Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Loren McManus. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Loren thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Any thoughts about whether to ask friends and family to support your business. What’s okay in your view?

My business would not be where it is today without the support of my family and friends. My parents specifically, have been one of the main reasons i made it through the hardest season of life while starting out on my fashion design journey. They supported me in ways i’ll never be able to repay them, but i hope to make them proud! My husband has been a true backbone of my business ventures as well and has stood by me every step of the way, even when my ideas seem completely crazy and unrealistic, he has supported me and encouraged me through it all. Many more family and friends have stood beside me and cheered me on to end up where i am now, and i am forever thankful for their support.

Loren, 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?

I started in the design field at Auburn University after i changed my major six times to land in fashion design. At the time, fashion design was a comical choice for myself considering i had previously showed zero signs of creativity. Once i got into my main classes and started to explore the field i quickly fell in love fashion design and truly saw a future in the field. I graduated from Auburn University with a degree in Fashion Design August of 2014 as a single mom. After that, i went on to make my first custom wedding gown for my sister who was getting the next year. Realizing i loved the process of making custom wedding gowns i continued down this road for almost ten years and learned so much about myself as a person and designer.
During those ten years i also learned to do alterations on pageant/formal gowns and was given an amazing opportunity by Sherri Hill to travel to New York with her twice a year and complete alterations for New York Fashion Week.
These building years were extremely beneficial to my next step as a designer.
In October of this year i officially launched my first collection as Loren Elizabeth Design. I was able to show a 10 piece collection for a Resort Wear line i had been working on since Feb of 2022. It’s a collection i am incredibly proud of because of how much research and devotion went into the process of this launch. It was my first time having anything mass produced and using third parties to help me along the way. I am proud to say that all the clothes are one of a kind designs by me and are unique to my brand. My goal was to bring something to this city that was truly different than anything else in the area and i feel i did just that. I will continue to grow and launch more collections this coming up year. i can’t wait to show everyone the designs i’ve been working on!

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I would say starting my journey as a single mom and trying to grow myself as a designer for the next 6 years until i married my now husband was one of the biggest challenges i’ve ever faced. There were a lot of sacrifices made, a lot of working through the night while my daughter slept to get it all done. But, i truly believe it has made me the determined and resilient person i am today. Even after i was married, my husband and i decided to grow our family first. So, i stepped into a season of launching my clothing line while being a stay at home mom to a baby. I 100% know that if i didn’t go through that first season i would have given up on my clothing brand. I’m so thankful for the journey i’ve had and all the life lessons that came with it.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Absolutely, i wish i would have truly known the steps to building a clothing brand and how long it would take. I was wildly unprepared in the beginning. I especially feel that the fashion industry is gate-keeping most information that would be helpful for this process. Everything was just a wide estimate and there were no solid answers until you had yourself all in and were desperately praying it paid off. I wish i had known about the many resources that were available to me. For example, the apps Fivvr and Alibaba. Which helped me find crucial people/companies to launch my website. I believe one of the biggest hurtles as a new designer is finding a factory to produce your clothing. it truly is a gamble that could cost you thousands, let alone your entire start-up fund if you get it wrong. I think we, as designer could and should do a better job at helping other people in the field find these resources more easily.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.LorenElizabeth.design
• Instagram: Loren_Elizabeth_Design
• Other: Tik Tok: lo.elizabeth.design

Image Credits
Image credits: Jenna Allen, Euphoria Photography, BohoBaer, darlingjuliet