We were lucky to catch up with Trevor McCollum recently and have shared our conversation below.

Trevor, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

Around 2009 or 10, I realized I wanted to put my favorite lyrics or punchlines, from the golden era of Hip Hop, the 90’s (don’t @ me, it’s the truth), and put them on tee shirts. The twist would be finding the font used from the album of said Hip Hop artist or group and spelling out the lyrics in that fashion.

I brought this idea to my good friend and graphic designer, Erica Purnell. She dug it but had one outlying issue. When using someone’s intellectual property: you need permission and that will cost more than you have. She didn’t want to discourage me but let me know what I was stepping into.

I took some time to reevaluate what this idea meant to me and how I could still get it off the ground. Then it hit, why not use a parody of one of my favorite lines and see what that looks like? The ideas started flowing out of me and when I came back to Erica with some of them, she really enjoyed them but called out one in particular, “Notoriously Crushed Jellybeans.” She asked me to explain what that one meant. I told her, “Remember in LL Cool J’ s”I’m Bad?” He said, I’m the pinnacle, that means I reign supreme and I’m notorious I’ll crush you like a jellybean, I’M BAD!'” “That should be the name of your company!” was her response and that is how NCJ was born.

This is my love letter to all the emcees, from the past generations up until now, that take the time to craft a verse with consideration, love, and meaning! This is my thank you to all of them for allowing people into a piece of their worlds with what they say and how they say it!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I have been around entertainment, on the financial side, for more than 20+ years. Being in that sector introduced me to many great minds and how they craved space to let their dreams and ambitions flourish. They helped me to think about what I wanted to contribute to this ever-evolving verse of life.

My friend Erica introduced me to the ins and outs of branding and marketing NCJ. Along with creating my logo, she gave me advice on where to go for small business advice/training and showed me the importance of a “lookbook” to get inspired when I needed to refresh a design. Three years ago, I started working for an ad agency which has added to my overall knowledge of marketing and branding NCJ.

My products are logoed apparel and accessories with our original designs on them. We have tees, hoodies, and tank tops for all sizes and all genders and stickers.

One of my proudest moments is when a person sees one of my designs and just gets it, without me having to explain it. I also believe that when I tell a potential client, follower, or fan about how I started the brand and why it means so much to me and they see the love and passion I put into this, it keeps me moving forward when I want to slow down or stop.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I had to unlearn was “After a certain age, you can’t go after your dreams.”

Around the 2nd or 3rd year Notoriously Crushed Jellybeans launched, I invested hard in the belief that I had to be in a particular place with the business, at a certain age and at a specific time or it would never get done. Well, I came upon a slowdown in sales and a lack of reach and interaction with my social media page. I was posting and asking my friends to share my posts and stories but business continued to cool off. My ego was dented and I entertained giving up because I was at an age where I didn’t think anyone would want to follow me or see my business the way I do.

I reached out to my mentor and good friend Vaughn and he enlighten me to a truth I hold to today. “Age does not matter when you’re going after your dreams. There have been countless people who got their break later in life. Use that ideal and don’t give up on yourself.”

So, I waited and created a new plan of attack that addressed the problem areas and blind spots that I had been having. When new tech came out that I knew could help that brand, I seized upon it and continued to build new avenues that helped grant me better visibility and reach to people who like what I do and want what I do.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

I started using Canva to create my ads, posts, and stories when new apparel drops on my store, particular discounts and shout-outs when it’s someone’s birthday.

When an issue that’s out in the world hits my heart hard, I use Reels to let my followers know where I stand and how I truly feel.

I also create, but not as often as I should, Polls to ask my followers what they think of a new design.

Contact Info:

• Website: ncj.mybigcommerce.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ncjclothing/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ncjclothing