In year two, I want to see the Baton Rouge Fashion Council continue to grow and involve more local students. I think that fashion students can really benefit from getting involved with the Council, whether through internships or participating in fashion shows or event planning. The Fashion Council is a great way to gain valuable real-world experience, and I want to see more students take advantage of that opportunity.
Second, I want to give back more to the community. We hosted two events this year where we were able to donate either clothing items or canned goods, and I would like to continue hosting these types of events. I would also love to start a scholarship fund for an emerging Local designer or fashion student at LSU.
Third, I want the city’s fashion scene to continue growing. Fifty businesses is a large number, but with more businesses involved come more ideas. The potential for growth, and awesome things to happen in this city.
What Is The Baton Rouge Fashion Council?
The BRFC is an organization that provides a space for local boutiques and designers to collaborate through popup shops, runway shows, and social events. By hosting monthly events around the Baton Rouge area, we create opportunities for more than 50 local boutiques and designers to get involved.
After finally taking the plunge and hitting the Publish button on the website, I was terrified that local boutiques wouldn’t respond well.
After I hit publish, I posted about the organization in a Louisiana Business Women’s Facebook group. I was lucky to get a positive response, with about 20 boutiques designers immediately saying they were interested.
Why Did I Start?
I was passionate about promoting local businesses, so I decided to start a collaborative organization. That would allow me to work with these businesses as a blogger. At the time, small businesses in the area only had popup events sporadically. There was also another organization that hosted a Baton Rouge Fashion Week annually, but it was based out of state.
Being disconnected from the local jewelry scene led me to realize that many people only knew of the designers and boutiques I worked with because of my blog. I was able to talk with the sisters at Solis and Desiree at Hey, Penelope to get their input on how to better promote these businesses. My mom and best friend were also a great help in hashing out the organization and how it would work.
When I presented the idea to my colleagues. It was met with resounding support, so I decided to move forward with it. My cousin, who is an attorney, helped me get the organization up and running legally. And then I reached out to my best friend at Blue Lemon Co., who is a graphic designer, to help me create a website and logo.
Baton Rouge Fashion Council Hosts First Pop-Up Shop
Most of the discussion about Baton Rouge’s fashion world happens online, on blogs and Instagram accounts. It’s great to be a part of that, and we’re excited to participate in this popup market to get our brand in front of people in a more tangible way. Still, it’s exciting that a newly-formed organization is trying to bring everything into a more substantial space.”
More About Baton Rouge Fashion Council
Fashion is a lot like baking in that you’re often under pressure to create something perfect on the first try. It’s easy to get caught up in making something look good when you’re so used to it. But if we’re constantly critiquing ourselves, we’ll never feel like we’re good enough. We’re constantly being evaluated, and it can feel like we have no control over the process. Our bodies are constantly assessed and we look in the mirror all the time, questioning if we’re measuring up.
It is so easy to get caught up in what the world tells us is “perfection” when it comes to fashion. We see all of these perfect models and celebrities and we compare ourselves to them. And we think that because we don’t look like them, we must be somehow flawed or worthless. But it’s important to remember that it’s not just our appearance that’s being judged. It’s our personality, our inner being, the core of who we are. And it is this same inner self that is constantly being evaluated.
Remember that you are not the only one in the room. When you are trying to think or feel good about yourself. It can be difficult to remember this, especially when it comes to fashion because we all want to look our best. However, it is important to keep in mind that everyone is going through the same process.
Designers are usually the ones who are the most famous and influential. Because they have to be trendsetters in the fashion industry. They often get the most advertisement, make the most money, and as a result, have a lot of power.
It’s not that we should never worry about designers, but we should try to invite them for a while. If a designer isn’t at the top of the list. It’s in their best interest to try to keep them around. I believe that fashion designers should be mostly judged by those who design them because Fashion affects people’s lives the most. In many cases, designers have a lot of influence.