We recently connected with Duane Bynoe and have shared our conversation below.

Duane, appreciate you joining us 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?

Funny thing my brand name was initially The Produce Section. Growing up Caribbean, fruits and vegetables is a big part of our diet. Eating that way is second nature. At the time I was a Custom Design Specialist at Converse printing graphics on Chuck Taylors for customers. One day I decided to create my own pair with fruit. From that one shoe, I designed a black tee, hoodie and a revised version of the custom Converse 70’ I initially printed. I help a pop-up event in SoHo for the release of the “The Produce Section Custom Converse” and sold every pair. After that it was time to tighten things up from the business aspect of things.

Long story iI found a brand “The Produce Section Clothing” but they did not include any fruit or vegetables in their design concepts. Once I saw this, I changed my name immediately. Some changes occurred at the as my lady was pregnant with my son. Focusing on his arrival, I took time away from focusing on what it is now Section Produce as he is my first child. Once he arrived I rebranded. I changed the name, came up with a core logo, color and mission. Section Produce was born as well.

Duane, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Subconsciously, designing garments is something that I’ve been around since birth. My mother would design costumes for Labor Day. Then she would sew the costumes together and provide them for mas camps in Brooklyn. After that she would play the Queen of the band and participate in the Labor Day Parade. I got into the streetwear industry thru sneakers. Even tho I always loved stylish and expressive clothing, I started out as a sneaker blogger. My blog grew a following and brands like Nike, Reebok, & Puma would send me unreleased products for me to test out. Once I hit 1 millions views on my blog I decided to become a personal sneaker shopper. I provided sneakers for everyone no matter when the sneaker released in stores. My brand grew but my love for the culture diminished as individuals looked to take advantage of the culture instead of appreciating what is has provided thus far.

Hanging around my artist and designer friends all the time definitely groomed me for what it takes to be successful. For what it takes to create. How much hard work and consistency is required. That amongst my passion for creativity led me to begin the process to provide stylish and fun garments to the vegan community. I’ve been vegan for 11 years now. I decided sometime ago my contribution to the community will be my creativity. The vegan community has grown tremendously over the last decade. Some of the biggest celebrities are vegan or plant based today. Vegans come in all shapes, sizes, creeds & colors. Fashionable vegans are in the world. I aim to create pieces we all can wear with pride.

The most thing I am proud of is my evolution honestly. Growing up in Flatbush, Brooklyn, I turned Crip in 1996. Being in the streets daily, hustling etc. You never think about tomorrow let alone what the next decade can hold for you. I was almost convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison for something I did not do. Karma is real. That was when I told myself things must change. The universe had something else in store for me. I got a job in retail. I honestly probably worked for the majority of fashion brands in NYC. I’ve worked at Levi’s, Nike, Converse, Uniqlo, Mango, Saks Fifth Avenue, Burberry, Macys, Brooklyn Industries to name a few. I’ve taken every experience I’ve had and turned them into one big lesson. I am walking testimony that no matter what you do or where you come from, you can evolve into the best version of yourself. It takes discipline, dedication and determination.

The one thing I want everyone to know is that I live and breathe what I create. I stand behind every garment. I am not an individual that realized a lucrative opportunity ahead. I am a man that realized if you do what you love it is not work. I love creating. I love designing. I love spreading knowledge about healthy consumption of food. Everything I create is a representation of me.

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

I think what helped me build my reputation within the market is that I am genuinely apart of the community I create for. I follow the same principles as the individuals I design for. I do my best to attend every vegan event because I genuinely aim to meet more vegan or plant based individuals. I am apart of the community I work for. I am true to veganism.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

The advice I have for managing a team is to first and foremost make sure the team has the same vision as you. They must see the end goal and want to be apart of the process. The journey should be enjoyable as much as possible for everyone.

Maintaining high morale is all about vibration and frequency. The environment must be a high vibrational one. The sounds & scents of the environment are key to level of frequency everyone is vibrating on. Even the images in the environment play a role.

The last thing is the team MUST be revered. Genuinely appreciate the efforts of everyone. We are all human at the end of the day. Nothing feels better than knowing that you matter to someone in any capacity. It takes nothing from you to make someone feel good about their work.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.SectionProduce.com
• Instagram: Section Produce
• Facebook: Section Produce
• Twitter: SectionProduce_

Image Credits
Sean Q. Munro
Matt Nachem