We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tatiana Saavedra. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tatiana below.

Alright, Tatiana thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

Founding member of the 1st ever Fashion Club at USF and founded a digital fashion marketing agency

Tatiana, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Tatiana Saavedra(go by Tati), and my background starts having grown up as a third culture kid. I was born and raised in Colombia up until the age of 8 when my family moved to Houston, TX . I lived in Texas up until the age of 13, when my family moved again to London, England. I lived in London for about 5 years right before moving back to America to seek a higher education at the University of South Florida where I’m currently pursuing a double major in Finance and Econometrics with a French minor.

Despite studying very numerical degrees, my two main passions in life are fashion and film. I came to America to pursue business degrees as I wanted to educate myself on finances and the economy with the hopes of being a business owner in the fields of fashion and film later down the line. When I came into college, I had the mindset that I would have to work a lucrative finance job for at least a decade before I could begin my journey as an entrepreneur in the fields I was interested in.

As I began my 1st year of college, I quickly realised I did not find my my finance classes fulfilling. Nevertheless I joined many finance-related club as I believed that to be a good way to get involved in what I thought I would be doing for the next decade. As my frustration grew in the spring of 2023 I found myself on a walk with my mentor, Dr. Jay, asking for career advice. Him knowing my entrepreneurial mindset and passion for film and fashion, suggested that I open my own digital fashion marketing agency. What followed this suggestion was 5 months of hard work where under Dr.Jays guidance I worked towards creating what I now call “TD Glamours”. From filing for an LLC to building a website, I officially launched my digital fashion marketing agency in August of 2023. The journey from there has been extremely hard if I’m being honest, but I am happy to say I have built something I am extremely passionate about.

The same semester I launched my agency(Fall 2023), I was introduced to some fellow students st USF who were wanting to start the 1st ever Fashion Club at USF. Overwhelmed with passion, we have all worked in the past year to build, grow and establish Kouture Fashion Club here at USF. Our most recent success being having hosted our very own fashion show with over 130+ attendees and featuring lines from local Tampa designers. As the current Vice President of Operations, I have seen my business and fiance related skills be put to good use, and have found immense joy from being able to be a part of something that brings out my creative and numerical skills.

As for film, I produced a short film last year alongside fellow film maker, Mateo Pastor, where we showed the profound reality behind male suicide. I am also currently working on a student short film alongside other fellow filmmakers where we hope to illustrate the harsh realities behind the “college experience”, and are hoping to submit our film to upcoming film festivals such as the Emerald Coast Film Festival.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Being a young is something I have very much struggled with having my marketing agency. A lot of the times, business owners don’t take you seriously because you’re just a “college kid”. The hardest thing has been finding clients that want to give you a chance. I have probably been rejected about 40 times this past year and even when given an opportunity, I have been scammed, taken advantage of and very much underpaid. Nevertheless, in the past year I have managed two gain two stable clients and are obviously looking to grow.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect for me as a creative has been able to establish a creative outlet for others. I consider myself being a creative through Kouture Fashion Club here at USF and TD Productions(my short film channel). Through Kouture, we have been able establish a creative outlet for others students that has never existed before. We have been able to work alongside designers, have professional photoshoots, volunteers at fashion shows etc. Being able to contribute towards growing a community that is all passionate about fashion is truly something that has made my college experience extremely rewarding.

As for TD productions, having a channel where I can work with other filmmakers to produce short films that highlight topics we are passionate about has been extremely rewarding. Last year we were able to bring awareness to men’s mental health, a topic I feel it’s important to talk about. What I love about film is that it provides a platform for one to communicate a visual message to an audience. Whether a film is comedic or targeting a global issue, just being able to bring a story to life is something I find pretty rewarding.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://td-glamours.ghost.io/
• Instagram: justtati_s
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/tatianasaavedra
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@td_productionss

Image Credits
The photos that look professionally taken ( the group one with the photographer and the one with me holding a lipstick) can be credited to @kouture_fashionclub