We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful LaKendra Norman . We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with LaKendra below.

LaKendra , appreciate you joining us today. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

“If I had a time machine I would’ve started Noir Royale Brand in my 20’s!”

I made the choice to leave my career as a mortgage banker and start my brand in 2017. After spending 10-14 hrs per day, and even working weekends I realized that my family was suffering and so was I. Though the money was good, it was really hard on my mental health as we had a new baby.

Once I understood what I wanted to do, I put a plan in action and built a website, made my logo, and designed products in 24 hours! I surprised myself and realized my passions were fueling my work ethic.

The only thing I would change is my original logo… lol… and I would have started on my 20’s! I say that because my brand would be much stronger and more widely known by now. I am grateful that I started, though, even if it was later in life.

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.

Fashion has always been my passion, ever since I dressed my first Barbie doll. I studied art from grade school and through high school, at Cass Tech in Detroit and I knew that this was the industry I wanted to excel in!

I wanted my brand to cross cultural and social lines to be more universal and more meaningful, and have a real connection to our customers; while allowing for beautiful self-expression.

Our company takes streetwear to the next level by offering premium tshirts, joggers, shorts and custom outerwear unlike any other. We pride ourselves on making comfort, beauty, and luxury and packaged deal while providing exceptional customer service. Another thing that sets Noir Royale Brand from others is that we handmade most of our apparel and our Footwear is created by artisans & outsourced from LeMarche, Italy.

We are most proud to offer custom items that allow our clients to express themselves in the most unique and exceptional ways! There aren’t too many brands that create each garment, individually… there’s something special and nostalgic about that. That fact alone separates us from brands in our same industry.

A customer wants something of their own. Nobody wants to walk into an event and see someone wearing their exact outfit. We provide some custom options for that very reason. Exclusivity is our primary goal, next to exceptional service and unmatched quality!

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

In order to start my business I bootstrapped the funds… which simply means I paid for everything out of pocket! Hindsight is truly 20/20 because I didn’t know that I didn’t have to. After leaving my position as a mortgage banker, I used them commission from my last two loans, and purchased everything I needed to to start Noir Royale Brand. I spent thousands of dollars because of a lack of knowledge of business funding. I know better, now and for that I am grateful!

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

I am not only the C.E.O, designer, investor… I am also one of the three main manufacturers for Noir Royale Brand apparel! It took so much work, just learning processes and there was so much trial and error. I am self taught when it comes to pressing designs onto garments, I watched lots of videos, payed for masterclasses, but the best teacher was experience.
I was a novice in the beginning and sometimes it was very costly but, now I am an expert! Besides learning to dress the garments, I Eventually learned which vendors to use, also through trial and error. Overall, I wouldn’t trade these lessons because they allowed me to put my all into the brand and that’s one thing that seperates us from others in the industry. One valuable lesson that I have learned is there is NOTHING I can’t learn, do, or overcome; There’s just a process to everything. It may be hard and seem long but in the end it was all worth it… every effort and every dollar.

Contact Info:

• Website: noirroyalebrand.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/noirroyalebrand?igshid=MzNlNGNkZWQ4Mg==
• Facebook: facebook.com/noirroyalebrand
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lakendra-norman-a328b3a9
• Other: https://linktr.ee/noirroyalebrand