Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kaymarie Daniel. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Kaymarie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
Growing up in St.Vincent and the Grenadines, I’ve always been limited, and especially in regards to the fashion industry. My ultimate goal has always been having my brand be one of the many talented things that helps people to not only know who I am but to know where I came from, in hopes to improve our economical struggles by improving the tourism flow. I want to be able to give back to the younger generation of creatives, I want to be able to share with them my experiences and my knowledge to give them a fighting chance at learning what they love and accepting that this is what they’re made for and understanding you aren’t less than the minority that prefers to pursue to obvious jobs.
Kaymarie, 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?
MarieKays has became the reason I decide to fight everyday to be the best version of myself. I have always been very interested in the fashion industry but was told at a very young age that being a designer was not a real job so I went through life with that mentality and it especially didn’t help when going through school and there was no fashion related topics being taught so I decided to pursue a business degree which I did, but hated the entire way through. As I grew older I started realizing that fashion was in fact the only thing that made me, me. I never gave up on that dream even when their were so many financial constraints and barriers, I always made what I had enough. My first few years starting my business I started it with knowledge that i taught myself and was quite surprised when my customers not only loved my work but they kept coming back. I then got better at my craft after being employed at a factory called Bequia Threadworks in SVG and that showed me how to perfect my sewing techniques. I figured that wasn’t enough, which it wasn’t because I needed more so I decided to pursue a fashion degree at the Miami Fashion Institute and that was one of the best things I’ve ever done for myself. I can now say that I have the knowledge it takes to run a business because of my business degree and I can make any garment from scratch to finish. My biggest supporters has always been my family, friends and my amazing boyfriend. Without those people in my life, I most definitely wouldn’t have been where I am today. I can’t say one thing I am proud of because I am proud of everything that I have done because I choose to persevere. I’m thankful for every designer that complimented my work, I’m thankful to everyone that has purchased one of my designs and everyone who has always been on my side. One of my pieces is currently being shown at an exhibition here in Miami, which blows my mind, it’s like I always forget that I’m an good designer and even if I doubt it, people see it.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
This is a funny story actually, I was volunteering at a show in my country and my aunt had my helping the models because before I had the push to be a designer I entered the fashion world by modeling. My aunt noticed I had grown an interest in designing and so she told me that I would launch my first collection at the show and kept thinking to myself, I can’t do that, I’m definitely not good enough but with a lot of convincing from her and other people around me I decided to do it. Then I started getting worried about the money I’m going to need for capital and she went into our main town and came back with fabric for me to work on all my pieces and gave me money for anything extra that I needed. Back then, I didn’t see it for what it is but without her MarieKays would never be where it’s at today..
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
I don’t think it’s new for me to say I did not grow up rich, I grew up with enough and even when it wasn’t enough I made it enough. I’ve never been the type of person to get jealous that someone has it better or is being treated better. I remember the first thing I sewed was my school skirt after intentionally burning it so my mom would cut it because it was so long. She did cut it, but she told me I had to sew it, which i did. As time fast tracked I started trying to make clothing that were in trend because I couldn’t afford new clothes on my own and although my mom always tried to keep us in trend it was only her so I tried not to ask and instead tried to find a way, so with my grandma’s old sewing machine and YouTube I found my way. It took me 2 days to sew my first swimsuit, something that now takes me 2 hours at most to finish. Looking back at that to where I am now, I know that nothing is in my way but me. I made something when I had nothing so now that I have that knowledge I have no plan in letting anything stop me.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mariekays.com/
- Instagram: @mariekay_
- Twitter: @mariekays_