We were lucky to catch up with J’Lan Johnson recently and have shared our conversation below.
J’Lan, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?
I always wanted to pursue art. I also had this passion where I wanted to be a clothing/shoe designer as well. When I graduated from South Carolina State University with my Biology degree I couldn’t get a job at first. I then attempted to customize a pair of Jordan 4s for my wife and when I posted them on Facebook & Instagram, I got some good feedback. I never looked back since.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is J’Lan Johnson, CEO and artist of Re1entless Customs. Re1entless Customs is a brand that is centered around the creativity and designs of shoe art where I take any shoe and turn it into a valuable masterpiece; durable, creative, authentic. I always wanted to use my artistic mind for tattoos but also had a “passion for fashion” so I created a lane that combined them both. I bring people a 1 of 1 custom masterpiece that only you will have. My proudest moment is having a vision to reach some of my favorite celebrities and moguls from South Carolina and then actually executing that vision in real life. Meeting A’ja Wilson and delivering her shoes in hand being my favorite moment by far.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Building my reputation towards my business was the easy part. I always wore shoes that many didn’t have or that I created online to make sure I had in something nobody else would have. It’s easy to influence others toward your product or idea you’re pushing when they see what you’re doing and not just hearing you “say” what you are doing.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
There were times when I first started business where I had to sell myself short to build my name up and get my name buzzing. I hate that I had to but I understood I had to build up a portfolio of what I can do and what made my shoes different. Once my name started floating around with the celebrities, athletes, and artists, everything was a blessing and growing from there. The resiliency kicked in when I was putting more money in than what I was getting back. When I wasn’t selling as much or getting any orders. I could have easily pushed away from the vision being that I was not getting the results I wanted as quick as I wanted them.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Re1entlessCustoms_803
- Facebook: JLan Johnson
- Other: TikTok: Re1entlessCustoms_803 Website is being changed around so I didn’t want to provide that at the moment. All contact information is in the Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.
Image Credits
These pictures were taken by yours truly with my Canon EOS Rebel T100.