Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Laura Landers. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Laura, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’ve love to hear an interesting investment story – what was one of the best or worst investments you’ve made? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)
I moved to Los Angeles in 2013 as a professional dancer just to find that I didn’t like the industry & the constant auditions upon the first few months. It was hard on my mental health as I trained as a dancer since the age of three. So I slowly transitioned into the world of fashion styling over a few years. I had always had a different view than the rest of my peers on style and how it can deeply affect someone’s self esteem so I knew this was something that felt in my wheelhouse. I was in one of the best cities for fashion with all the resources so close by. I started gaining some high paying clients including some NDAs which was huge for me (even if I couldn’t reveal who the clients were!) I was on TV shows, it was like a dream!
But toward the latter half of my time in Los Angeles, my mental health started to drastically plummet. I couldn’t go through a week without having at least three panic attacks. I never wanted to leave the apartment. My world was getting smaller and my nervous system was a wreck. I had this itch to start my own clothing label and it although it would have made the most sense to start it in L.A. with all the resources at my fingertips, my anxiety wouldn’t let me. I knew that transitioning from styling to designing my own label was something I really wanted to do… scratch that, something I needed to do. But deep to my core I knew it wouldn’t happen in L.A. I was too overwhelmed. So my husband and I moved! We moved our deeply-rooted California life and landed in Tulsa, OK.
It felt strange leaving a city that is meant for people like me in my career to a place with no family or friends. People DREAM of moving to L.A. for exactly what I wanted to do, launching their own streetwear label! From the outside it didn’t make sense to any of our family or friends. But I knew I would be happier in my own single-family house than a small apartment with paper-thin walls. I knew if I invested in my mental health, everything else would flourish in my life. I’m happy to say that only two months after moving to Tulsa, I had the mental space to start the ideation process of my business, Engulf The Label! Currently in development i’m hoping to launch it early next year.
Laura, 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?
Of course! Growing up as a multi-disciplinary dancer, I fell in love with the variety every style of dance provided in the costumes and class-attire worn, especially hip hop. I moved to Los Angeles to be a professional dancer where the mix of fellow dream-seekers, palm trees, and street grunge drew me in for a decade. Within that time, I transitioned from professional dancer to fashion stylist. I was blessed enough to have some amazing opportunities in both careers from reality TV, talk shows, and more.
During that period, I began to sense that it was approaching the right moment to start creating my own streetwear brand, but my mental health was preventing me from operating creatively. It took weekly panic attacks and feeling like I couldn’t leave my apartment to realize I needed to make a change. So I uprooted my life from California and planted it in Tulsa, OK. Investing in your mental health couldn’t be more worth it, no matter what that may look like to you.
Not long after relocating, I found myself with the mental clarity to dive into the heart of the emerging Tulsa fashion scene. This led me to become a pivotal member of the Oklahoma Fashion Alliance (OFA) as part of their core-team and fueled my drive to establish my own streetwear brand: Engulf The Label. Our brand’s mission centers around ethical and genderless designer streetwear that challenges traditional style norms. Engulf is currently in the middle of development, and we’re gearing up for an eagerly awaited launch.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
Oh, for sure. After seeing how styling my client’s wardrobes completely impacted their confidence, I started analyzing personal style. What drives it? How does society play a role in it? Is it affected by location? Social media? Career? While answering some of these questions are easy, some aren’t. And I knew I wanted to facilitate conscious thought behavior on a larger scale in the form of designing my own streetwear label. I noticed the majority of people (whether they want to admit it or not) feel a certain type of way when wearing a designer’s label on their shirt, bag, shoes, etc. With this idea of classism, luxury, and status, what are we really trying to say? That we can afford it? That we want to be part of the “cool crowd?” Engulf’s pieces point you in the direction of thinking about what you’re trying to say when styling yourself. What are you trying to express to others within the unspoken language of style? That’s the reason I started Engulf The Label. Strengthening and empowering you to understand your decisions, because you are your own brand.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
Absolutely! With all creative careers such as dance, design, and styling, I believed for too long that every bit of choreography, design, or outfit I put together had to be fabricated from thin air for it to be original. And if it wasn’t original, it was copying. After analyzing successful and talented people’s work, it’s almost all inspired from someone or something else. Something this simple took me too long to comprehend. Once you understand that creative brilliance is a curation of multiple sources of inspiration, you’ll be unstoppable. Another resource I swear by for better mental clarity when working on your mac/iOS is Arc by The Browser Company. It’s a new type of internet browser that is made for creatives to organize your chaotic brain! Not sponsored or affiliated, just something that has dramatically helped my ADHD brain. https://arc.net/gift/
Contact Info:
- Website: www.engulfthelabel.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/engulfthelabel
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/engulfthelabel
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/engulfthelabel/
- Other: Laura’s personal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itslauralanders