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

Monté, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

Prior to starting my brand, I knew that I wanted to design art to uplift others as well as promote self-love. Not only will you look good, but you will also feel good! In 2019, I started designing and creating fonts during my junior year in college. I really wasn’t sure what to design as in art or words until one day I was doodling with the word “Hope” using various software. My brother walked by and said that design was pretty dope so that motivated me to design other motivational words such as Purpose, Love, Live and the list goes on. My brand didn’t start until the Summer of 2019 during some downtime at my first graphic designer internship. I received positive feedback for my word designs and as I became more familiar with the various software, I stumbled upon a way to do graphics of famous entertainers. My first artist was Nipsey Hussle and posted it on my Instagram page. The response was so grand that someone suggested that I should print it on a t-shirt. From that moment on, my first clothing lines called “Iconic Visualz” and “Motivational Apparel” were born, and God showed me that this was going to be the beginning of my brand, Harris J.

Monté, 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?

Harris J. Designs is a brand that is extremely versatile. Harris J. designs fulfills any graphical needs such as logos, business cards, custom orders but we mainly sell apparel. I am extremely excited to be able to make the world a better place by uplifting others through my brand. I saw the need for motivation and support around campus and decided to do something about it. My mother’s saying of, “sometimes you have to be your own cheerleader,” finally made sense and inspired me to come up with the Motivational line. The products not only instill positive vibes, but you look good while wearing it! To run a business takes hard work, dedication and discipline. As a graphic design major, this is my profession in the making. It is a blessing to be able to be a professional designer prior to graduating. It has been difficult to balance my personal life, school and the business. There were times when I wanted to take a break, but I remembered that God had brought me too far and I must lean on Him and minimize distractions. Along the way I learned that my designs have to inspire me to inspire others and my passion for art is what I love so not everyone is going to support me or see my vision.The goal of this business is to make the world a better place. I take pride in uplifting others and exhibiting positivity. What sets this brand apart is that we truly want you as an individual to get 100 percent better each day! As a brand, we are diverse and believe in selling quality products at an affordable price. My designs touches the world at large as it accommodates all age groups and cultures. There is something on my website for everyone. I love what I do and love impacting people with my work. My purpose on this planet is to impact as many people I can in a positive manner. With this motivation to fulfill my purpose and to be successful in everything I do, Harris j designs will only excel as a corporation and will be around for years to come.

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

Man oh man. Sometimes in life, the devil is busy and he will do everything in his power to block God’s blessings. It was one night when I got off of work and I decided to go hang out with my friends for bit to catch up with them. I decided to go back to my car to retrieve my charger just to find out that my car was broken into. The only thing that was stolen was my backpack; Which had my two of my laptops and my hard drive. That was my lifeline and I had lost all of my designs and graphics for the business. I was extremely devastated but I didn’t let it stop me. Once I was able to replenish my resources, I continued to create and used this opportunity to revamp! I honestly believe that it was a blessing in disguise due to the fact we were able to make even better apparel!

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

As the Owner/ Ceo of the brand, my goal is to make my customers feel special. Any customers that buys from Harris J designs will get a loyal customer discount code for their next purchase. When dealing with local customers, I love to hand deliver their orders and take a picture with them to show my love and appreciation for them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://harrisjdesigns.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/harrisjdesigns_mjh/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HarrisJDesigns/

Image Credits
William Lassiter