We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tabia Kuntz a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Tabia, appreciate you joining us today. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your business sooner or later?

If I could go back in time I think it would have been more beneficial to start my business much sooner. I have learned a valuable lesson in birthing ideas but not allowing them to flourish and grow to their fullest potential. I have always had the idea of starting my own denim line for tall women. However, with no action or drive behind the idea it remained just that… an idea. When I decided to put my idea into action I had hit a point in my life where I was feeling unhappy and stagnant in my career. I had boxed myself into a career field without intending to do so. My creativity was being stifled and I decided to do something about it.

I can’t help but think that had I started Taboo Denim much sooner the brand would be even bigger by now. I would have caught the Instagram wave early with marketing, branding, and hopping on all of the new trends. It may also have impacted if I would have chosen to attend College and my current career path. Although, I may not have had the means to start the business during this earlier time in my life. Not having the money to invest into my business during the start-up phase would have greatly impacted my experience. I may not have had the opportunity to produce five styles of denim at once or afford all of the smaller necessary things needed to run a business.

We can discuss all of the possibilities however, I do not have any regrets. I would not change the timeline if given the chance. In this current period of time, I am wiser, stronger, and more resilient. I started Taboo Denim within the time-frame that was perfect for my life. I am extremely grateful to be in business for a little under two years and my line is now available at Nordstrom.com

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?

As a teen, I always struggled with finding jeans that were long enough for my extremely long legs. To no avail, I had to continue to wear my regular jeans which on me were considered “high waters”. As I got older, I began finding sites that would accommodate the length that I needed. I found that an inseam of 34 inches is where I finally began to feel comfortable in my jeans. So that was one problem solved! On occasion, I would go shopping with my friends and they would be able to buy all the new popular jean styles and I would always feel left out. I could only buy my jeans in certain stores or online and they were always really plain and basic with no style or flare to them. As time went on, I found more places to shop online for my jeans but that came with even more struggles. I had to deal with inconsistent sizing and limited availability. I finally decided enough was enough. I decided I would start my own line that would solve every struggle that I had ever experienced with jeans. I am extremely proud to be able to help Tall women everywhere by delivering a quality and stylish product. Also, Taboo Denim is now available to be shipped to 20+ countries via ordering from Nordstrom.com. Increasing access to tall-women jeans has been one of my number one priorities and Nordstrom has helped me achieve that goal.

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

When I started this process I had no clue where to start or how to secure a manufacturer. Luckily, a family member connected me to this trusted vendor, located in China, to begin the process and negotiations. Like they say, it’s all about who you know! The manufacturing process was not very simple due to Covid causing the factory to shut down. After a few months, the process began and I had to choose things such as the zipper, create a size chart, and the other elements I wanted to go into each pair of denim. I had an input on everything down to the threading. I put a lot of thought into the creative process with the needs of all my tall friends on the forefront.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

What helped to build my reputation in the market is that my product is QUALITY denim. I wanted to create a product that was not cheaply put together. A product that would fit the same no matter what style someone bought it in. Having consistency in sizes and quality is extremely important to me. These exact factors are what prompted me to birth the idea to start my own denim line for tall girls.

Contact Info:

• Website: taboodenim.com
• Instagram: @taboodenim
• Facebook: Taboo Denim

Image Credits
Imani Williams Delisa Cunningham