We were lucky to catch up with Reginald Patterson recently and have shared our conversation below.

Reginald , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?

Rich & Friendly Inc. was born in my first college apartment after taking a photography course when I was 20 years old. I was determined to become a huge fashion designer before everyone began to have their clothing line and market their business on Instagram. I always had an eye for what looked good or can get the peoples attention so it made complete sense to create a photography business merged with designing t-shirts. A close friend of mine gave me the name and another friend drew the logo and I was off to make my dreams become a reality. I actually didn’t though, I legit stalled a lot and talked myself out of it because of “school” turns out I was afraid of success. In 2014 I finally created a digital logo of the brand, courtesy of my friend who was an art major. I was sure that this would be it, I’d hit the ground running this time. Wrong, I flopped again. In 2014 I discovered a new passion, personal styling also known as image consulting in other spaces. I fell in love and knew I finally found my calling. I got business cards made, started branding myself, managed to create a network of people in the entertainment industry, and tapped into my creative space. I genuinely fell in love with the way I was growing into a fashion expert who had aspirations to be a designer. In 2015 I bumped into a plethora of celebrities, Meghan James (Basketball Wives), Viola Davis, Jackie-O, and Chris Brown to name a few, and I made sure they had my business card, knew my name or what I did just in case. I was hungry and eager. In 2016 I finally got my big break, I styled Soulja Boy for the Sprayground Backpack campaign and managed to do wardrobe styling for the entire cast for The Calvin Harris and Rihanna music video, “This is What You Came For.” I finally made it, I was on my way to the top, at least I thought. I graduated college in May 2016 and ended up moving back home for a year, further away from Hollywood and it became challenging for my brand because I wasn’t in the midst of what was happening anymore. I stopped pursuing my dream because the real world set in and I needed to get a job to survive in Los Angeles. I moved to Silicon Valley to my new “Big Boy” in tech in 2018 and put Rich & Friendly Inc. on hold, for several years. I had this unnerving feeling that I was living a lie and not willing to make it happen like I knew I could and it was very unsettling. I moved to Texas in 2019 by myself for a job in tech and promised myself I would revamp the vision when I moved into my apartment. I moved into my apartment in April 2019 and did not start R&F Inc. back up, I got complacent, and comfortable and began to settle for the money and further my education in grad school. From the years of 2019-2023, I kept wondering if it was all a dream I had in the past and it was time to let go, but I got fired from my job at Microsoft in January 2023 and a huge wake-up call followed. I shook my fist at corporate America and my terrible boss at the company and finally decided to leap. I got Rich and Friendly incorporated in June 2023 and reached for the stars. I rebranded the company as a digital marketing agency targeting the industries I used to work with, Fashion, Entertainment, and Beauty. I was eager, determined, angry, and excited at the same time, at last, I finally did what I’ve been wanting to do for the last decade. I figured out half the business at this point, but the other half is learning how to operate a digital marketing agency with no actual experience. I have the vision but the knowledge was lacking, however, this time I wasn’t going to let that stop me. So here I am, now in my 30’s after having a dream at 19/20 years old with a camera, now running an agency with staff, clients, knowledge, connections, you name it. My biggest lesson thus far has been, that don’t ever be your biggest doubter causing your dream to cripple itself, jump anyway and learn as you go!

Reginald , 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 am a Los Angeles native, the land of the pretentious dreamers who know what they want and don’t stop until they get it. I was raised by two amazing parents who had the odds stacked against them but managed to be the leaders in their social groups. I knew I would be a business owner or someone of value from a young age, I just needed to figure out what that was. I own a digital marketing agency that works with Fashion, Entertainment, and Beauty brands. We nurture small business owners who have successful brands but have not reached the peak of their success. We cultivate an environment for these small business owners to create a compelling story to tell that is captivating to their audience. We drive their business with aggressive campaigns and utilize data analytics to keep track of progress. Our team solves various problems for the owners, the main one being creating a digital presence across various channels, by developing a solid brand message and engaging with their audience. What sets us apart is our industry knowledge, connections, and technical backgrounds, our team has experience working in the software space and in sales so what we provide for owners is truly unmatched. What people ought to know about us is that we are resilient, consultative, and friendly, hence the name, our brand is very serious about executing a solid strategy and having a good time doing it, I mean who wouldn’t want that!?

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

What helped me build my reputation within my market hands down is my background in styling, photography and my career in tech. These three things have been my biggest assets for connecting with others, providing a service for them that they love and overall a way for them to see and value my work.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

My advice for managing a team and maintaining high morale starts with the integrity of the leader. A leader needs to be excellent and human at the same time. People need to feel like they can relate and that requires transparency, honesty, and fun. When you have a dynamic like that with your team they are more likely to go above and beyond. I had folks practically throwing themselves at me to work for Rich & Friendly Inc. based on the way that I carry myself and my business, its never about bragging but genuinely appreciating the good that comes from the work.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.richandfriendly.com
• Instagram: @richandfriendly
• Facebook: Rich & Friendly
• Linkedin: Rich & Friendly Inc.