We were lucky to catch up with Lee Chery recently and have shared our conversation below.
Lee, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s jump to the end – what do you want to be remembered for?
As a Fashion Designer, some of my biggest influences are Karl Kani, Virgil Abloh, Kanye West and Sean Combs. These men have made a huge impact on the streetwear fashion industry respectively. Their legacies will always be cherished and remembered. Kanye west and Virgil Abloh were able to breakdown barriers in the luxury fashion space which seemed at the time impossible for minorities. I plan to not only contribute to this factor but I also plan to leave a legacy where I am able to leave a brand that genuinely cares for the marginalized demographic. I want to leave a legacy where my brand will speak for communities that feel misunderstood. High Fashion brands are not typically known to get active in low income communities, I want my brand to be the first brand to actively cater to such community and share tools of becoming an entrepreneur!
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
My name is Lee Chery, I was born in Brooklyn New York and raised in the south almost my whole life. I grew up in Miami, and also metro Atlanta. I got into the fashion industry in the year 2018, not too long after I graduated from college. I am the sole owner the brand DISQUIZE. I came up with the name deriving from the word “disguise” which is defined as “a means of altering one’s appearance or concealing one’s identity”. The story behind the name of my brand began when I was in middle school. I attended a school where uniform was required, It consisted of wearing a polo with khaki pants. My middle school at the time was one of the worst schools in my neighborhood, the environment was very rebellious. The school had a tough time with students obeying the schools uniform policy. I would always see students come to school grounds with there desired outfits and would style there selves with NBA jerseys with there favorite Jordan sneakers as well as other styles that were trending at the time. I realized the change as soon as students would take off their uniform, they would showcase their true identity. I realized that the Uniform policy that the school had was concealing our identity to comply with theirs, but we had a different identity we wanted to show under the polo. What makes my Brand different from others is my impact and aesthetic from other brands. In this saturated market, it is hard for any brand to stand out which is one of the challenges many brands face. My brand represents true quality and speaks for people that feel misrepresented by society. My brand serves as a platform for like minded entrepreneurs to come together and share networks where we share the same identity. One exclusive feature I provide from my brand is my styling session component, which provides customers, celebrities and exclusive clients an opportunity to experience my one-of a kind styles that I provide such as clothing and accessories I haven’t released to the public . I provide my clients exceptional white-glove service which makes them feel a feeling of uniqueness that allows them to appear differently than there usual self. A problem that customers face I realize is, a genuine shopping experience and service. I solve that by, building a relationship with the client and even going further by providing resources they may need to navigate through their career by letting them know what is happening in our community.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
2022 was ushered in with new challenges and obstacles for my company. Living in Atlanta where the inflation rate is one of the highest, this provided new challenges. In the last quarter of 2020 I was able to secure a boutique space. The 4th Quarter of 2020 , and first half of 2021 were my best selling years after releasing my LUXE’ collection. However, in 2022 I started to notice the decline of sales for my business, and traffic coming into my store. This challenge was making it hard for me to scale my business in the 1st and 2nd quarter of 2022. Unfortunately, I was forced to step out of my boutique due to increase in rent. This led me to work even harder and to be more creative. I am now about to release my most anticipated collection the DISQUIZE LUXE’ IDENTITY collection. For this collection I am stepping out my comfort zone, where I will provide aesthetic that will be truly different from other brands! Despite the obstacles from the economic conditions, it has forced me to be more creative and hungry for the success for my brand.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
Fashion is a very saturated market. Due to its low barrier to entry, thousands and thousands of brands are competing in the streetwear and luxury space. In todays climate connecting with people via social media is still a great tool. However, to set my brand apart , I have been reaching new clients through live pop ups at events with my booth set-up, I found this to be very effective, where people meet me and my brand live in person where they experience the aura of my brand.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.disquize.com
- Instagram: @disquize
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/disquize-llc-768408171
- Twitter: https://twitter.comlexpozed
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCdXjxUF6PCQspSyOPkM1jQ
Image Credits
Photographer: Michael Hammond Models: Genesis, Aaliyah Enjoli Artists: Lil Bran Creator: Lee Chery