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

Darryl, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

I came up with the name of my Brand at 11 years old. I was sitting at a Compaq computer drawing clothes in the program called Paint. As I’m sitting there I thought to myself, “what should I call my clothing line?” So I starting thinking of other popular brands like Sean John, Enyce, Phat Pharm and Tommy Hilfiger. I couldn’t think of a name for my brand so immediately I started praying and asking God to give me a name. Ruckage came flowing from my mouth. I said the name a few times and every time I said it I fell more in love with it. I then began trying to figure out how to spell it and I stuck with the current spelling of it. So since 11 years old Ruckage has been my brand name. As the years went by and I started to understand fashion more I added Design Company to the name.

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’m Darryl Bordenave and I am a Fashion Designer from New Orleans, LA. I became interested in fashion at a young age. Since I can remember I have always wanted to have a fashion line. My grandmother would always sew and it interested me. So I credit her for introducing me to the sewing machine.

My brand Ruckage by Darryl Bordenave is a high end fashion label that seamlessly merges classic, yet edgy designs fused with futurism. At Ruckage we cultivate confidence through design, marketing, and the distribution of premium lifestyle products. Since 2009, Ruckage Design Company has developed an expansive reach across the United States through our distinctive image, ongoing reputation, and brand affiliations.

The thing I’m most proud of when it comes to my company is how my designs make people feel. My company is purposed to create and influence style befitting the unconventional man. We serve as a guide for the person who is Bold, Driven, and Purposeful. We also stand for the person who has chosen not only to exist but live with destiny and purpose.

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

A story that illustrates my resilience is when I had given up on fashion because things wasn’t going in my favor. I was mad at God and myself for things that was out of my control. Big opportunities that was coming my way was passing me by. So I told God I quit fashion. Then a friend of mine told me to write in my journal daily about how I was feeling. By the with day I had a revaluation. God revealed to me that I was putting my dreams before him and that’s why I wasn’t getting these opportunities. So I decided that I was just going to focus on him. I then got invited to a fashion event to support another brand. So I went not going to network but merely to support someone’s else’s dream. While I was there I ran into a friend who sent my designs to SHEIN and they wanted to do a collaboration with me. That was my way back to fashion. If I would have been bitter and still angry and decided not to support someone else’s dream I would have missed out on my blessing. You can shop my collection now on www.SHEIN.com

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

What helped me build my reputation within my market is the fact that I personally hand create every design on my website. People are amazed at the craftsmanship and that they are working with a designer that actually sewed their garment. Also the fact that I design high end Menswear. The spotlight goes towards more womenswear designers. So to have a menswear designer in the market that does creative and quality work is what helped build a name for myself.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.Ruckage.com
• Instagram: @Ruckage
• Linkedin: Darryl Bordenave Jr.
• Other: SHEIN X RUCKAGE COLLECTION https://us.shein.com/designer/4611

Image Credits
Fashion Photographer: James L. Young Portrait Photographer: William Price Models: Augustine Montoya, Robert Grant, Erik Peterson