We were lucky to catch up with Terrance Williams recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Terrance thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you tell us about a time where you or your team really helped a customer get an amazing result?
I have a clothing and accessory line that is genderless and size inclusive. Routinely I receive emails and messages from people thanking me for having such an inclusive line. I’ve received messages from customers telling me that they actually feel beautiful in clothing for once because they’ve never been able to find clothing for a plus size person that was beautiful and made them feel confident. I get messages from people who thanked me for creating clothing that reaffirms their gender and their identity. I recently received a message from a customer thanking me because my clothing and accessories helped them discover who they truly are as a person and what their gender identity truly is. Me being a visibly out and Black gay person inspired them to embrace their gender identity. They said it’s been a very long and difficult struggle but having my representation and visibility has really helped them. And for me that is what it is about at the end of the day. I absolutely love running my business and I absolutely love the money aspect and the creative aspect but at this point it really is about making products that people feel beautiful and comfortable in and designing products that people feel their best self in! It really is about making a difference!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
I started my business, Terrance Williams Designs, back in 2014. At the time it was just a side hobby for me but I quickly realized that I wanted it to be my full time job. My business is all handmade clothing and accessories that I source sustainably and ethically. It was really important for me to have a brand that highlighted sustainability and garment worker rights. And it was also really important to me that the brand reflected my own personal style. It is clothing and accessories that are bright and colorful and fun. The pieces are really statement pieces and made to enhance your outfit. There are many different layering pieces and they are so versatile you can wear them with a T shirt and jeans or you can dress them up with dresses and formalwear. They fit so many different styles and so many different people and each garment is made to order based on the person’s sizing. It’s a very unique and custom experience. I’ve been able to expand my business from starting on Etsy to now having my own website and being featured in publications from NBC News to BuzzFeed and more. I truly believe ethical and sustainable fashion is for everyone and should be accessible to everyone. My hope for the brand is that it will inspire other companies to be more sustainable and ethical in their practices. There are actual human beings behind the clothing and the garments that we wear and they deserve equal pay and safe working conditions. My company has become more than just a brand and a clothing line, it has become a movement for human rights and sustainability and inclusion which I’m really proud of!
How did you build your audience on social media?
I’ve been able to grow such a large audience on social media primarily due to my authenticity and just being myself! I don’t think we see enough of that on social media specifically Instagram, but I believe that being as real and raw as you can will really help and inspire other people. You are just so much more relatable when you are honest and that is the approach that I take. I also think it’s really important to just do what you love! I think we all have been in a moment where we try to do what’s trending and we try to hop on the latest dances or sounds or filters and while that can be great at times, it’s more important to create content that you love and that you actually enjoy making. For me, specifically on tiktok, I love doing sewing videos showing how I make my garments and my accessories. In the beginning I was trying to hop on all the trends and I wasn’t gaining much traction but the second that I started just doing what was authentic to me and what made sense to me is the moment that my account took off and I went viral! That would be my biggest piece of advice, do what comes naturally to you, what is the most authentic to you and be consistent about it. Your hard work will eventually take off and lead you to where you want to be!
How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.
I have a Squarespace website where I sell my items and I absolutely love it. I love using Squarespace because not only is it great for ecommerce, but I can also add different features to my website where people can learn more about me and more about sustainability. I have blogs featuring my personal designs that I have made for myself, and I also have blogs focusing on makeup and skin care. Along with running my small business, I am also a content creator and influencer and i’m able to talk about and list products that I am loving with my affiliate links. It was really important for me that my website was able to manage multiple streams of income. I’m able to get sales from making and selling my products but I’m also able to collect revenue from ads and affiliate links!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.terrancewilliamsdesigns.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/terrancewilliamsdesigns
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terrancewilliamsdesigns
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/terrance-williams-8385b8b4/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/terrancedesigns
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgi-M7gCpSn51NlWHck9YxQ
- Other: Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@terrancewilliamsdesigns
Image Credits
Luis Soto – https://digitalwlf.myportfolio.com/