We recently connected with Terrance Williams and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Terrance thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Almost every entrepreneur we know has considered donating a portion of their sales to an organization or cause – how did you make the decision of whether to donate? We’d love to hear the backstory if you’re open to sharing the details.

5% of sales from my business are donated to projects that are removing carbon from the atmosphere in creative and innovative ways. So far $4,960.72 has been contributed

Terrance, 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?

My business Terrance Williams Designs is ethically sourced and sustainably produced clothing and accessories that I design and sew myself. I sew headbands, caftan dresses, dusters, capes, scarves, bandanas and more! Everything is genderless and size inclusive. I wanted to create a brand that focused on sustainability and human rights because they are both topics that are important to me. I’ve always had a love for human rights and planned to attend law school to be an international lawyer, but I also had a love for fashion design. So, I turned down law school, taught myself how to sew and now run a business that advocates for people in garment factories being paid fair wages and working in safe conditions. 5% of my sales also go towards businesses and initiatives that are removing carbon from the atmosphere. I routinely try to use my platform to educate about sustainability and the plight of garment workers.It was important for me as a gay Black man to create clothing and accessories where anyone, regardless of race, size and gender identity, could feel included and feel beautiful in my pieces while also respecting the environment and the people who make out clothing. Fashion can be so limiting and restricting and what started out as me wanting to creating a safe space for myself has grown into creating a safe space for others.

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

When I was living back home in Pennsylvania, I pitched my brand to almost all of the boutiques downtown to get my products in their store. Each and everyone of them turned me down. I was absolutely devastated. I took the rejection as inspiration and spent the next year really crafting my image, building my brand, and making my presence known in my town for being a fashion and accessories designer. All the hard work paid off because I was soon getting interviews with local magazines and newspapers, I had finally been accepted into another boutique and sales from my business were growing daily. I even had one of the boutiques who rejected me invite me to speak on a panel and inquire about having my items in their shop. It took a lot of hard work, but I was able to get my brand to where I wanted it to be despite their rejection.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

The majority of my business is self funded, so the money that I make for my business goes back into my business. But, there was a time where I got a $10,000 grant from the singer Halsey. They were doing a search on social media for Black Owned Businesses that they thought they could support and give grants to and I put myself out there along with my work. My amazing and supportive followers on social media also recommended me and it must have gotten the attention of Halsey and their team because they reached out to me and eventually awarded me the grant! It was such an amazing experience, and really changed the trajectory of my small business.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.terrancewilliamsdesigns.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/terrancewilliams_/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terrancewilliamsdesigns/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/terrancedesigns
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgi-M7gCpSn51NlWHck9YxQ