We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ash Nichole a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Ash Nichole, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you have a hero? What have you learned from them?

Kerby-Jean Raymond is my hero. My admiration for Kerby-Jean Raymond comes from his inclusion of the black experience within his art. No matter whose hand he’s shaken and no matter what runway his collection has graced, he never negates our culture. I have had the honor to speak with him and I believe this aspect of him as a designer, speaks on who he is as person. He is very humbled.

Kerby, has taught me to remain humbled. Being humbled allows you to be relatable. When you’re relatable, people can feel that kind of authenticity. I believe this is why so many people supports his brand, Pyer Moss.

Kerby has influenced my journey by reminding me to keep going. He has influenced me to stick to my goal of supporting black men through my menswear.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am so thankful for the opportunity to get to interview with VoyageATL again.

The first time I interviewed with VoyageATL , I was still an infant when it pertains to my experience in the menswear fashion industry.

Fast forward to now, my experience has more depth. I’ve been presented with so much more opportunities.

My interest in the menswear fashion industry peaked senior year of high school. It was then I came up with the name for my brand, which is still today, CAVEMAN.

College allowed me to discover in what ways I wanted to be a menswear designer. I started off making lapel flowers then bow ties then ties and then vests. Somehow, I found myself creating full outfits.

After college, I participated in different fashion shows. Some shows were in Mississippi, where I was born and raised. Some shows were in North Carolina and some shows were in Georgia, where I reside now.

Currently, I have a team here in Georgia and in New York that manufactures my designs. I’ve now molded my business to become more so a bespoke brand. So, if you are ever in need of a custom suit, and I mean a real, custom suit, I am your designer!

I thank God for the timeline of my life. I am not nearly as close to being where I aim to be, however, judging by my timeline, I have come a long way. I have been blessed with many opportunities. And I owe it all to God.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I’ve wanted to give up and have temporarily given up many times.

I have been presented with many opportunities with big names that would have jumped started my career easily. However, for whatever reason, these opportunities didn’t finish out.

I have had many interested prospects but those prospects never became clients due to their budgets.

I have lost my 9 to 5 and struggled paying rent, which prevents me from being able to invest in my business.

I have been in a depressive mental state for a year which not only blocked my ability to create, but also stopped my desire to create.

I have invested a lot of money into my business and not see a return on investment.

I have more men wanting a free design versus actually purchasing.

I have seen my peers succeed time and time again as I struggle.

But through all of that, here I am, still CHOOSING to persevere. I have stood by what I want my brand to stand for. I have not folded or been persuaded to change what I want my brand to represent.

I am proud of me.

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

It’s funny. I am a very reserved and private person. I personally can happily live my life without social media.

It’s been challenging for me to stay afloat of the expectations of social media when it comes to business, even personal.

I’ve done a poor job of posting regularly and keeping my audience engaged.

I’ve recently learned that I should start posting behind the scenes footage of me working. People often times than not, would rather see that versus the perfect finishing of a project.

My perfectionism keeps me from posting as much as I should. It is a real challenge for me that I am working on.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.cavemancollection.co
• Instagram: cavemancollection and byashnichole

Image Credits
Photographer- IG: @Sweenshots Model – IG: @e.parrish