturing high quality apparel. We make a variety of garments for men and women, which are cut & sewn from a very intricate and unique design. We encourage our customers to carry a sense of clout when they are wearing our clothes; and we always promote rare/trendy styles, as well as comfort. ALMVGHTY is a versatile company that also dabbers in high-end fashion, as well as intentions on footwear and accessories in the future. This is a very young brand, established in July 2014, with an immense amount of potential. I successfully dropped my first Fall Collection last November, and made a short film with the release. I attend on dropping a video with every collection. I am currently planning a F/W 16 Collection (DIETY II), which will drop mid November. Expect to see new releases starting late September/ early October though!

Use discount code “UrbanFreedom” for free shipping on ALL orders for the entire month of September!

Advice

Believe in your ideas and never give up on them. People eventually recognize talent over time; you just need to be dedicated to improving your craft. It’s inevitable to progress with time, so just stay motivated. And make sure to establish a team! I’ve been doing this by myself all the way up until this last month of July. You need a team to be successful in whatever you do in life. So choose your teammates wisely, and make sure you trust them. I already feel the positive energy and vibes among my team. Big things are coming so stay tuned!

Dondre Smith

Chicago, IL

Founder/CEO/Designer

708-699-3127

sales@almvghty.com

Urban Freedom 10/2/16 Urban Freedom 10/2/16

Lost & Found Boutique: Co-Founders D'Laun Montgomery and Jamarcus Terrell

Co-Founders D'Laun Montgomery and Jamarcus Terrell were having a normal conversation about fashion. Jamarcus brought up the idea of starting a clothing store to monetize our passion. We thought that it would make more sense to make money from the fashion industry rather than go broke from the fashion industry. So not wanting to just dive into anything without doing the proper research we spent the next 12 months doing our homework and studying the fashion industry.

Midway through 2015 Jamarcus introduced the idea of adding a 3rd partner named Jermell Burton. He explained that while D'Laun has his own way of dressing, and he himself has his own way of dressing he thought that it would be beneficial in the long run if we had someone with a more urban taste, and so Jermell was included from that point on.

Opening November 15th, 2015 our initial vision is to give people a more diverse and unique selection to choose from. We see that there is a drought in originality, with everyone dressing like manikins. We don't sell what is trendy, we only sell things that we personally like. We can't convince someone to buy something that we would never buy ourselves. We want to do all of this while making sure that our prices match our quality.

Our advice for future entrepreneurs is to stay consistent. We sum this up simple: Work smarter, and work harder everyone else. We value quality over quantity. We try our very best to stay consistent with every single order, no matter how big or small it is. We also do a relentless amount of research of similar companies and people who are in similar fields because no one alive knows everything. There is always room for more improvement. In our industry their is a lot of competition and so we keep that in mind, and we try to stand out way more than any other companies that offer similar products. Every detail counts. Its really simple: Why would someone shop with us over the thousands of other stores that are similar to ours.

www.lostandfoundboutique.com

Social Media:

Instagram: @lostandfound708

Twitter: @lostandfound708

Facebook: Lost and Found Boutique

Use promo code "UFMAG" for 15% off of your entire order

Urban Freedom 10/2/16 Urban Freedom 10/2/16

24k Certified- Carpentry meets Custom Hats

24K is a state of mind and lifestyle that transcends ordinary brands.

24K Wood Etched Brims are made from a variety of different wood grains. Our designs are custom and we add a high gloss finish to give it a classic and polished look. 24K features designs influenced by sports, art, music, and city life culture. 24K aims to communicate globally, with expression + lifestyle + soul. 24K brings the same progressive, collective consciousness that birthed the hip-hop, graffiti, and pop culture movement.