We recently connected with Keenan Roden and have shared our conversation below.

Keenan, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Alright – so having the idea is one thing, but going from idea to execution is where countless people drop the ball. Can you talk to us about your journey from idea to execution?

I never intended to start my business. Matter of fact, it wasn’t even my idea. I have always been a creative person and one day I was speaking to my mother and she proposed the idea. She was already making shirts, purses, and other items but she recognized my creativity with a computer. I thought about it for a day or two and a voice in my head said, ” Mom knows best!”. I use to do a lot of photo editing and animation for fun so why not dig deeper and take things further. My parents purchased me a heat press and printer to get me started. I began to watch YouTube videos to get an idea on different ways to create with an heat press. While discovering there are MANY different ways to create a shirt or garment, I started out doing rhinestone designs. I was even placing rhinestones piece by piece…very time consuming. From that I started using vinyl and other heat transfer materials, but I felt I could do more. The custom t-shirt business is a very saturated market so I took a few months off to focus on expanding to photography. Even though I am currently still a very small business, I do have my loyal clients whether its for a custom garment or a photography session. Just like the t-shirt business, the photography business is also very saturated but as a photographer, you have to find your niche.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

For those that do not know me, my name is Keenan but I also go by Keno. I have been a Florida resident for 12 years coming from the great city of Chicago. Yes I had to get away from the ice and snow. Many may think I am a people person and very extroverted, but that is far from the truth. I have always been a shy kid and even well into my 30s I have my shy moments. One of my passions is helping people. I have been told I am very easy going with a laid back personality, because of that people have no problem coming to me for advice or help. My business, Gear By J, offers a wide variety of services due to my creativity and resources. I started with just offering t-shirts but now photography and media are other services I offer. From booking a photo session, to ordering custom business cards. I often tell my clients if they have an idea of what they want, then I will do my best to accommodate. I even have clients that tell me they need a new shirt or outfit, then give me full creative liberty. I am able to do so because of a customer service rule I learned over a decade ago. “Know Your Customer.” You can learn a lot about someone just by their social media or even a brief conversation. A great rapport with clients will help your business grow.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

When the pandemic hit, business came to a screeching halt for a lot of businesses. Unfortunately, some business were not able to continue. My business was also affected due to the supply chain shortages and lock downs. I had just started to branch into photography and realized, “welp, won’t be doing any photo sessions now.” I put that idea to the side and prayed. During the pandemic, I worked my full time job as well as doing uber. I had no orders to fulfill or inquiries to answer. Thanks to a couple friends getting married, I was requested to make koozies. Something I had never done and it sparked an idea to continue to grow and expand what my business offered. Almost a year later, I did three photo sessions and made hundreds of koozies, shirts, leggings and business cards. That down time taught me too appreciate life and never give up. There will be great times and very low times, but its important to always push through and give it all you got!

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My main goal is to become a full time photographer. I want to make a nice living doing photography to the point I can transition away from the custom garments. My only goal for 2023 is to do at least 10 photo sessions. This will help me gain more experience and find my niche.

Contact Info:

• Website: Gearbyj.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/gearbyj
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/keenanroden