We were lucky to catch up with Shaniah Renae recently and have shared our conversation below.
Shaniah, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you think folks should manage their own social media or hire a professional? What do you do?
Social media is a must have as a business owner especially when your business sells physical products. In my case, I manage all of my social media by myself; at the start of my business I found it hard to manage my social media and craft my designs. However I’ve learned a new technique which helps me balance out the crafting and the social media marketing. I usually spend my weekdays designing and then I use my weekends to put all my content together and then I begin posting. I’ve learned that showing your followers your process of working is a huge marketing strategy! Overall social media is a great tool to use to engage with followers and it helps my brand grow on a daily!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Hi! My name is Shaniah Renae and I’m a fashion designer and I specialize in women’s clothing but I’m just beginning to take on mens custom clothing as well! I got into the fashion industry honestly through my grandmother who has now passed away. She was a very big fashion designer in Atlanta in the gospel industry. I worked with her since the age of 12 and I learned so much and actually enjoyed working with the different fabrics, designs, and customers. Eventually, I grew up and decided to take up Fashion Design at Georgia Southern University. As a sophomore, I decided to start my own brand Shaniah Renae Designs. Coming into college I already knew a lot about designing and sewing, which actually helped me test out of a main course in college, which was a big plus because that meant I was able to graduate sooner! Now that I’m out of school, I’ve been making sure I stay consistent with my designs, I sketch constantly, I sew constantly, and I’m always looking at the latest trends. I definitely say my biggest discipline would be staying on top of my to do list. My designs are unique because I try to make each design special whether it’s a design for a customer or a design for an upcoming collection. I sit down and really plan this design out. I love creating collections that relate to my spirituality, so in a special way my personal collections are like a thank you to God because he blessed me with this talent. So yeah you’ll see him in my designs some way. I think one of the biggest things that sets me apart to my customers and even myself is that my fashion isn’t the everyday New York runway fashion it’s honestly the way I honor God but it’s so fun doing so because I get to incorporate the coolest designs into this concept of spirituality and then I come up with these collections, like my divine collection. All in all I’m not afraid to be who I am as a designer. So I don’t worry about what everyone else is wearing or what other people think is cute, if I like it, if I think it, IM GOING TO MAKE IT!
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Honestly, before 2019 I don’t think many people knew I could sew not even my friends. In 2020 I started my business and then I became the President of an organization at Georgia Southern University. I think it was in 2020 once I started designing for different fashion shows on campus I begin to get known at Georgia Southern. Also, when I dropped my business on social media, I begin to grow a following. So yes, I think coming from like the darkness with my talent kind of shocked everyone around me. Honestly I shocked myself!
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
So from running a business, being the president of an organization, working a part time job, and being a full time student, I definitely had a major setback in my career. It was my senior year and I was strictly on work mode like I wasn’t sleeping just working and drinking Starbucks day in and day out. I honestly had a physical crash, I got really sick and had to take some time off from work and school because while my work was being taken care of I physically wasn’t. I’m a hustler, and I will do anything to get the job done. If that means staying up all night I will stay up all night for three week straight! But after getting sick and nearly passing out at a fashion show, I leaned to never put my work over myself. Because if I’m not safe and we’ll kept then what’s the point of enjoying my business.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ShaniahRenaeStore
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shaniahrenaedesigns/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaniahrenae
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCYZkFZOvqPqHoyabVvuoV9w
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@shaniahrenae1?_t=8Ua2wHJ0x6w&_r=1