We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Khamisi Benford a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Khamisi, thanks for joining us today. Going back to the beginning – how did you come up with the idea in the first place?

Blackfokapparel was started in 1998 by two art school students that were in need of supplies for the upcoming semester. We came up with the idea to design and sell two original t-shirt designs at a local art fair. Inspired by the enthusiastic response, we decided to keep going and Blackfokapparel was born.

Khamisi, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Blackfokapparel is a brand that celebrates Black culture. Our designs are for folks who like to make a statement, and wear meaningful designs. Our clothing is popular with people who love black culture clothing and apparel!

Our ongoing goal is to create designs that speak to the needs of our people and educate them on issues that pertain to us. Last fall we had a series of t-shirts and social media designs centered around Black Votes Matters. We used all of our platforms to educate our people on how their vote, whether in local, regional, or national elections counts. Particularly at the local level. We also encouraged our people to educate themselves on who is running for office.

In 2018, we saw that there wasn’t much emphasis put on or knowledge of the Juneteenth holiday. From there we decided to produce a t-shirt and educate our people through our social media outlets on Juneteenth. Our customers have expressed their thanks to us for bringing light to this important moment in history.

Lastly, we continue to use our social media outlets to educate our people on a multitude of subjects ranging from business tips of the day, daily black history month facts, behind-the-scenes features of running a business, and Kwanzaa facts.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In 2007, I was hit with the blow of the untimely death of my business partner, Gaylesha Simmons. I didn’t know what to do and wondered if I was going to continue on with the business. In 2010 I was finally able to restructure and reorganize myself to continue running the business

Have you ever had to pivot?

COVID-19 has affected us in ways we could not have imagined. It forced us to pivot, and pivot quickly. We asked our customer base what could we do to help in this time of need. They emphatically told us they needed masks. My community was in desperate need of some sort of facial protection and there weren’t any available in stores. Today I still provide masks for my customers as well as wholesaling to stores.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.blackfokapparel.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/blackfokapparel
• Facebook: facebook.com/blackfokapparel
• Twitter: twitter.com/blackfokapparel
• Youtube: youtube.com/blackfokapparel