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

Alright, Deon thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

First of all, let me just say how honored and humbled I am to still be on Voyage’s radar after all this time, I pride my myself on maintaining long standing relationships with great platforms like this. And to be featured a third time is truly an incredible experience that I will never take for granted. But to answer your question, the idea for my business was direct result of my passion for what I do. have been a stylist at heart since I was a little boy, granted I was my only client, LOL. But still even back then clothes and fashion where everything to me, I was always creative when it came to how I dressed, was always experimenting and trying new things, was very versatile, and always preferred to stand out. I’m not someone who goes with the flow, I’m not someone who goes out of m way to follow trends, I prefer to set them, & have never cared what anybody had to say about it. I’ve been blessed with many talents in my life as creative, and have ventured into many things, writing, music etc. But making clothes has always fulfilled me the most. So when I got to the point in my life when I knew that I wanted to be an entrepreneur, it was a no brainer. I’ve always had a passion for fashion, and it was always going to my bread and butter. Anything you truly love, is always worth doing.

Deon, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Well first off, I am a proud alumni graduate of The Art Institutes. I chased multiple opportunities across 3 campuses, in 3 different major cities, and i don’t regret anything good or bad that I’ve been threw. its been a little over 2 years since I graduated with honors and received my bachelors agree in Fashion Design from the Atlanta campus, where I received mentor ship from Celebrity fashion designer Octavius Terry, which in its self was a great and humbling experience. I’ve had the opportunity to have office space upstairs from the Cast of Vh1’s: Black ink crew Chicago, who are all very cool in person by the way. I’ve worked with The Apparel industry board Inc. to plan and organize one Chicago’s biggest fashion events of the year back in 2018, and which time I also assisted on the manufacturing of other designers products, who at the time where a lot more established than me. And am proud to have 3 black history achievement youth awards for creative arts under my belt. While I’m still in the process of trying to manufacture my first collection which has been delayed over the last couple of years do the pandemic, personal issues with in my family and with in my self, among other things I have still been fairly consistent in doing custom work for my clients on a regular basis. Prom/graduation/weddings season kept me pretty busy this year. And while I will make pretty much anything that some one asks me to, my specialty is nightlife/party wear. Threw out my career my networking endeavors have allowed me to meet and or make connections with people such as Young Dro, Milan Christopher, Hitman Holla, Solo Lucci, some of the cast of Black ink crew Chicago, celebrity barber/motivational speaker Tony Parker, just to name a few. My designs for women specifically are very sexy, but classy, confident, very bold, but no matter what there is always a touch of unique innovation some where. I pride my self in always having at least one detail that stands out. Anybody who wants to have something that will be hard to find mimicked some where else, should definitely hit me up. BOS$ Life Apparel , fashion for the young and powerful is in a league all in its own.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I have had to be extremely resilient my entire life, do to a lot of situations, a lot of things that most people don’t even know about. I have been threw so much struggle and personal difficulty that has tested my strength, perseverance, and my faith. But by the grace of God. I have never been one to give up easily. However my biggest struggle that has tested my perseverance specifically of the last few years is my mother being sick with Vertigo and Alzheimer’s. Having to be so far from her, while fighting to finish college, helping out certain family members financially, build my business, and helping my grandmother threw her divorce has been so trying. I think about her all the time. Because while she is still physically alive, she unfortunately is dead in all the ways that matter. But I like to think that the woman she use to be is still in her some where, and that shes proud of me. Everything I do is for my mother, even now, every time I wanted to give up, I thought about her, and it kept me going.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Ironically, despite the fact that I’m a business owner, my biggest source of clients has been my daytime job, while my business has done fairly well over the last couple years, and even though i am getting closer and closer to living off of it full time, I’m not quiet there yet, I wanna sell out of my first round of manufactured merchandise first before I consider taking that route. For the past few years I have worked my way up the scale in the clothing retail industry. I was a department manager at express, I was on the junior management team at H&M for over 2 years, & as of recently transitioned to american eagle, all of which are the Cumberland Mall locations. I have made some of the best connections and clientele over the last few years working in a mall. When your an entrepreneur on the come up, working in a mall, especially a popular mall like Cumberland is like being a kid in a candy store, there a literally networking opportunities all around. Talking to and getting to know people has literally been a part of my job for the last few years, the clients basically come to me. I’ve even had customers cash app me money just for styling them so well while working my day job, and from that got opportunities to style them outside of work. I urge every business owner that is building there business while also working, to consider a job in similar settings.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @dswurvetheswaggnificent
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deon.draper
• Other: Business email: [email protected]