We were lucky to catch up with Jasherrell Scott recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jasherrell thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

This is a question I love to answer and that answer was one of the scariest decisions I have ever made, I just did it! As someone from a small town that did not come from much, the hardest thing on my business starter checklist was changing my mentality. I really had to push through the fear of failure and self doubt and take things one step at a time. With that, I first completed a few courses on how to start a T-shirt business. I spoke with friends that were entrepreneurs and picked their brains on what the day to day looked like and the steps to get my business launched. It seemed like all I had to do was… do it. However, after getting my LLC. in October 2021, it still took me 7 months to launch. I already had the design, the mission, and finances ready for take off. For some reason I was still so afraid to take the next step. Until I simply did. I hired a freelance web designer to assist with website creation and even submitted a Trademark Application. The next step for launch was to have a photoshoot with the apparel I was so proud of in secret but for some reason that made it too real. After putting off the call to one of my favorite local photographers, I mustered up the courage and just went for it. The fear and doubt that I experienced throughout the process were still very present and quite loud. However, my ‘why’ behind the brand became louder. When I picked up the phone and contacted the photographer, to my surprise I received a free, all day, photoshoot. We did the shoot in April 2022 and it went amazing and the photos came out perfect! Haley McGuire does a fantastic job!

Following the photoshoot the only step left was launch. All I had to do was set a date! The fear began to creep back in and the days continued to pass with no official launch date set. After about a month of looking at this amazing thing I had created and the photos to prove it, I again, was able to recall my ‘why’, set a date, and launch my business on June 19th, 2022.

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

My name is JaSherrell Scott. I am a 26 year old black, female, entrepreneur from Columbus, Ohio! My original life goal was to actually be a juvenile lawyer. As we can see, God had other plans, but the purpose remained the same. To help others see their fullest potential and create steps to reach it! The idea to step into the eCommerce apparel industry was in 2020. The year our world turned upside down. We lost a lot, we cried a lot, we changed a lot. Being an essential worker in customer service at the time, I got an inside look on just how much the pandemic and social injustices of that time changed people. I’ll just say the changes I saw in behaviors and mindsets were not for the better. In turn, I changed. My heart began to harden and to be completely honest I lost faith in humanity. It was as though everyone was against each other. I held on to my hard exterior as long as I could before God called for a change.

(He doesn’t let me get away with anything)

God brought me back to where it all started. Before the expectations, before the pain from others, and before the lies I believed about myself, I am human. So human. And with that comes weakness. And with acknowledgment of that weakness comes the invitation for God to show up in our lives and do what only He can do! This is where real and lasting change happened for me and I wanted this healing for everyone. I wanted this perspective shift for everyone. I want this movement for everyone. So, I made it accessible to everyone.

Now you can wear this truth and remind yourself of this perspective shift through my brands T-Shirt, Hat, Hoodie, and Crewneck collections with my brand So Human Apparel LLC. where we specialize in putting the “human” back into “humanity”.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

So as I mentioned my original plan in life was to become a juvenile lawyer. I graduated in 2018 with a Pre-Law degree from Ohio Christian University. I then moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan for an internship with an Immigration Law office. I know that is definitely different than juvenile law but I was eager to get my hands on any law experience at all! While working full time and maintaining my internship I studied for the LSAT. Or as I like to call it, your ticket to law school. Study courses for the LSAT were very expensive so I decided to invest in the cheapest option which was to teach myself. I studied relentlessly and took so many practice tests but I still was not getting very far at all with improvements in scores. I am honestly not a very good test taker. However, the window to take the LSAT that year was closing and I had to get through! I set a date to take the test, studied hard, and bombed. I was devastated but there was still time to try again. Although I was now more nervous than I had been the first time, I set another date, studied hard, and bombed again! It was rough to say the least. From there, I had already been compiling my application to my dream law school and worked too hard and spent too much money not to see it through. So, I went ahead and sent the application in and within a month, I received a denial letter.

As you could imagine this crushed me. Not only that, I had no other plan. I put all my eggs in the law school basket since I was 14 years old! What was I to do now? Following this, I moved back to Ohio, got an odd job and waited for The Lord to speak. In the meantime, every small win, whether that was just a good day at work or even just a great time out with friends, I held on to while I waited for Him. After a lot of tears, prayers and questions, and living the mission of this brand myself, I finally had my answer. It is the business and movement you are reading about today!

How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.

I just had to think about what would be the most handsfree. I am currently still a full time employee, for now, so I wanted to be sure not to burn myself out by trying to control the entire process.

I currently sell my products through Shopify! I absolutely love Shopify because it was so user friendly. I was not at all intimidated by making the decision to sell through their site! They also have a ton of amazing resources to help you scale your business. From articles to videos and even tutorials!

The ease of use and connection to so many manufacturers directly through one account is very helpful!

The only con I would say is not having a hand in the manufacturing process. You pretty much have to trust the quality of what’s going out to your customers without actually seeing it yourself before each item is sent.

Contact Info:

• Website: Sohumanapparel.com
• Instagram: sohumanapparel
• Facebook: So Human Apparel LLC.

Image Credits
Haley McGuire