Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to KADEEM WALKER. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, KADEEM thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about the best boss, mentor, or leader you’ve ever worked with.

The best Boss Ive ever had is myself. I mean that in the most respectful way possible. I honestly feel Im my best boss which is why I decided to go into business for myself. Everywhere I have worked, I have always been on the top of the list for best employee. In most cases I found myself more knowledgeable and better than a good bit of bosses Ive worked for. Have I had some amazing, intelligent, hardworking, and knowledgeable bosses in my life, yes, without a doubt but when it comes down to it, I begin realizing that depending on myself always works in my life situations and Ive proven to myself that no one can outwork me over and over again!

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

My name is Kadeem Walker, I was born and raised in Savannah Georgia. I joined the Marine Corps at age 19 in 2004 and served 10 honorable years. During my time in the Corps I completed three combat tours to Iraq as a Motor Transportation Operator (2005 1/5 Ramadi, 2006 1/7 Al Qa’im, and 2007 2/5 Ramadi). I can truly say that I accomplished everything I wanted to during my time in the Corps (Deploy to combat, Martial Art Instructor, and complete a successful tour as a Drill Instructor), all three were an aspiration of mine. My time in the Corps set me up for success as I transitioned back into the civilian world in 2013. I worked as a roughneck on the oil field, I’ve installed bridge expansion joints all over the northeast, and I’ve worked as the Assistant Supply Management Officer for the Architect of the Capitol’s House Office Buildings. Nearly two years ago I decided to leave my 90k annual job to become a full time entrepreneur. I currently own a photography/videography company “Shot By The Boss LLC” and I also co-own my own clothing line “Always Stay Fresh”. Interestingly enough, the photography company came after the clothing line. The original name of the brand was Semper Fresh Clothing. Recently this year we transitioned into a DBA (Doing Business As) Always Stay Fresh “ASF”. Co-CEO “Tweezy” and I began brainstorming the idea of creating a brand that resonates with all demographics and captures the attention of the youth and military service members back in late 2017. With a brotherly friendship that extends back from Marine Corps bootcamp in 2004, both of us have always indulged and expressed our love for fashion. After deciding to start a brand together we put our foot on the peddle and never looked back. I feel that God opened the doors to my life with this clothing brand. I say that because without it I most likely would have never become a photographer. A few years into running the clothing line we ran into an issue that changed my life! During an event we were vending at Antoine and I hired a photographer to shoot our brand for promotion and social media. Let’s just say we were “NOT” happy with the results! This lead me to begin thinking about purchasing a camera specifically to take photos of our brand. A few weeks later while on a business trip my business partner’s brother had with him a Sony a7ii camera. After noticing how good the photos looked in camera without edits I was sold! I flew back to Virginia and purchased the exact same camera the very next day. A few months went buy and after doing a couple of brand shoots one of the models for my brand requested if I could take personal photos of her and she mentioned she would pay me. I immediately said yes because I figured it would be good practice for me but I told her that I would do it for free. She insisted that she pay and I completed my first photoshoot as a paid photographer! After posting the photos on social media, a few more requests came in and before you know it, a few years later, Shot By The Boss LLC was officially formed!

Shot By The Boss LLC
I have a credible background in street photography and reputable experience handling many types of photography/videography needs to include (portrait, wedding, event, product, studio, promotion, ceremony, etc…) I capture exceptional visual stories and I pride myself in providing the best professionalism and overall experience every photo/video session. Business has been active Please see the website and social media – www.shotbytheboss.com / Instagram – @shotbythe_boss / Facebook – Kadeem Walker (Shot By The Boss) / Email – [email protected]

Always Stay Fresh
Is a phenomenal clothing brand that has been in business for nearly five years. The original name of the company is Semper Fresh (being that both owners Kadeem Walker & Antoine Kennedy served over 10 years each in the Marine Corps). Our DBA (Doing Business As) name is Always Stay Fresh. Our brand appeals to all demographics and we have maintained a healthy repore with all of our consumers. We are currently rebranding as Always Stay Fresh and will be fully operational 1 January 2022. Please see social media – Instagram – @alwaysstayfreshclothing / Facebook – Semper Fresh Clothing Website will be available December 1, 2022 / Email – [email protected]

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I feel this question is very important because future business owners and current business owners that see this won’t have to go through some of these important topics that Ive listed below.

– How did I get my LLC without paying a ton of money.
I created my own LLC by logging on to Irs.gov for free.
I registered my LLC with the State on tax.virginia.gov (google state registrations for small businesses in whatever state your business resides in).
I registered my LLC with the local (city/county) on https://staffordefiling.virginiainteractive.org (google city/county registrations for small businesses in whatever city/county your business resides in).

-How did I get my trademark without paying a ton of money.
I applied for my trademark on https://www.uspto.gov and I don’t believe I paid more than $250.

If I would have known these three things prior to opening my first business I would have saved myself a ton of money!

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

My reputation is something that I take very seriously because my reputation is what my brand is. customer service, timeliness, communication, and awareness is the key to success when it came to building my reputation within the market. Truly caring for my clients and the work that I put out for them is vital. Ensuring that the quality of my apparel and work is always top tier helps me to keep clients/customers wanting to come back for more is imperative to my reputation within the market. Overall, I believe treat people like you want to be treated and your reputation will stick. “STAY AUTHENTIC”

Contact Info:

• Website: www.shotbytheboss.com
• Instagram: @shotbythe_boss / @alwaysstayfreshclothing
• Facebook: Kadeem Walker (Shot By The Boss)
• Twitter: @ShotByTheBoss1
• Youtube: Shot By The Boss

Image Credits
Casey Oblitey